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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 Klara and the Sun
Irony
Explanation and Analysis—Klara's Faith:
Expressed repeatedly through the illogical quality of the plot, the steadfast nature of Klara’s faith is another one of the novel’s ironic surprises. Klara’s plan to save Josie hinges on an improbable, even wildly unrealistic act of hope: believing that Josie’s illness is due to an angry Sun, she seeks out the destruction of the Cootings Machine in hopes of eliminating its Pollution and thereby earning its favor. The premise is almost as illogical as it sounds; Ishiguro plainly shows the reader how Klara's reasoning fails.
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Part Two
Explanation and Analysis—The Bull:
Few sights in the novel ruffle Klara’s composure as much as her passing glance at the bull, which establishes a sinister, almost haunting presence. As a creature, it provokes a feeling of terror in the otherwise unflustered AF. As a motif, it ironically captures a primal, irrational fear of creation. While stepping out of the car at Morgan’s Falls in Part 2, Klara catches her first glimpses of the bull:
Unlock with LitCharts A+Just at this point, I happened to look to my left, over the fence running beside us, and saw the bull in the field, watching us carefully. I had seen photos of bulls in the magazines, but of course never in reality, and even though this one was standing quite far from us, and I knew it couldn’t cross the fence, I was so alarmed by its appearance I gave an exclamation and came to a halt. I’d never before seen anything that gave, all at once, so many signals of anger and the wish to destroy. Its face, its horns, its cold eyes watching me all brought fear into my mind, but I felt something more, something stranger and deeper. At that moment it felt to me some great error had been made that the creature should be allowed to stand in the Sun’s pattern at all, that this bull belonged somewhere in the ground far within the mud and darkness, and its presence on the grass could only have awful consequences.
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Explanation and Analysis—Many Feelings:
A robot does not usually feel; the very term "robot" itself has origins in unthinking “drudgery” and “servitude.” One of the story’s many ironies, then, is Klara’s simultaneous status as robot and her remarkable ability to sense emotion. During the trip to Morgan’s Falls, the Mother and Josie start a discussion about her capacity for feeling:
Unlock with LitCharts A+‘It must be nice sometimes to have no feelings. I envy you.’
I considered this, then said: ‘I believe I have many feelings. The more I observe, the more feeling become available to me.’
She laughed unexpectedly, making me start. ‘In that case,’ she said, ‘maybe you shouldn’t be so keen to observe.’ Then she added: ‘I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to be rude.’
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Explanation and Analysis—Longing to Get Back:
As the Mother chats with Klara before they head for Morgan’s Falls in Part 3, she briefly marvels at the AF’s absence of nostalgia:
Unlock with LitCharts A+The Mother looked at me for a moment. Then she said: ‘It must be great. Not to miss things. Not to long to get back to something. Not to be looking back all the time. Everything must be so much more…’
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Part Four
Explanation and Analysis—Replacement:
Dramatic irony intensifies the novel’s tensest moment. After the Father storms out of Mr. Capaldi’s, Klara learns at last about the Mother’s plans and reacts to them:
Unlock with LitCharts A+I’d like to say there’s a chance you’ll never need the new Josie. The present one may become healthy. I believe there’s a good chance of this. I’ll need, of course, the opportunity, the chance to make it so. But since you’re so distressed, I’d like to say this now. If ever there comes such a sad day, and Josie is obliged to pass away, I’ll do everything in my power. Mr. Capaldi is correct. It won’t be like the last time with Sal because this time you’ll have me to help. I now understand why you’ve asked me, at every step, to observe and learn Josie. I hope the very sad day will never come, but I’ll use everything I’ve learned to train the new Josie up there to be as much like the former one as possible.
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Part Six
Explanation and Analysis—Klara in the Yard:
Irony mingles with sadness in Part 6 of the novel, as Klara reveals to the reader that she is no longer with Josie:
Unlock with LitCharts A+Even so, such composite memories have sometimes filled my mind so vividly, I’ve forgotten for long moments that I am, in reality, sitting here in the Yard, on this hard ground.
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