Module 2: How do I love thee?

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This well-known picture depicting the final scene of Romeo and Juliet is a prime example of what irony looks like in its dramatic form.  The outcome the audience hoped for (their “happy-ever-after” ending) ends up in the unexpected result of both of their deaths. 

From this same picture, we can also see what irony feels like. We instantly feel “torn” or “ripped” from the expected into the unexpected, leaving us sometimes feeling confused, disappointed, or even angry at the outcome. 

In its verbal form, irony can sometimes sound a bit sarcastic or even hurtful. An example would be if we say to someone whom we know is unpleasant looking “If you get any prettier, I’m going to have to cover my eyes.”

We can also hear the frustration in verbal irony. For example, when the student says, “I was sick my entire summer vacation; it was so much fun!” or when we use that famous cliché “It’s as clear as mud,” when we really don’t understand something.

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Alanis Morissette’s song, “Ironic”, mainly depicts irony in terms of opposites—opposites that once again leave us with feelings of frustration. Maybe we can even feel the cold metal and hear the sounds of silver clanking together as we search for just one knife among ten thousand spoons only to find . . . more spoons!

Or maybe irony leaves us in complete silence when we consider historical examples such as the cause of death for engineer and chemist,Thomas Midgley, Jr., who according to Wikipedia, “contracted polio at age 51, leaving him severely disabled. He devised an elaborate system of strings and pulleys to help others lift him from bed. This system was the eventual cause of his death when he was accidentally entangled in the ropes of this device and died of strangulation at the age of 55.”

Irony can leave us feeling undone from the moment it begins and many times it takes with it everything that precedes it leaving a feeling of emptiness—such as how I felt the first time I saw the above scene from Romeo and Juliet.