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Shakespeare's use of dramatic irony and its role in Romeo and Juliet
Shakespeare's use of dramatic irony and its role in Romeo and Juliet
Shakespeare's use of dramatic irony and its role in Romeo and Juliet
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In the tragedy, Romeo and Juliet, William Shakespeare utilizes many instances of dramatic irony which is based on the disparity of reality and misconception. This literary element of dramatic irony is shown when the audience knows something that the characters do not. The usage of dramatic irony along with the usage of other literary elements makes each scene suspenseful, interesting and powerful. In the tragedy, there were multiple scenes with dramatic irony such as the scene where Capulet agrees to let Paris marry Juliet although in reality, she is already married to Romeo. Another scene where Shakespeare includes dramatic irony is when Juliet is found dead in her bed but actually she is alive and asleep. Ultimately, another scene where dramatic irony adds to the tragedy is when Romeo notices that Juliet looks alive but …show more content…
The dramatic irony in this scene is that the audience is aware that Juliet and Romeo have already gone to the Friar to be married in secret. This makes the scene much more effective because it puts the audience in a superior position. It also encourages the audience’s curiosity and fears concerning when or if the characters will find out the truth that Juliet is married to Romeo. In act 4 scene 5, Juliet drinks the potion that puts her into a deep sleep for forty-two hours, and when the Nurse comes in to wake her up, she realizes that Juliet’s body is numb. Frightened, the Nurse screams “Lady, lady, lady! Alas, alas! Help, help! My lady’s dead. O weraday, that ever I was born” (4.5.16-19). The irony in this scene is that the audience knows that Juliet is not dead, only asleep from the potion she takes. The dramatic irony creates a more powerful scene because the audience is aware that Juliet is still alive but feel powerless to do
Dramatic irony means that the audience knows something that the character in the piece of literature doesn’t know. In Romeo and Juliet, the audience knows the ending at the very beginning, but still watches Romeo and Juliet fall in love and get married. Eventually, they both kill themselves thinking the other is dead. Suspense relies on dramatic irony because it makes the audience feel tense until the character finds out and the tension is relieved. Suspense also relies on dramatic irony because the audience may learn something the character doesn’t know, making the audience want to tell the characters themselves, knowing fully well that that’s impossible. An example of dramatic irony in Cujo is the car that Donna drives. Donna drives a Pinto which is known as one of the worst cars to ever have existed. The Ford Pinto would explode and had to be recalled. The Pinto in this story, however, saved Donna and Tad from being killed by Cujo. The audience knew that the Pinto was a bad car, but if they were reading the book, they would have realized that there were too many pages left for both of them to die. Also, if they had read this excerpt, they would have thought that StudySync wouldn’t’ve ruined the ending of a story written by Stephen King. Another example of dramatic irony is that Cujo had rabies. In the very beginning of the story, not the excerpt, Cujo gets bitten by a bat. In the excerpt, this can be figured out by how
Dramatic Irony is irony when the audience knows something which the characters do not. An example of dramatic irony in The Cask is when Montresor expresses concern for Fortunato’s help. This is ironic because everyone except Fortunato knows that Montresor is not really concerned about his health. Montresor says, “Come, I said, with decision, we will go back; your health is precious” (Poe 238). Montresor lying about being concerned of Fortunato’s death is also ironic because, Montresor is concerned about luring Montresor into the catacombs to carry out his murder plan. Fortunato does not want Montresor to die of a cough, but wants to kill him himself. Montresor does not have the slightest clue that Fortunato is planning to murder
Dramatic Irony is when an author allows the reader to know more than his/her characters in the story. This technique is used by the authors to add suspense to their literature. Edgar Allen Poe created many suspenseful stories using dramatic irony for the purpose of creating themes about human nature. In the short story “The Cask Of Amontillado,” Edgar Allen Poe uses dramatic irony to develop the theme that one should be careful about insulting another because he/she will seek revenge.
