Atonement
by Ian McEwan

Atonement: Irony 2 key examples

Definition of Irony

Irony is a literary device or event in which how things seem to be is in fact very different from how they actually are. If this seems like a loose definition... read full definition
Irony is a literary device or event in which how things seem to be is in fact very different from how they actually are. If this... read full definition
Irony is a literary device or event in which how things seem to be is in fact very different from how... read full definition

Key Examples in Atonement

Part 1, Chapter 9
Explanation and Analysis—Excluding the Worst:

Because the narrator moves between the perspectives of a range of characters, the novel contains many instances of dramatic irony. Moreover, because the narrator is narrating with the benefit of hindsight, the first part also contains a large amount of foreshadowing. The characters' discordant views of situations makes the reader expect conflict.

Part 3
Explanation and Analysis—Coming Between:

Early in the third part, the reader learns that Briony has submitted a short story to a literary magazine called Horizon. Although three months have passed since she delivered it to them, she has yet to hear back. When a response finally comes, the rejection letter is full of dramatic irony. Briony feels taunted by the letter—especially its ironic intuition for how things turned out.

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