An amusing instance of dramatic irony occurs in Chapter 10 when Toad, who is on the run disguised as a washerwoman after escaping from prison, hails a car and is surprised to find that it is the very one he stole. This unexpected turn of events causes Toad to faint:
Two gentlemen got out and walked round the trembling heap of crumpled misery lying in the road, and one of them said, ‘O dear! this is very sad! Here is a poor old thing—a washerwoman apparently—who has fainted in the road! Perhaps she is overcome by the heat, poor creature; or possibly she has not had any food to-day. Let us lift her into the car and take her to the nearest village, where doubtless she has friends.’
In the story, the reader is aware of Toad's true identity, while the gentlemen mistakenly believe they are assisting a washerwoman. Grahame intentionally creates this situation to underscore Toad's reckless, arrogant, and impertinent nature, while also imparting a deeper lesson to the reader. When Toad regains consciousness, he experiences a sense of pride in successfully fooling the gentlemen, which leads him to take the risky decision of driving the car himself. This trait of overconfidence ultimately results in Toad's second capture. It is through predicaments like this one that Toad gradually learns to recognize his own arrogance and strives to live a more humble existence.
