For anyone who was looking to have irony defined, there you go.
Irony "Ironic" redirects here. For the song, see Ironic (song). For other uses, see Irony (disambiguation). Page semi-protected
Irony (from Ancient Greek εἰρωνεία (eirōneía), meaning "dissimulation, feigned ignorance"[1]), in its broadest sense, is a rhetorical device, literary technique, or event characterized by an incongruity, or contrast, between what the expectations of a situation are and what is really the case, with a third element, that defines that what is really the case is ironic because of the situation that led to it. Irony may be divided into categories such as: verbal, dramatic, and situational.
Verbal, dramatic, and situational irony are often used for emphasis in the assertion of a truth. The ironic form of simile, used in sarcasm, and some forms of litotes can emphasize one's meaning by the deliberate use of language which states the opposite of the truth, denies the contrary of the truth, or drastically and obviously understates a factual connection.[2]
Other forms, as identified by historian Connop Thirlwall, include dialectic and practical irony.[3]
Definitions Henry Watson Fowler, in The King's English, says "any definition of irony—though hundreds might be given, and very few of them would be accepted—must include this, that the surface meaning and the underlying meaning of what is said are not the same." Also, Eric Partridge, in Usage and Abusage, writes that "Irony consists in stating the contrary of what is meant."
The use of irony may require the concept of a double audience. Fowler's A Dictionary of Modern English Usage says:
Irony is a form of utterance that postulates a double audience, consisting of one party that hearing shall hear & shall not understand, & another party that, when more is meant than meets the ear, is aware both of that more & of the outsiders' incomprehension.[4]
The term is sometimes used as a synonym for incongruous and applied to "every trivial oddity" in situations where there is no double audience.[4] An example of such usage is:
Sullivan, whose real interest was, ironically, serious music, which he composed with varying degrees of success, achieved fame for his comic opera scores rather than for his more earnest efforts.[5]
The American Heritage Dictionary's secondary meaning for irony: "incongruity between what might be expected and what actually occurs".[6] This sense, however, is not synonymous with "incongruous" but merely a definition of dramatic or situational irony. It is often included in definitions of irony not only that incongruity is present but also that the incongruity must reveal some aspect of human vanity or folly. Thus the majority of American Heritage Dictionary's usage panel found it unacceptable to use the word ironic to describe mere unfortunate coincidences or surprising disappointments that "suggest no particular lessons about human vanity or folly."[7]
On this aspect, the Oxford English Dictionary (OED) has also:
A condition of affairs or events of a character opposite to what was, or might naturally be, expected; a contradictory outcome of events as if in mockery of the promise and fitness of things. (In French ironie du sort.)[8]
Origin of the term According to the Encyclopædia Britannica,
The term irony has its roots in the Greek comic character Eiron, a clever underdog who by his wit repeatedly triumphs over the boastful character Alazon. The Socratic irony of the Platonic dialogues derives from this comic origin.[9]
Types of irony
A "No smoking" sign surrounded by images of a smoking Sherlock Holmes at Baker Street tube station. The New Princeton Encyclopedia of Poetry and Poetics distinguishes between the following types of irony:[3]
Classical irony: referring to the origins of irony in Ancient Greek comedy, and the way classical and medieval rhetoricians delineated the term. Romantic irony: The Encyclopedia states that "The most significant change in meaning took place in 1797, when Schlegel observed in his Fragments: 'there are ancient and modern poems which breathe throughout, in their entirety and in every detail, the divine breath of [irony].'" It is seen as "a consistent alternation of affirmation and negation, of exuberant emergence from oneself and self-critical retreat into oneself, of enthusiasm and skepticism." Tragic irony: The Encyclopedia says this term: "was introduced by Connop Thirlwall in 1833, who based it on a distinction among three basic types of [irony]: verbal, dialectic, and practical." Cosmic irony: "[Irony] took on a new and more comprehensive dimension with Hegel, who strongly opposed romantic [irony] because of its "annihilating" tendency, seeing in it nothing but poetic caprice." In The History of Philosophy, Hegel sensed in the "crowding of world historical affairs," in the trampling down of the "happiness of peoples, wisdom of states, and virtue of individuals," in short, in his comprehensive view of history, an ironic contrast between the absolute and the relative, the general and the individual, which he expressed by the phrase, "general [irony] of the world."[3]
Verbal irony: The Encyclopedia states that, in this: one meaning is stated and a different, usually antithetical, meaning is intended. The [irony] of a statement often depends on context. If one looks out of his window at a rain storm and remarks to a friend, "Wonderful day, isn't it?" the contradiction between the facts and the implied description of them establishes the [irony].[3]
Dramatic irony: a plot device according to which (a) the spectators know more than the protagonist; (b) the character reacts in a way contrary to that which is appropriate or wise; (c) characters or situations are compared or contrasted for ironic effects, such as parody; or (d) there is a marked contrast between what the character understands about his acts and what the play demonstrates about them.[3]
A disparity of awareness between actor and observer: when words and actions possess significance that the listener or audience understands, but the speaker or character does not; for example when a character says to another "I'll see you tomorrow!" when the audience (but not the character) knows that the character will die before morning. It is most often used when the author causes a character to speak or act erroneously, out of ignorance of some portion of the truth of which the audience is aware. In tragic irony, the audience knows the character is making a mistake, even as the character is making it. Poetic irony. The Encyclopedia says that: "during the modern period [especially], beginning with romanticism, [irony] has become inseparable from literary and poetic expression itself.[3]" Lars Elleström would add:
Situational irony: The disparity of intention and result; when the result of an action is contrary to the desired or expected effect.
Comments
"Ironic" redirects here. For the song, see Ironic (song). For other uses, see Irony (disambiguation).
Page semi-protected
Irony (from Ancient Greek εἰρωνεία (eirōneía), meaning "dissimulation, feigned ignorance"[1]), in its broadest sense, is a rhetorical device, literary technique, or event characterized by an incongruity, or contrast, between what the expectations of a situation are and what is really the case, with a third element, that defines that what is really the case is ironic because of the situation that led to it. Irony may be divided into categories such as: verbal, dramatic, and situational.
Verbal, dramatic, and situational irony are often used for emphasis in the assertion of a truth. The ironic form of simile, used in sarcasm, and some forms of litotes can emphasize one's meaning by the deliberate use of language which states the opposite of the truth, denies the contrary of the truth, or drastically and obviously understates a factual connection.[2]
Other forms, as identified by historian Connop Thirlwall, include dialectic and practical irony.[3]
Definitions
Henry Watson Fowler, in The King's English, says "any definition of irony—though hundreds might be given, and very few of them would be accepted—must include this, that the surface meaning and the underlying meaning of what is said are not the same." Also, Eric Partridge, in Usage and Abusage, writes that "Irony consists in stating the contrary of what is meant."
The use of irony may require the concept of a double audience. Fowler's A Dictionary of Modern English Usage says:
Irony is a form of utterance that postulates a double audience, consisting of one party that hearing shall hear & shall not understand, & another party that, when more is meant than meets the ear, is aware both of that more & of the outsiders' incomprehension.[4]
The term is sometimes used as a synonym for incongruous and applied to "every trivial oddity" in situations where there is no double audience.[4] An example of such usage is:
Sullivan, whose real interest was, ironically, serious music, which he composed with varying degrees of success, achieved fame for his comic opera scores rather than for his more earnest efforts.[5]
The American Heritage Dictionary's secondary meaning for irony: "incongruity between what might be expected and what actually occurs".[6] This sense, however, is not synonymous with "incongruous" but merely a definition of dramatic or situational irony. It is often included in definitions of irony not only that incongruity is present but also that the incongruity must reveal some aspect of human vanity or folly. Thus the majority of American Heritage Dictionary's usage panel found it unacceptable to use the word ironic to describe mere unfortunate coincidences or surprising disappointments that "suggest no particular lessons about human vanity or folly."[7]
On this aspect, the Oxford English Dictionary (OED) has also:
A condition of affairs or events of a character opposite to what was, or might naturally be, expected; a contradictory outcome of events as if in mockery of the promise and fitness of things. (In French ironie du sort.)[8]
Origin of the term
According to the Encyclopædia Britannica,
The term irony has its roots in the Greek comic character Eiron, a clever underdog who by his wit repeatedly triumphs over the boastful character Alazon. The Socratic irony of the Platonic dialogues derives from this comic origin.[9]
Types of irony
A "No smoking" sign surrounded by images of a smoking Sherlock Holmes at Baker Street tube station.
The New Princeton Encyclopedia of Poetry and Poetics distinguishes between the following types of irony:[3]
Classical irony: referring to the origins of irony in Ancient Greek comedy, and the way classical and medieval rhetoricians delineated the term.
Romantic irony: The Encyclopedia states that "The most significant change in meaning took place in 1797, when Schlegel observed in his Fragments: 'there are ancient and modern poems which breathe throughout, in their entirety and in every detail, the divine breath of [irony].'" It is seen as "a consistent alternation of affirmation and negation, of exuberant emergence from oneself and self-critical retreat into oneself, of enthusiasm and skepticism."
Tragic irony: The Encyclopedia says this term: "was introduced by Connop Thirlwall in 1833, who based it on a distinction among three basic types of [irony]: verbal, dialectic, and practical."
Cosmic irony: "[Irony] took on a new and more comprehensive dimension with Hegel, who strongly opposed romantic [irony] because of its "annihilating" tendency, seeing in it nothing but poetic caprice."
In The History of Philosophy, Hegel sensed in the "crowding of world historical affairs," in the trampling down of the "happiness of peoples, wisdom of states, and virtue of individuals," in short, in his comprehensive view of history, an ironic contrast between the absolute and the relative, the general and the individual, which he expressed by the phrase, "general [irony] of the world."[3]
Verbal irony: The Encyclopedia states that, in this:
one meaning is stated and a different, usually antithetical, meaning is intended. The [irony] of a statement often depends on context. If one looks out of his window at a rain storm and remarks to a friend, "Wonderful day, isn't it?" the contradiction between the facts and the implied description of them establishes the [irony].[3]
Dramatic irony:
a plot device according to which (a) the spectators know more than the protagonist; (b) the character reacts in a way contrary to that which is appropriate or wise; (c) characters or situations are compared or contrasted for ironic effects, such as parody; or (d) there is a marked contrast between what the character understands about his acts and what the play demonstrates about them.[3]
A disparity of awareness between actor and observer: when words and actions possess significance that the listener or audience understands, but the speaker or character does not; for example when a character says to another "I'll see you tomorrow!" when the audience (but not the character) knows that the character will die before morning. It is most often used when the author causes a character to speak or act erroneously, out of ignorance of some portion of the truth of which the audience is aware. In tragic irony, the audience knows the character is making a mistake, even as the character is making it.
Poetic irony. The Encyclopedia says that: "during the modern period [especially], beginning with romanticism, [irony] has become inseparable from literary and poetic expression itself.[3]"
Lars Elleström would add:
Situational irony: The disparity of intention and result; when the result of an action is contrary to the desired or expected effect.