Previous
Imagery
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
Chapter 6: An Exquisite of ‘92
Explanation and Analysis—The Turkey and the Bantam:
In Chapter 6 of The Scarlet Pimpernel, Marguerite metaphorically compares Sir Percy and the Vicomte de Tourney to the poultry being served for dinner at "The Fisherman's Rest":
“Lud, Sir Andrew,” said Marguerite, with one of her merry infectious laughs, “look on that pretty picture—the English turkey and the French bantam.”
The simile was quite perfect, and the English turkey looked down with complete bewilderment upon the dainty little French bantam, which hovered quite threateningly around him.
Their companions view the comparison as "quite perfect" because it aptly sums up Sir Percy and the Vicomte's differences in nationality, size, and perceived intellectual ability. Sir Percy, who is English, tall, and generally regarded as stupid, is compared to the English turkey, a large bird with a reputation for being rather unintelligent. The Vicomte, who is French, young, and physically slight, is compared to the French bantam, a small variety of chicken or duck.
Even though turkeys are generally considered to be unintelligent fowl, the image of Sir Percy and the Vicomte as the turkey and the bantam is rather ironic, since it places a physically small bird in a position of power over a much larger one. The metaphor is also ironic because, at several other points in the novel, Marguerite compares the Scarlet Pimpernel to an eagle, a perceptive and powerful bird of prey. Marguerite is unaware that the Scarlet Pimpernel is actually Sir Percy, whom she disparagingly likens to a turkey.
Related Themes:
Chapter 8: The Accredited Agent
Explanation and Analysis—The Shadowy King:
In Chapter 8 of The Scarlet Pimpernel, Marguerite fantasizes about the mysterious hero who has confounded the agents of the French Republic and captured the English imagination:
"Ah! there was a man she might have loved, had he come her way: everything in him appealed to her romantic imagination; his personality, his strength, his bravery, the loyalty of those who served under him in that same noble cause, and, above all, that anonymity which crowned him as if with a halo of romantic glory."
The fact that Marguerite views the Scarlet Pimpernel as her romantic ideal is situationally ironic, since the Scarlet Pimpernel turns out to be Sir Percy. Marguerite is currently married to Sir Percy, whom she does love, but she incorrectly regards him as foppish and inane. Her fantasies therefore foreshadow the eventual revelation of Sir Percy's secret identity.
In Chapter 20, after Marguerite has discovered that Sir Percy is the Scarlet Pimpernel, she reflects on her earlier infatuation:
Marguerite's thoughts flew back to him, the mysterious hero, whom she had always unconsciously loved, when his identity was still unknown to her. Laughingly, in the olden days, she used to call him the shadowy king of her heart.
In hindsight, Marguerite recognizes the irony of her fantasies. The traits she admired in the Scarlet Pimpernel are all traits that her husband shares, but she was previously unable to notice them. Technically, she has never stopped loving Percy, since he was the object of her unconscious love all along.
Related Themes:
Chapter 9: The Outrage
Explanation and Analysis—Sir Percy Blakeney:
In Chapter 19 of The Scarlet Pimpernel, Marguerite discovers that the Scarlet Pimpernel, the hero who has been rescuing French aristocrats from the guillotine, is actually the alter ego of her husband Sir Percy. She realizes that Sir Percy's apparent lack of intelligence has been a clever ruse designed to deflect suspicion:
The mask of the inane fop had been a good one, and the part consummately well played. No wonder that Chauvelin’s spies had failed to detect, in the apparently brainless nincompoop, the man whose reckless daring and resourceful ingenuity had baffled the keenest French spies, both in France and in England.
The contrast between the cunning and elusive Scarlet Pimpernel and the foppish Sir Percy is an example of situational irony. Sir Percy, whom everyone regards as stupid, is the last person anyone would expect to secretly be a mastermind like the Scarlet Pimpernel.
Previous chapters in the novel contain some instances of foreshadowing. Sir Percy's brainless persona is quite successfully executed, but he is sometimes unable to conceal how sure and capable he truly is. In Chapter 9, Marguerite admires how easily he is able to control their horses:
[A]s she sat next to him hour after hour, admiring the dexterous, certain way in which he handled the reins, she often wondered what went on in that slow-going head of his.
This admiration is ironic, since Marguerite has previously claimed that Sir Percy's mind is unable to handle any task more strenuous than the "tying of a cravat."
