Eng101 solution

Q1. Differentiate between ‘Situational Irony’ and ‘Verbal Irony’ with example. 3 2 =5

Solution:-

Situational irony:- where a situation features a discrepancy between what is expected and what is actualized

"Water, water, everywhere,
And all the boards did shrink;
Water, water, everywhere,
Nor any drop to drink."

It is perhaps one of the best examples of situational irony examples in poetry. In this case, there is salty sea water everywhere in abundance but there is hardly any water to drink, that is required for basic survival. Situational irony results from unfairness of a situation. The situation although can't be exactly logically explained, it can be evaluated and judged by others. For example, if the owner of a car company wins a car in a lucky draw contest, it may sound funny to all participants of the lucky draw contest. However, when viewed logically, he has the same chance to win a prize like any other, even if he is the owner of a car manufacturing company! The unusual circumstances may be obvious to everyone but they may not be clearly explained! What a situational irony!

Some more examples of situational irony are ad follows:
In Macbeth, every time the witches prophecy about the possibility of Macbeth's fate, he misinterpreted their words. Although he is getting warned indirectly, Macbeth is unable to form any link to the future events.
"Seated in a stenographer's chair, tapping away at a typewriter that had served him through four years of college, he wrote a series of guidebooks for people forced to travel on business." These lines from The Accidental Tourist by Anne Tyler is a perfect example of situational irony as the writer hated traveling.
Some simple sentences like, "the firehouse burned down" convey situational irony.
Another simple example of situational irony is "even the police station was robbed". Another sentence can be like "the teacher failed her test!"

verbal irony:- where one states one thing while meaning another

In verbal irony, the statement means something else that is quite different from the real meaning of the sentence and is aimed to emphasize the truth in a different style. Verbal irony is closely related to sarcasm. One of the most interesting verbal irony examples in literature is from the play Julius Caesar: "Yet Brutus says he was ambitious; And Brutus is an honorable man". The sheer genius of Shakespeare expresses irony through his amazing expressive prowess. These lines said ironically by Mark Antony deftly convey what he really meant by these lines. Another verbal irony example is when someone says "great", "brilliant" to some negative occurring event. For example, you reach your exam hall only to find you forgot your admit card at home. Your friends shout in unison, "wonderful", although they help you later! A perfect verbal irony!

Some more examples of verbal irony are as follows:
"But Tom Sawyer he hunted me up and said he was going to start a band of robbers, and I might join if I would go back to the widow and be respectable" ~ Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain. These lines convey verbal irony as band of robbers are in general, not respectable! So, it is ironic that Huck has to return to the widow to join the Group.
In the Classic contemporary political documentary, Animal Farm, George Orwell has sculpted perfect ironies. A line in the book says, "No animal may drink alcohol" that soon changes to "No animal may drink alcohol to excess". Another good example in the book is when pigs begin to walk and drink, both of which they had promised never to do in their lives.
In Charles Dicken's classic book, The Tale of Two Cities, verbal irony has been reflected many times. For instance, in one line when the road mender says that it is his honor to be passed on the road by Marquis, it is a superb example of verbal irony as the mender says that only because he is expected to say so.
Q3. Complete the paragraph by choosing words from the list given. 5

chance, beneath, doubt, scared, sights


Canada is a massive country full of wide-open spaces. With scenery that is truly magnificent, it is without doubt, one of the great unspoilt areas of the world. If you have the chance, make sure you go to Niagara Falls, which are the top attraction in North America and one of the most spectacular sights anywhere. Visitors who are not easily scared can take a boat ride to the edge of the roaring falls, almost right beneath the massive torrent of white water.