This is also an example of dramatic irony; the audience knows what is on the way. making the story even sadder for them. In Act 2 Scene 2, Romeo is talking about the possibility of being caught in the Capulet grounds in a very relaxed and romantic manner. My life was better ended by their hateâ€. This is an example of dramatic irony Romeo is talking about being.
In Sophocles: The Theban Plays E. F. Watling comments on Sophocles’ usage of dramatic irony in his dramas: “. . . that powerful and subtle weapon of ‘dramatic irony’ which Sophocles used with especial skill, whereby the audience can judge every speech and action of the play in the light of their previous knowledge of the situation” (12). M. H. Abrams defines dramatic irony as a situation wherein:
One example of expertly used irony is when Hamlet is talking to his mother when he hears a noise behind the curtains, so he stabs the figure behind the tapestries thinking it is Claudius, “How now, a rat? Dead for a ducat, dead!” (3, 4, 24), only to find out it is Polonius. This irony can be interpreted as dramatic irony, because the audience knows Polonius is behind the curtains while Hamlet does not. It can also be interpreted as situational irony, because Hamlet suspects that the person spying on him is Claudius. Wanting to avenge his father, he stabs him through the curtain but it turned out to be Polonius. Doing this initiates a chain of events that lead to his tragic death. Another prime example of irony increasing the enjoyment of the readers for the past 400 years is when Laertes is killed by his own poisoned sword. When Osric asks Laertes how he is doing right after he was scratched with his own sword, Laertes responds, “Why, as a woodcock to mine own springe, Osric. I am justly killed with mine own treachery.” (5, 2, 308-309). It is quite ironic that Laertes is murdered by his own plan. One would expect Laertes to draw first blood as he is a better skilled swordsman than Hamlet. However, he dies by poison first because the sword that was intended to kill Hamlet was used on him; this is situational irony. Irony brings a greater depth to the story.
In both A Streetcar Named Desire and Hamlet, Tennessee Williams and William Shakespeare, respectively, demonstrate their abilities to create engaging plays which work on several levels in order to produce the desired effect. One of the most important characteristics of these plays is the playwrights' success in using their words to create the worlds surrounding their works. Both Shakespeare and Williams effectively use irony in the aforementioned plays, both in the plot and with specific symbolism, to create mildly existential environments where effective irony is a confirmation of fate and justice. Immediately apparent to the reader upon completion of these two works is the glaring appearance of irony in the plays' plots. For example, in A Streetcar Named Desire, a great deal of dramatic irony is created when the audience is made aware of details that characters are ignorant to.
Language and Dramatic Devices in William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. Introduction Shakespeare’s play ‘Romeo and Juliet’ is known as a love tragedy. features many rhymed verses, especially when Romeo and Juliet first. speak.
Dramatic irony is the audience knows more than the characters do. The use of dramatic irony in Romeo and Juliet makes the audience feel excited or apprehension towards that moment. For instance on page 200 lines 106-111 act 1 scene 4, Romeo has terrible dream and he "fears that some terrible event caused by the stars will begin at the party," as stated in the footnotes. Little did he know was that that terrible event was death and will be his own. The audience knows this because the prologue at he beginning of the play gives away the ending. Another example is on page 235 lines 37-70 act 3 scene 2, is all a big confusion between Juliet and the Nurse. all along the nurse is weeping over Tybalt screaming he's dead and Juliet thinks she's talking about Romeo. They then start saying things like "Vile earth, to earth resign; and motion here. and thou and Romeo press one heavy bier," and " Tybalt is gone, and Romeo Banished..." It's only then until the nurse said that Romeo killed Tybalt did Juliet realize. The audience knew that Juliet was heartbroken because she thought Romeo was dead and the Nurse
One technique that Shakespeare uses is irony. Verbal irony is when a character says one thing but means the opposite. When a reader understands the irony of what a character is saying, then he can truly understand the nature and intentions of the character. An example of verbal irony is when Macbeth says to Banquo, "Tonight we hold a solemn supper, sir,/ And I’ll request your presence" (Macbeth 3.1.13-14). The reader soon discovers that Banquo never makes it to the banquet because he is brutally murdered by order of Macbeth. Shakespeare also uses situation irony. This occurs when the results of an action or event are different than what is expected. An example of situation irony occurs when Macduff talks to Malcolm and discusses the tragedies that are taking place in Scotland. Without knowing that his own family has been slain Macduff says, " Each new morn/ New widows howl, new orphans cry, new sorrows/ Strike heaven on the fac...
One of the biggest pieces of dramatic irony is when no one knew that Juliet’s death was fake, due to her using a potion given to her from Frair, that would persuade people into believing that she had dramatically passed the night before her wedding, based on her soon deathlike qualities. Although, because of her decision to consume the potion, the deaths of Paris and Romeo later came as a result. The only people that had known about this plan of hers to pretend to die, were her and Fraire, he who was supposed to relay the message to Romeo. Paris was supposed to marry Juliet the day of her “death”, for Old Capulet hadn’t been informed of Romeo’s and Juliet’s previous marriage. Paris was also unaware of Juliet’s relationship with Romeo, leaving him completely devastated. With his heartful mourning for Juliet, it isn’t doubtful that he would get defensive and protective over her grave when a Montague came upon it, the Montague which killed her beloved cousin Tybalt, Romeo. He believes that Juliet had died from grief over Tybalt’s murder, after her father blamed her tears on it, which would understandably make him angry at Romeo for taking his bride from him. Upon the sight of Romeo, Paris says to him, “This is that banish’d haughty Montague that murdered my love’s cousin - with which grief it is supposed the fair creature died.”
This was done as Shakespeare was able to successfully piece together element of both comedy and tragedy into the play without the play fully fitting into either category. One of the major components of a comedy in the Elizabethan times was that a comedy would end in marriage whereas a tragedy would end in death. Though Romeo and Juliet does technically end in death, it also has a wedding that takes place and therefore abides by both of these rules. All scenes from the beginning of the play until the marriage are comedy, and after the marriage, the true tragedy begins. This is best shown through the reflection scenes, especially those involving communication problems with the Nurse and Juliet. Before the marriage, the scene opens with a soliloquy by Juliet about time and then the nurse brings news. There are communication problems between Juliet and the nurse “But all this did I know before. / What says he of our marriage, what of that?” (2:5:46-7) This is a comic scene as the nurse is rambling about trivial things while the young Juliet anxiously awaits potentially life changing news. This scene is later reflected in act 3, after the marriage, opening with yet another soliloquy by Juliet. The nurse enters in an almost hysterical state and communication problems arise again.
One example of dramatic irony is when Oedipus is looking for the killer of the king Laius-his father. The irony here is that he is looking for himself because he is the murder of his father. Oedipus knows that he killed someone, but what he does not know is that it was Laius, the one he murder. Oedipus wants to punish the person who killed Laius, but we, the audience know that Oedipus was the one who killed Laius. Also Oedipus married Jocasta without knowing that she is his mother. We, the audience knew that he was Jocasta's son, but he was unaware of that.
Shakespeare implies much irony in the play through the use of ironic devices. He shows use of verbal, dramatic, and situational irony. Through the use of irony Shakespeare sparks an interest in the reader on to what will occur as the play unravels. Verbal irony is one of the highly used ironic devices Shakespeare inputs, in many parts of the play. In some of the lines the meaning of words are the opposite of what Shakespeare is expressing.
Examples of this are when Macbeth says Banquo. “Tonight we hold a solemn supper, sir, And I’ll request your presence (III, i, 13-14)” or when he says “Fail not our feast (III, i, 28).” Verbal irony makes the play more tragic. because, if the reader understands the irony of what a character is saying, then the reader can see the true nature and intentions of the character. Another type of irony Shakespeare used is the irony of a situation.