There are other examples of irony and foreshadowing, in which Marguerite's perspective is limited by her lack of knowledge about Sir Percy's secret identity. In Chapter 16, for instance, Percy grows pale at the mention of Marguerite's brother Armand. Marguerite thinks that he is simply shocked by the revelation that Armand is in danger, but Sir Percy really pales because, as the Scarlet Pimpernel, he is responsible for Armand's predicament. And in Chapter 19, Marguerite's realization that Sir Percy is the Scarlet Pimpernel is triggered by Suzanne's revelation that the Scarlet Pimpernel has left for France to rescue her father. The scene is ironic because, while Marguerite does in fact know that Sir Percy has just left for France, she has yet to make the connection that he is the Scarlet Pimpernel.
Related Themes:
Chapter 16: Richmond
Explanation and Analysis—Sir Percy Blakeney:
In Chapter 19 of The Scarlet Pimpernel, Marguerite discovers that the Scarlet Pimpernel, the hero who has been rescuing French aristocrats from the guillotine, is actually the alter ego of her husband Sir Percy. She realizes that Sir Percy's apparent lack of intelligence has been a clever ruse designed to deflect suspicion:
The mask of the inane fop had been a good one, and the part consummately well played. No wonder that Chauvelin’s spies had failed to detect, in the apparently brainless nincompoop, the man whose reckless daring and resourceful ingenuity had baffled the keenest French spies, both in France and in England.
The contrast between the cunning and elusive Scarlet Pimpernel and the foppish Sir Percy is an example of situational irony. Sir Percy, whom everyone regards as stupid, is the last person anyone would expect to secretly be a mastermind like the Scarlet Pimpernel.
Previous chapters in the novel contain some instances of foreshadowing. Sir Percy's brainless persona is quite successfully executed, but he is sometimes unable to conceal how sure and capable he truly is. In Chapter 9, Marguerite admires how easily he is able to control their horses:
[A]s she sat next to him hour after hour, admiring the dexterous, certain way in which he handled the reins, she often wondered what went on in that slow-going head of his.
This admiration is ironic, since Marguerite has previously claimed that Sir Percy's mind is unable to handle any task more strenuous than the "tying of a cravat."
There are other examples of irony and foreshadowing, in which Marguerite's perspective is limited by her lack of knowledge about Sir Percy's secret identity. In Chapter 16, for instance, Percy grows pale at the mention of Marguerite's brother Armand. Marguerite thinks that he is simply shocked by the revelation that Armand is in danger, but Sir Percy really pales because, as the Scarlet Pimpernel, he is responsible for Armand's predicament. And in Chapter 19, Marguerite's realization that Sir Percy is the Scarlet Pimpernel is triggered by Suzanne's revelation that the Scarlet Pimpernel has left for France to rescue her father. The scene is ironic because, while Marguerite does in fact know that Sir Percy has just left for France, she has yet to make the connection that he is the Scarlet Pimpernel.
Related Themes:
Chapter 18: The Mysterious Device
Explanation and Analysis—Bluebeard's Wife:
Chapter 18 of The Scarlet Pimpernel—in which Marguerite begins to suspect that there is more to her husband than meets the eye—contains an allusion to a French folktale:
Gently, on tiptoe, she crossed the landing and, like Blue Beard's wife, trembling half with excitement and wonder, she paused a moment on the threshold, strangely perturbed and irresolute.
"Bluebeard," the most famous surviving version of which was written by Charles Perrault, concerns a woman who discovers that her husband has been systematically murdering his previous wives and narrowly avoids the same fate.
In the folktale, Bluebeard gives his new bride the keys to his castle but forbids her from entering one specific room. One day, when her husband is out of the house, the wife's curiosity gets the best of her, and she goes to investigate the secret room, where she discovers the corpses of her predecessors.
This allusion highlights the illicit nature of Marguerite's activities and foreshadows the reveal that her husband, like Bluebeard, has been keeping a major secret from her. The allusion recurs later in the chapter, when Marguerite is leaving her husband's study:
Her head began to ache, she turned away from this strange Blue Beard's chamber, which she had entered, and which she did not understand.
These allusions are, of course, highly ironic. Unlike Bluebeard, Sir Percy is not secretly a serial killer. Rather, he is far more intelligent and heroic than he appears. And while Perrault's folktale ends with Bluebeard's wife being rescued in the nick of time from the clutches of her murderous husband, The Scarlet Pimpernel ends with Marguerite and Sir Percy rescuing one another.
