irony | the difference between what you think will happen vs. what actually happens |
dramatic irony | when the audience knows something that the characters in a play or story do not know |
situational irony | something (event) that ends up differently than what you would expect |
verbal irony | difference between what someone says and what they actually mean (sarcasm) |
example of DRAMATIC irony from the Odyssey: | When we knew that Poseidon, the Cyclops’ father, was the one that put the prophecy/curse on Odysseus, and Odysseus did not know; when Odysseus dressed up as a beggar |
example of SITUATIONAL irony from the Odyssey: | Penelope doubts Odysseus’ identity; expected a month to get home -> takes 10 years; Cyclops eats Odysseus men instead of giving him gifts |
example of VERBAL irony from the Odyssey: | When Odysseus told the Cyclops that his name was “Nohbdy”, it is ironic because Odysseus is not nobody, he is the King of Ithaca. |
Irony – Definitions & Odyssey Examples
April 22, 2020