In Shakespeare’s Macbeth the audience knows that Macbeth plans to kill King Duncan to fulfill the witches’ prophecy of his becoming king. However, Duncan and the other characters, aside from Lady Macbeth, are unaware of his plans. This dramatic irony creates tension and suspense as the audience anticipates the unfolding tragedy while other characters remain oblivious to Macbeth’s sinister plans and ambitions.
While irony is a technique used in satire, satire is a broad genre that aims to provoke thought and promote change.
The predestination paradox is a time-travel concept in which an event is both a cause and an effect of itself.
One classic example of the predestination paradox is from the science fiction film 12 Monkeys. The film’s protagonist, Cole, is sent back in time to gather information about a virus that kills most of humanity. He eventually learns that his own actions in the past contributed to the outbreak of the virus, creating a self-referential loop of cause and effect. By trying to prevent the catastrophe, Cole is causing it.
Other time-travel paradoxes include the grandfather paradox and the bootstrap paradox.
More broadly, a paradox is a saying or scenario that seems logically contradictory or impossible, which upon closer examination reveals a deeper truth or coherence within a specific context or framework.
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Cliché can be used as a noun or an adjective. (“Clichéd” is more commonly used as the adjective form.)
Noun usage:
Adjective usage:
Cliché has several synonyms and near-synonyms:
| Noun | Adjective |
|---|---|
| banality
bromide chestnut commonplace saying platitude stereotype stock phrase trope |
banal
derivative hackneyed overused played out (slang) stereotypical tired trite |
Various short sayings can become clichés through overuse but lack the term’s inherent negative connotations. These include adages, aphorisms, catchphrases, idioms, mantras maxims, mottos, proverbs, slogans, and truisms.
Cliché is spelled with an acute accent mark (é).
*The word cliché can serve as an adjective without modification because of its French origins as the past participle of “cliquer” (to click).
Common types of wordplay include puns, double entendres, paraprosdokians, spoonerisms, and malapropisms.
A figure of speech involving a sentence with a surprise ending is called a “paraprosdokian.” Other terms include “surprise ending” or “twist.”
Paraprosdokian example: “The last thing I want to do is hurt you, but it’s still on my list.”
“Paraprosdokian” is pronounced par-uh-pros-DOH-kee-an.
The word “paraprosdokian” is derived from the Greek for “against expectation.” It describes a figure of speech that establishes an expectation and ends with a surprise twist.
Paradoxes and oxymorons both involve contradictions, but there is a key difference:
An example of irony in literature is in O. Henry’s “The Gift of the Magi,” where Jim and Della each sacrifice their most prized possession to buy a gift for the other: Della sells her hair for a chain, and Jim sells his watch for combs.
The situational irony lies in the fact that Jim and Della’s well-intentioned sacrifices make their gifts useless. This irony highlights the idea that the true value of gifts lies in the love and sacrifice they represent.
Socratic irony is the technique of posing simple questions, as if one were ignorant, to expose the ignorance or flaws in others’ arguments. The irony lies in the fact that by feigning ignorance, you can lead people to reveal their own misunderstandings or contradictions, encouraging deeper reflection and critical thinking. This method is a key part of the Socratic method of teaching and dialogue.
Example: In Plato’s dialogues, Socrates questions Euthyphro about the nature of piety. Socrates pretends not to understand what piety is and asks Euthyphro to explain it. Through a series of questions, Socrates exposes the inconsistencies in Euthyphro’s definitions, showing that Euthyphro does not actually understand the concept as well as he claims.
Cosmic irony, also known as irony of fate, is a literary device where the universe or fate seems to play a cruel joke by thwarting expectations. It is a type of situational irony that involves characters receiving the opposite of what they expect or deserve, giving the impression of a profound injustice inflicted by fate or a higher power.
Example: In the ancient Greek myth of Oedipus Rex, Oedipus tries to avoid his prophesied fate of killing his father and marrying his mother, but his actions unwittingly lead him to fulfill the prophecy. This irony highlights the impression that cosmic forces shape human destiny in unexpected and often tragic ways.
Both coincidence and situational irony can involve unexpected outcomes that evoke surprise. However, the terms differ in their emphasis:
The controversy surrounding Alanis Morissette’s song “Isn’t It Ironic?” centers on interpretations of whether the situations described in the song qualify as genuine irony or merely as instances of coincidence or bad luck.
Tragic irony occurs when the audience can foresee the impending downfall of a character, but the character is unaware. It is a type of dramatic irony.