Related Themes:
Chapter 19: The Scarlet Pimpernel
Explanation and Analysis—Sir Percy Blakeney:
In Chapter 19 of The Scarlet Pimpernel, Marguerite discovers that the Scarlet Pimpernel, the hero who has been rescuing French aristocrats from the guillotine, is actually the alter ego of her husband Sir Percy. She realizes that Sir Percy's apparent lack of intelligence has been a clever ruse designed to deflect suspicion:
The mask of the inane fop had been a good one, and the part consummately well played. No wonder that Chauvelin’s spies had failed to detect, in the apparently brainless nincompoop, the man whose reckless daring and resourceful ingenuity had baffled the keenest French spies, both in France and in England.
The contrast between the cunning and elusive Scarlet Pimpernel and the foppish Sir Percy is an example of situational irony. Sir Percy, whom everyone regards as stupid, is the last person anyone would expect to secretly be a mastermind like the Scarlet Pimpernel.
Previous chapters in the novel contain some instances of foreshadowing. Sir Percy's brainless persona is quite successfully executed, but he is sometimes unable to conceal how sure and capable he truly is. In Chapter 9, Marguerite admires how easily he is able to control their horses:
[A]s she sat next to him hour after hour, admiring the dexterous, certain way in which he handled the reins, she often wondered what went on in that slow-going head of his.
This admiration is ironic, since Marguerite has previously claimed that Sir Percy's mind is unable to handle any task more strenuous than the "tying of a cravat."
There are other examples of irony and foreshadowing, in which Marguerite's perspective is limited by her lack of knowledge about Sir Percy's secret identity. In Chapter 16, for instance, Percy grows pale at the mention of Marguerite's brother Armand. Marguerite thinks that he is simply shocked by the revelation that Armand is in danger, but Sir Percy really pales because, as the Scarlet Pimpernel, he is responsible for Armand's predicament. And in Chapter 19, Marguerite's realization that Sir Percy is the Scarlet Pimpernel is triggered by Suzanne's revelation that the Scarlet Pimpernel has left for France to rescue her father. The scene is ironic because, while Marguerite does in fact know that Sir Percy has just left for France, she has yet to make the connection that he is the Scarlet Pimpernel.
Related Themes:
Chapter 20: The Friend
Explanation and Analysis—The Shadowy King:
In Chapter 8 of The Scarlet Pimpernel, Marguerite fantasizes about the mysterious hero who has confounded the agents of the French Republic and captured the English imagination:
"Ah! there was a man she might have loved, had he come her way: everything in him appealed to her romantic imagination; his personality, his strength, his bravery, the loyalty of those who served under him in that same noble cause, and, above all, that anonymity which crowned him as if with a halo of romantic glory."
The fact that Marguerite views the Scarlet Pimpernel as her romantic ideal is situationally ironic, since the Scarlet Pimpernel turns out to be Sir Percy. Marguerite is currently married to Sir Percy, whom she does love, but she incorrectly regards him as foppish and inane. Her fantasies therefore foreshadow the eventual revelation of Sir Percy's secret identity.
In Chapter 20, after Marguerite has discovered that Sir Percy is the Scarlet Pimpernel, she reflects on her earlier infatuation:
Marguerite's thoughts flew back to him, the mysterious hero, whom she had always unconsciously loved, when his identity was still unknown to her. Laughingly, in the olden days, she used to call him the shadowy king of her heart.
In hindsight, Marguerite recognizes the irony of her fantasies. The traits she admired in the Scarlet Pimpernel are all traits that her husband shares, but she was previously unable to notice them. Technically, she has never stopped loving Percy, since he was the object of her unconscious love all along.
Related Themes:
Chapter 21: Suspense
Explanation and Analysis—Marguerite and Andrew:
In Chapter 21 of The Scarlet Pimpernel, Marguerite meets Sir Andrew at "The Fisherman's Rest," where they prepare to set off to France and warn Sir Percy of Chauvelin's scheme. The chapter is filled with multiple instances of irony, both dramatic and situational.
When Marguerite arrives at "The Fisherman's Rest," Mr. Jellyband assumes that she is meeting Sir Andrew for a romantic liaison:
He had great regard for Sir Percy Blakeney, and did not like to see his lady running away with young Sir Andrew. Of course, it was no business of his, and Mr. Jellyband was no gossip. Still, in his heart, he recollected that her ladyship was after all only one of them 'furriners'; what wonder that she was immoral like the rest of them?
This passage is an example of dramatic irony because, while the audience is aware of the meeting's true purpose, Mr. Jellyband must rely on his imagination, which leads him to a wildly incorrect conclusion. Despite Mr. Jellyband's suspicions, he doesn't say a word, reflecting his traditional English regard for politeness. This assumption also reflects his distrust of foreigners and his belief that the French are inherently immoral.
