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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
Key Examples in The Hunchback of Notre Dame
Book 6, Chapter 1
Explanation and Analysis—Deaf Trial:
If justice is blind, it also happens to be woefully—comically—deaf. Book 6, Chapter 1 treats the reader to a farcical trial scene as Quasimodo shows up in court for his attempted abduction of Esmeralda. Hard of hearing himself, the hunchback has the bad luck of getting tried by a deaf judge. What follows is dramatic irony of absurdly humorous proportions:
Quasimodo, totally ignorant that a question had been addressed to him, continued to stare fixedly at the judge and did not answer. The judge, who was deaf and totally ignorant of the deafness of the defendant, thought he had replied, as defendants generally did, and continued, with his stupid and mechanical self-assurance.
Related Themes:
Book 7, Chapter 8
Explanation and Analysis—I Love You:
Phoebus’s rendezvous with Esmeralda is shot through with dramatic irony. In Book 7, Chapter 8, the French soldier passionately professes his love for Esmeralda while he undresses her:
Unlock with LitCharts A+So listen, my dear Similar, I adore you passionately. I love you truly, miraculously. I know one girl who’ll be beside herself with rage…
Related Themes:
Book 9, Chapter 1
Explanation and Analysis—Esmeralda’s Ghost:
In Book 9, Chapter 1, Claude Frollo’s feverish fit ends in dramatic irony. Upon returning to the Notre Dame, he finds Esmeralda walking through the cathedral hallways and passes by what he mistakes to be her ghost:
Unlock with LitCharts A+In fact, she arrived in front of the door into the staircase, paused there for a moment or two, peered into the shadows, apparently without seeing the priest, and passed on. She seemed taller than she had been in life; he could see the moon through her white robe; he could hear her breathing.
Related Themes:
