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Definition of Dramatic Irony
Dramatic irony is a plot device often used in theater, literature, film, and television to highlight the difference between a character's understanding of a given situation, and that of the... read full definition
Dramatic irony is a plot device often used in theater, literature, film, and television to highlight the difference between a character's understanding of a given... read full definition
Dramatic irony is a plot device often used in theater, literature, film, and television to highlight the difference between a... read full definition
Volume 2, Letter 2
Explanation and Analysis—The Robbers:
In an example of dramatic irony, Evelina (and readers) know that Captain Mirvan and Sir Clement are pretending to be robbers when they attack Madame Duval and haul her out of her carriage, but Madame Duval does not. The irony comes across clearly when Madame Duval tells Evelina after-the-fact about the murderous intentions of the robbers, which she (and readers) knows is not true:
“Why, child, all this misfortune comes of that puppy’s making us leave our money behind us; for as soon as the robber see I did not put nothing in his hands, he lugged me out of the chariot by main force, and I verily thought he’d have murdered me. He was as strong as a lion; I was no more in his hands than a child. But I believe never nobody was so abused before, for he dragged me down the road, pulling and hawling me all the way, as if I’d no more feeling than a horse.”
Though Madame Duval’s experience is genuinely violent and traumatic—and Evelina does not approve of the men’s actions—the scene offers something of a comedic moment in the novel. There is also an element of situational irony in this moment, since Madame Duval herself has acted in manipulative ways but is now finally on the receiving end of such behavior.
There is also some notable figurative language in Madame Duval’s description—she uses a simile in stating that the robber was “as strong as a lion,” and she metaphorically compares herself to both a child (due to her weakness in the face of his strength) and a horse (due to how carelessly the “robber” hauled her down the road). Her descriptions communicate her fear and also her tendency to exaggerate (as Evelina knows it’s unlikely that Captain Mirvan treated her in such an extreme way).
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