Mr. Jellyband's daughter Sally also mistakenly believes that Marguerite and Sir Andrew are having an affair, but her reaction is quite different from her father's:
[S]he retired, wondering in her little mind why her ladyship looked so serious, when she was about to elope with her gallant.
Sally, in contrast to her father, finds the whole situation quite romantic, illustrating her dreamy and naive perspective.
Marguerite later realizes how her meeting with Sir Andrew might be misconstrued:
[T]he awkwardness of her position struck Marguerite; alone at this hour, in a place where she was well known, and having made an assignation with a young cavalier equally well known, and who arrived in disguise! What food for gossip to those mischievously inclined!
This passage adds another level of dramatic irony. Now Marguerite, in addition to the audience, is aware of how Mr. Jellyband has misinterpreted the situation, while Mr. Jellyband still remains in the dark.
As Marguerite observes, there is also a certain amount of situational irony in the mundanity of Mr. Jellyband's suspicions:
[T]here was such quaint contrast between the seriousness of her errand, and the construction that would naturally be put on her actions by honest Jellyband.
Mr. Jellyband's belief that Marguerite is being unfaithful to her husband is ironic because, unbeknownst to him, she is actually in the middle of an act of true loyalty and devotion.
Related Themes:
Chapter 23: Hope
Explanation and Analysis—The Devil:
In Chapter 23 of The Scarlet Pimpernel, Sir Andrew spies Chauvelin (who is preparing to capture Sir Percy) heading toward "The Chat Gris." Chauvelin is in disguise as a curé—a type of priest—which Sir Andrew finds highly ironic.
[H]e was disguised as a curé, so that Satan, his own guardian, would scarce have known him.
Chauvelin's disguise strikes Sir Andrew and Marguerite as ironic because they view him as an evil, devilish figure. The disguise is also situationally ironic because Chauvelin is acting on behalf of the French Republic, a government that opposes religion.
At several other points in the novel, Orczy emphasizes Chauvelin's villainy by associating him with demons. Chapter 24, which features Chauvelin in his priestly disguise, even includes an allusion to The Divine Comedy:
He laughed, as Dante has told us that the devils laugh at the sight of the torture of the damned.
The Divine Comedy, a 14th-century Italian narrative poem by Dante Alighieri, contains a detailed imagining of the nine circles of Christian Hell. This allusion, which explicitly likens Chauvelin to a demon, emphasizes his sadistic nature and symbolically aligns the cause of the French Revolution with the forces of evil.
Related Themes:
Chapter 24: The Death-Trap
Explanation and Analysis—Hypocrisy:
At several points throughout The Scarlet Pimpernel, Orczy utilizes situational irony to demonstrate what she perceives as the inherent hypocrisy of the French Republic.
In Chapter 1, for example, Sergeant Bibot is disgusted by the sight of an old woman seeking to get through the gates of Paris. Bibot is described in this moment as a "hardened soldier" who, despite his bravery and experience, can't "help shuddering at the awful loathsomeness of this semblance of a woman." As an agent of the French Revolution, Bibot is supposed to be upholding the cause of equality, but he treats the old woman as a diseased peasant to be shooed away, not an equal deserving of respect. This prejudice leads Bibot to not properly investigate the woman's cart, which contains a group of fleeing aristocrats, and he fails to realize that the old woman is actually the Scarlet Pimpernel in disguise.
With this instance of situational irony, Orczy suggests that the social structure of the French Republic is not as egalitarian as it appears.
Later on in the novel, Chauvelin is shown to be a particularly prejudiced and hypocritical individual. In Chapter 24, he behaves quite disrespectfully toward Brogard, the proprietor of "The Chat Gris":
“A plate of soup and a bottle of wine,” said Chauvelin imperiously to Brogard, “then clear out of here—understand? I want to be alone.”
The word "imperiously" has noble connotations, which is ironic because the French Revolution was an uprising against the monarchy and the aristocracy. Chauvelin, despite his supposed devotion to the cause of equality, speaks to Brogard as if the other man is beneath him, orders him around like a servant, and clearly doesn't consider him an equal.
Orczy also portrays Chauvelin as incredibly antisemitic. In Chapter 30, he treats the Jewish Benjamin Rosenbaum with contempt:
[S]ince he had no reasonable grounds for venting his ill-humour on the soldiers who had but too punctually obeyed his orders, he felt that the son of the despised race would prove an excellent butt. With true French contempt of the Jew, which has survived the lapse of centuries even to this day, he would not go too near him.
As Chauvelin's commitment to equality and brotherhood clearly does not extend to Jewish people, Orczy implies that the leaders of the French Republic are prejudiced hypocrites. Ironically, Orczy never acknowledges her own personal prejudices, which inform much of The Scarlet Pimpernel.
