|
Have questions?
Contact us
Already a member? Sign in
|
Get every literary device explanation for An Ideal Husband
Plus so much more...
Sign up for LitCharts A+
Get instant access to every literary device explanation, plus so much more...
Irony
Explanation and Analysis—The Prodigal Son?:
In Act 4, Part 1, Lord Caversham heartily criticizes his son for embodying what Caversham sees as the failings of the younger generation. In a moment of special dramatic irony, he contrasts his son’s behavior with that of Sir Robert Chiltern, who has just given a rousing speech against the Argentine Canal project in Parliament:
Lord Caversham: Do you mean to say you have not read The Times leading article on Robert Chiltern’s career?
Lord Goring: Good heavens! No. What does it say?
Lord Caversham: What should it say, sir? Everything complimentary, of course. Chiltern’s speech last night on this Argentine Canal scheme was one of the finest pieces of oratory ever delivered in the House since Canning.
Lord Goring: Ah! Never heard of Canning. Never wanted to. And did ... did Chiltern uphold the scheme?
Lord Caversham: Uphold it, sir? How little you know him! Why, he denounced it roundly…
Of course, it is thanks to Lord Goring’s moral clarity and his friendship with Robert Chiltern that Chiltern has been able to navigate the potential scandal with the Argentine Canal with such aplomb—but Caversham does not know this and Goring does not let on. Caversham’s criticisms of Goring are thus laden with dramatic irony: Goring is responsible for the very behavior in Chiltern that Caversham so admires.
Monthly
Annual (Best Value)
$595USD/mo
Charged $71.40 USD every year
Teacher$795USD/mo
Charged $95.40 USD every year
Literature Guide PDFs
LitCharts PDFs for every book you'll read this year.
Instant PDF downloads of all 2256 LitCharts literature guides and of every new one we publish. Try a free sample literature guide.
"Would not have made it through AP Literature without the printable PDFs. They're like having in-class notes for every discussion!"
Quotes Explanations
Find the perfect quote. Understand it perfectly. Then rock the citation, too.
For all 50,308 quotes we cover.
For all 50,308 quotes we cover.
Teacher Editions
Close reading made easy for students.
Time saved for teachers.
For every book we cover.
Time saved for teachers.
For every book we cover.
Common Core-aligned
PDFs of modern translations of every one of Shakespeare's 37 plays, 154 sonnets, and 3 longer poems.
Literary Terms and Devices
Definitions and examples for every literary term and device you need to know.
Plus a quick-reference PDF with concise definitions of all 136 terms in one place.
Plus a quick-reference PDF with concise definitions of all 136 terms in one place.
Try a free sample literary term PDF.
Advanced Search
Refine any search. Find related themes, quotes, symbols, characters, and more.
Related Themes
Comparing and contrasting texts? Find where any theme occurs across all of LitCharts in seconds.
Poetry Guides
Line-by-line explanations and analysis of figurative language and poetic devices.
For every lyric poem we cover.
For every lyric poem we cover.
