I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
by Maya Angelou

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings: Situational Irony 1 key example

Chapter 13
Explanation and Analysis—Rape and Trauma:

In Chapter 13, Angelou describes the behavior and attitudes of the nurses who care for her following her rape. Notably, these nurses seem to subconsciously equate the act of rape with that of consensual sexual intercourse. This attitude imprints itself on young Maya Angelou, affecting her perception of the assault. In an example of situational irony, Angelou echoes the nurses' sentiments, comparing her own rape to puberty:

I was eight, and grown. Even the nurses in the hospital had told me that now I had nothing to fear. "The worst is over for you," they had said. So I put the words in all the smirking mouths.