Tragic irony is related to the concept of a tragic flaw, also known as hamartia. A tragic flaw is a character trait, typically one that is positive or noble, which when taken to an extreme leads the protagonist to their downfall.
Tragic irony can highlight the protagonist’s tragic flaw by emphasizing the gap between the character’s self-concept and the reality that the audience perceives.
Both dramatic irony and verbal irony involve a contrast between what is perceived and what is actually true in a narrative. However, there is a key difference:
Malapropisms and puns are similar, but they have key differences:
The plot of Joseph Heller’s Catch-22 is a classic example of literary paradox.
The central paradox is that airmen who are considered insane can request to be grounded and thus avoid flying dangerous combat missions. However, airmen who request to be grounded based on safety concerns are not actually insane, having the presence of mind to recognize the danger of their situation. Heller uses this paradox to satirize the circular logic of military bureaucracy.
Heller’s paradoxical narrative is the origin of the term “catch-22,” which describes any situation where contradictory rules or conditions prevent a solution or escape.
Paradoxes can serve several purposes:
A famous literary play on words can be found in William Shakespeare’s Richard III:
“Now is the winter of our discontent made glorious summer by this sun of York.”
This line blends metaphor with wordplay, using a pun on “son” and “sun” to depict Richard, son of the House of York, as the force that ends winter’s troubles.
An example of a play on words is the joke “He had a photographic memory but never developed it.” The word “developed” can refer to developing skills or developing photographs.
This particular form of wordplay is called a pun, creating humor using words or phrases with multiple meanings.
A play on words can serve several purposes in written and spoken communication.
Purposes of wordplay include:
Verbal irony involves saying one thing but meaning the opposite, while Socratic irony involves feigning ignorance to provoke critical thinking in others.
In Poe’s short story “The Cask of Amontillado,” he uses verbal irony to create tension and dark humor.
For example, Montresor offers Fortunato wine, saying, “It will help to keep us warm.” This statement is ironic because Montresor is leading Fortunato to a cold, damp catacomb, where he plans to kill him. Later, Fortunado says, “I drink to the dead who lie sleeping
around us.” Montresor responds, “And I, Fortunato—I drink to your long life,” though he means the opposite.
The verbal irony in “The Cask of Amontillado” complements the story’s dramatic irony, building tension for the reader, who is aware of Montresor’s true intentions.
A classic example of a double entendre is Michael Scott’s “That’s what she said” jokes in the TV show The Office. Michael uses this phrase to humorously imply a secondary, suggestive meaning to an otherwise innocent statement. This play on words contributed to the eccentricity of Michael Scott’s persona while adding a humorous twist to the show’s dialogue.
A triple entendre is a play on words with three interpretations based on the use of words with shared sounds or spellings. Triple entendres often have at least one taboo or risqué interpretation. The name “triple entendre” is based on the name of a more common rhetorical device, “double entendre” (originally from the French for “double meaning”).
An example of a triple entendre can be found in the song “Hotel California” by the Eagles. The line “You can check out any time you like, but you can never leave” has at least three possible interpretations:
The opposite of verbal irony is straightforwardness—expressing one’s intended meaning directly without any hint of a hidden meaning. “Literalness” or “directness” also express the opposite of “irony.” The word “sincerity” is another antonym for “irony,” emphasizing that the speaker lacks any sarcastic or sardonic intent.
“No pun intended” is a common expression used to highlight a pun while ostensibly claiming that the pun was unintentional. This phrase is often used humorously to call attention to a pun that the speaker recognizes is cliché and likely to elicit a groan. However, in some cases the phrase is used sincerely, indicating that the speaker did not notice the pun until after it was spoken.
Puns and double entendres both involve double meanings, but there is a key difference:
“Smog” is a portmanteau of “smoke” and “fog” used to describe the visible air pollution often found in urban areas. The term “smog” was coined by a London resident in 1905 and gained prominence during the Industrial Revolution as cities experienced increased emissions from factories and vehicles. This illustrates the role of neologisms such as portmanteaus in marking societal changes.
Compound words and portmanteaus are both formed by joining multiple words, but there are a few differences between the two:
Malapropisms and spoonerisms are both humorous linguistic errors and literary devices. However, there is a key difference:
For example, “You have tasted two whole worms” (meaning “You have wasted two whole terms”) is a classic spoonerism from a 1911 issue of The Strand Magazine.
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