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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 Red Badge of Courage
Chapter 13
Explanation and Analysis—Henry and the Corporal:
After fleeing battle and witnessing his friend Jim’s death, Henry finally returns to his regiment sporting a head wound he sustained in an altercation with a fellow Union army soldier. Because Henry doesn’t want his comrades to realize that he fled or find out about the humiliating circumstances of his wound, he pretends that he was hit by a Confederate bullet. The response of the regiment’s corporal, who treats the wound, is an example of dramatic irony. Looking at Henry’s head, he says,
Yeh’ve been grazed by a ball. It’s raised a queer lump jest as if some feller had lammed yeh on th’ head with a club.
Related Themes:
