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Dialect
Definition of Dramatic Irony
Dramatic irony is a plot device often used in theater, literature, film, and television to highlight the difference between a character's understanding of a given situation, and that of the... read full definition
Dramatic irony is a plot device often used in theater, literature, film, and television to highlight the difference between a character's understanding of a given... read full definition
Dramatic irony is a plot device often used in theater, literature, film, and television to highlight the difference between a... read full definition
Chapter 1
Explanation and Analysis—Self-Consciousness:
In Chapter 1, the narrator describes the moment he found out that he was Black, after a teacher asked all the white students to stand up. This unforgettable memory is marked by dramatic irony:
The teacher looked at me, and calling my name said, “You sit down for the present, and rise with the others.” I did not quite understand her, and questioned, “Ma’am?” She repeated with a softer tone in her voice, “You sit down now, and rise with the others.” I sat down dazed. I saw and heard nothing. When the others were asked to rise I did not know it.
Related Themes:
Chapter 11
Explanation and Analysis—Captial Joke:
In Chapter 11, when the narrator has decided to pass for white, he comments on the humorous dramatic irony of his position. There is also situational irony in the narrator's inability to point out the dramatic irony without ruining it:
Unlock with LitCharts A+The anomaly of my social position often appealed strongly to my sense of humor. I frequently smiled inwardly at some remark not altogether complimentary to people of color; and more than once I felt like declaiming, “I am a colored man. Do I not disprove the theory that one drop of Negro blood renders a man unfit?” Many a night when I returned to my room after an enjoyable evening, I laughed heartily over what struck me as the capital joke I was playing.
Related Themes:
