Irony and Ambiguity

Objective of the Day:

• Given the next chapter on Irony and Ambiguity, students will take notes on irony and ambiguity and take a

test on it tomorrow to demonstrate their understanding of the material

by having 85% of the students receive a C or better.

Given the next chapter on Irony and Ambiguity, students will take notes on irony and ambiguity and take a test on it tomorrow to demonstrate their

understanding of the material by having 85% of the students receive a C or better.

• Irony– A contradiction between appearance and reality.– Basically, when something you expect to

happen, doesn’t happen.• There are 3 main types of irony:– Verbal– Dramatic– Situational

Given the next chapter on Irony and Ambiguity, students will take notes on irony and ambiguity and take a test on it tomorrow to demonstrate their

understanding of the material by having 85% of the students receive a C or better.

• Verbal Irony– This is spoken irony; spoken by a character who

says the opposite of what is meant. –Often sarcastic in nature (not always)• EXAMPLE: – You just return from a great family picnic and your

mother says, “That was such a nice and pleasant picnic!”– You reply sweetly, “Yeah, it was as pleasant as a

root canal without an anesthetic!”

Given the next chapter on Irony and Ambiguity, students will take notes on irony and ambiguity and take a test on it tomorrow to demonstrate their

understanding of the material by having 85% of the students receive a C or better.

• Dramatic Irony– When the audience knows something the

character does not.• EXAMPLE: Romeo and Juliet has a classic

example of dramatic irony. The audience knows that Juliet drank a sleeping potion to stop the family feud and be with Romeo, but Romeo doesn’t know this and commits suicide in order to be with his Juliet.

Given the next chapter on Irony and Ambiguity, students will take notes on irony and ambiguity and take a test on it tomorrow to demonstrate their

understanding of the material by having 85% of the students receive a C or better.

• Situational Irony–When the situation of a story turns into the

opposite of what is expected– Situation tends to become odd or unfair• EXAMPLES: A man steps aside to not get

sprinkled by a wet dog and falls into a swimming pool.• You’re driving down a street and see a ‘Dead

End’ sign before the street ends. The end of the street is a cemetery.

Given the next chapter on Irony and Ambiguity, students will take notes on irony and ambiguity and take a test on it tomorrow to demonstrate their

understanding of the material by having 85% of the students receive a C or better.

• Ambiguity – When there is more than one meaning or

interpretation of a situation– Ambiguous stories stay in our memories the

longest because it challenges our imagination• EXAMPLE: “The Lady or the Tiger?” short

story–The ending is ambiguous because we do

not know if the princess has given her lover to another woman or to be eaten by the tiger.

Given the notes, students will be able to identify each irony or ambiguity and give an explanation for why it is that irony/ambiguity

with at least 80% accuracy in the next few exercises.

Let’s Practice by identifying the irony or ambiguity!1. There is a fire at school and everyone is

outside. When the fire truck arrives, it hits and kills two students.

a. What does this represent?b. Why?

SITUATIONAL

It is situational because we expect the fire truck to arrive in order to save students, not kill them.

Given the notes, students will be able to identify each irony or ambiguity and give an explanation for why it is that irony/ambiguity

with at least 80% accuracy in the next few exercises.

2. You find an abandoned house, and inside you find a table set up with food and pots in the sink. Clothes are still in the drawers and the beds are turned down. Everything is covered in dust and undisturbed.

a. What does this represent?b. Why?

AMBIGUITY

This is ambiguous because we don’t know why the house was abandoned when it seems like nothing was wrong.

Given the notes, students will be able to identify each irony or ambiguity and give an explanation for why it is that irony/ambiguity

with at least 80% accuracy in the next few exercises.

3. Marci catches the bride making-out with the best man on the day of her wedding. At the reception, Marci looks directly at the bride and says, “Brad is a lucky man because Cathy will be such a loyal wife.”

a. What does this represent? b. Why?

VERBAL

It is verbal irony because Marci knows that the bride is not loyal, but she says that she is.

Given the notes, students will be able to identify each irony or ambiguity and give an explanation for why it is that irony/ambiguity

with at least 80% accuracy in the next few exercises.

4. We see Judy enter a room and accidentally knock over an expensive vase, which costs five million dollars. She runs out of the room, runs in from the other side and shouts, “Oh my god, look everyone! Someone broke the priceless antique vase!”

a. What does this represent? b. Why?

DRAMATIC & VERBAL

It is dramatic because the audience knows that Judy broke the vase. It is verbal because Judy is speaking as if she didn’t break the vase.

Given the notes, students will be able to identify each irony or ambiguity and give an explanation for why it is that irony/ambiguity

with at least 80% accuracy in the next few exercises.

5.

SITUATIONAL

Given the notes, students will be able to identify each irony or ambiguity and give an explanation for why it is that irony/ambiguity

with at least 80% accuracy in the next few exercises.

6.

SITUATIONAL

Given the notes, students will be able to identify each irony or ambiguity and give an explanation for why it is that irony/ambiguity

with at least 80% accuracy in the next few exercises.

7.

DRAMATIC, VERBAL, AND SITUATIONAL

Given the notes, students will be able to identify each irony or ambiguity and give an explanation for why it is that irony/ambiguity

with at least 80% accuracy in the next few exercises.

8.

AMBIGUOUS

Given the notes, students will be able to identify each irony or ambiguity and give an explanation for why it is that irony/ambiguity

with at least 80% accuracy in the next few exercises.

9.

VERBAL AND SITUATIONAL

Given the notes, students will be able to identify each irony or ambiguity and give an explanation for why it is that irony/ambiguity

with at least 80% accuracy in the next few exercises.

10.

AMBIGUOUS

Allusion

• An Allusion is a brief reference to a person, event, or place, real or ficticious, or to a work of art.

• Casual reference to a famous historical or literary figure or event.

• An allusion may be drawn from history, geography, literature, or religion.

Contradictions and Incongruities• Contradiction: direct opposition between

things compared; inconsistency• Incongruities in a text are

when the author uses contradictions in orderto hint to the reader that things aren’t what they seem.

Objective vs. Subjective

• Objective stories are based on FACTS• Objectivity is making decisions without using

personal opinions

• Subjective stories use personal opinion• Subjectivity means to use your opinions or

bias to make decisions