In an example of situational irony, Madame Duval openly and harshly condemns other people for their poor manners while herself exhibiting the poor manners she claims to hate. In one memorable scene, Madame Duval uses crude and upsetting language while going on a diatribe about other peoples’ crude behavior, here captured from Evelina’s perspective:
The conversation, however, very soon took a more serious turn; for she began, with great bitterness, to inveigh against the barbarous brutality of that fellow the Captain, and the horrible ill-breeding of the English in general, declaring she should make her escape with all expedition from so beastly a nation. But nothing can be more strangely absurd, than to hear politeness recommended in language so repugnant to it as that of Madame Duval.
Evelina herself notices the irony of this moment, noting how “strangely absurd” it is to “hear politeness recommended in language so repugnant." It is also ironic that Madame Duval is complaining about the “horrible ill-breeding of the English” as she, herself, is an English woman who happened to live in France in her past. Though she has a slight French accent and goes by “Madame,” she was born lower-class in England and only earned her French affectations by marrying a French nobleman when she was young.
In an example of dramatic irony, Evelina (and readers) know that Captain Mirvan and Sir Clement are pretending to be robbers when they attack Madame Duval and haul her out of her carriage, but Madame Duval does not. The irony comes across clearly when Madame Duval tells Evelina after-the-fact about the murderous intentions of the robbers, which she (and readers) knows is not true:
“Why, child, all this misfortune comes of that puppy’s making us leave our money behind us; for as soon as the robber see I did not put nothing in his hands, he lugged me out of the chariot by main force, and I verily thought he’d have murdered me. He was as strong as a lion; I was no more in his hands than a child. But I believe never nobody was so abused before, for he dragged me down the road, pulling and hawling me all the way, as if I’d no more feeling than a horse.”
Though Madame Duval’s experience is genuinely violent and traumatic—and Evelina does not approve of the men’s actions—the scene offers something of a comedic moment in the novel. There is also an element of situational irony in this moment, since Madame Duval herself has acted in manipulative ways but is now finally on the receiving end of such behavior.
There is also some notable figurative language in Madame Duval’s description—she uses a simile in stating that the robber was “as strong as a lion,” and she metaphorically compares herself to both a child (due to her weakness in the face of his strength) and a horse (due to how carelessly the “robber” hauled her down the road). Her descriptions communicate her fear and also her tendency to exaggerate (as Evelina knows it’s unlikely that Captain Mirvan treated her in such an extreme way).
In an example of situational irony, Evelina runs from men who are trying to harass her on the street and finds solace in two women, not realizing that they are sex workers. The irony comes from the fact that Evelina is afraid that the men will ruin her virginal and innocent reputation, not realizing that linking arms with women who are obvious sex workers will do the same. Evelina’s description of the interaction in a letter to Mr. Villars captures the irony well:
I screamed aloud with fear, and, forcibly snatching it away, I ran hastily up to two ladies, and cried, “For Heaven’s sake, dear ladies, afford me some protection!”
They heard me with a loud laugh, but very readily said, “Ay, let her walk between us;” and each of them took hold of an arm.
Then, in a drawling, ironical tone of voice, they asked what had frightened my little Ladyship? […]
I will not dwell upon a conversation, which soon, to my inexpressible horror, convinced me I had sought protection from insult, of those who were themselves most likely to offer it!
The fact that the women give a “loud laugh” when Evelina asks for protection and that Evelina experiences “inexpressible” horror on realizing who they are captures the irony of her choice of saviors. (Evelina does not directly refer to the women as sex workers, but her language that these women “were themselves most likely to offer [insult]” effectively makes her point.)
One of the key examples of situational irony in Evelina is the fact that Miss Belmont has been living the life of Sir John Belmont’s only daughter in Evelina’s place (and neither woman was aware of the swap). While Evelina believes that Sir John intentionally abandoned and neglected her, she discovers by chance via gossip at a ball that, in reality, Sir John has been raising Miss Belmont in her place, believing that she is his real heir. Evelina’s shocked reaction to hearing about Miss Belmont highlights the ironic twist:
Struck with the name, I involuntarily repeated it, but nobody heard me.
“What is her family?” said Mrs. Beaumont.
“Have you not heard of her, Ma’am?” cried [Lord Orville], “she is only daughter and heiress of Sir John Belmont.”
Good Heaven, how did I start! the name struck my ear like a thunder-bolt. Mrs. Selwyn, who immediately looked at me, said, “Be calm, my dear, and we will learn the truth of all this.”
That Evelina “starts” and feels that Miss Belmont’s name “struck [her] ear like a thunderbolt”—and that Mrs. Selwyn feels she must calm Evelina down—shows her surprise and confusion.
Miss Belmont’s true origins become clear near the end of the novel when Dame Green—Evelina’s mother’s former maid—reveals that Miss Belmont is, in fact, her daughter, whom she gave birth to when unmarried. Fearing for both her reputation and her daughter’s financial security, she swapped Miss Belmont for Evelina and passed Evelina onto Mr. Villars.
Another layer of irony related to Sir John’s parentage is that Miss Belmont has fallen in love with Mr. Macartney, with neither of them realizing that he is another one of Sir John’s children born out of wedlock. Ultimately, Evelina takes her rightful place as Sir John’s heir, leaving Miss Belmont and Mr. Macartney to marry without any issues.
