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Definition of Irony
Irony is a literary device or event in which how things seem to be is in fact very different from how they actually are. If this seems like a loose definition... read full definition
Irony is a literary device or event in which how things seem to be is in fact very different from how they actually are. If this... read full definition
Irony is a literary device or event in which how things seem to be is in fact very different from how... read full definition
Part 4
Explanation and Analysis—Next Corner:
At the beginning of the fourth part, the confrontation between Scratchy Wilson and Potter, which the reader has seen coming for several pages, is literally around the corner. The dramatic irony mounts as Potter and the bride unknowingly walk into a skirmish with the enraged Scratchy Wilson.
POTTER AND HIS bride walked sheepishly and with speed. Sometimes they laughed together shamefacedly and low.
“Next corner, dear,” he said finally.
They put forth the efforts of a pair walking bowed against a strong wind.
As though they can sense that fatal danger is awaiting them, the wary couple walk with their backs bowed, as though they were moving in the direction of a forceful wind. Despite their sheepish, shamefaced, and overall subdued manner, however, Potter and the bride are clearly happy. Just as the narrator made note of their elation in the first part, the narrator describes their occasional laughter here—a subtle indicator of their shy excitement for their shared life. This gentle, awkward laughter stands in direct contrast to the anger that the reader knows awaits them.
Even if the reader knows something that the characters don't, the reader has no idea how the confrontation between Scratchy Wilson and the newlyweds will go. This makes the opening of the story's fourth and final part especially gripping.
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