Related Themes:
Explanation and Analysis—The Devil:
In Chapter 23 of The Scarlet Pimpernel, Sir Andrew spies Chauvelin (who is preparing to capture Sir Percy) heading toward "The Chat Gris." Chauvelin is in disguise as a curé—a type of priest—which Sir Andrew finds highly ironic.
[H]e was disguised as a curé, so that Satan, his own guardian, would scarce have known him.
Chauvelin's disguise strikes Sir Andrew and Marguerite as ironic because they view him as an evil, devilish figure. The disguise is also situationally ironic because Chauvelin is acting on behalf of the French Republic, a government that opposes religion.
At several other points in the novel, Orczy emphasizes Chauvelin's villainy by associating him with demons. Chapter 24, which features Chauvelin in his priestly disguise, even includes an allusion to The Divine Comedy:
He laughed, as Dante has told us that the devils laugh at the sight of the torture of the damned.
The Divine Comedy, a 14th-century Italian narrative poem by Dante Alighieri, contains a detailed imagining of the nine circles of Christian Hell. This allusion, which explicitly likens Chauvelin to a demon, emphasizes his sadistic nature and symbolically aligns the cause of the French Revolution with the forces of evil.
Related Themes:
Chapter 26: The Jew
Explanation and Analysis—Benjamin Rosenbaum:
In Chapter 26 of The Scarlet Pimpernel, readers are introduced to Benjamin Rosenbaum, a French Jewish man who offers to help Chauvelin locate The Scarlet Pimpernel. As the readers later discover, Rosenbaum—a deeply antisemitic caricature—is actually Sir Percy/The Scarlet Pimpernel in disguise. This disguise is situationally ironic, since there is a disconnect between appearance and reality. But descriptions of Rosenbaum also subtly foreshadow the coming reveal.
Orczy describes Rosenbaum as having a stoop, which she ascribes to the Jewish habit of "mock humility." This explanation is incredibly antisemitic and unfounded, but astute readers will also recall that Sir Percy often needs to find ways to hide his tall stature when in disguise. Ironically, Chauvelin even refers to Sir Percy as "the tall stranger" when speaking with Rosenbaum, unaware that he is talking to the tall stranger in question.
When Marguerite attempts to look at Rosenbaum's face, she has a strange premonition:
[S]he looked anxiously at the Jew, but could not read his face beneath the shadow of his broad-brimmed hat. Vaguely she felt somehow as if he held Percy's fate in his long dirty hands.
Marguerite's feeling that Rosenbaum holds Sir Percy's fate in his hands is also ironic because the two men are, in reality, one and the same.
Related Themes:
Chapter 30: The Schooner
Explanation and Analysis—Hypocrisy:
At several points throughout The Scarlet Pimpernel, Orczy utilizes situational irony to demonstrate what she perceives as the inherent hypocrisy of the French Republic.
In Chapter 1, for example, Sergeant Bibot is disgusted by the sight of an old woman seeking to get through the gates of Paris. Bibot is described in this moment as a "hardened soldier" who, despite his bravery and experience, can't "help shuddering at the awful loathsomeness of this semblance of a woman." As an agent of the French Revolution, Bibot is supposed to be upholding the cause of equality, but he treats the old woman as a diseased peasant to be shooed away, not an equal deserving of respect. This prejudice leads Bibot to not properly investigate the woman's cart, which contains a group of fleeing aristocrats, and he fails to realize that the old woman is actually the Scarlet Pimpernel in disguise.
With this instance of situational irony, Orczy suggests that the social structure of the French Republic is not as egalitarian as it appears.
Later on in the novel, Chauvelin is shown to be a particularly prejudiced and hypocritical individual. In Chapter 24, he behaves quite disrespectfully toward Brogard, the proprietor of "The Chat Gris":
“A plate of soup and a bottle of wine,” said Chauvelin imperiously to Brogard, “then clear out of here—understand? I want to be alone.”
The word "imperiously" has noble connotations, which is ironic because the French Revolution was an uprising against the monarchy and the aristocracy. Chauvelin, despite his supposed devotion to the cause of equality, speaks to Brogard as if the other man is beneath him, orders him around like a servant, and clearly doesn't consider him an equal.
Orczy also portrays Chauvelin as incredibly antisemitic. In Chapter 30, he treats the Jewish Benjamin Rosenbaum with contempt:
[S]ince he had no reasonable grounds for venting his ill-humour on the soldiers who had but too punctually obeyed his orders, he felt that the son of the despised race would prove an excellent butt. With true French contempt of the Jew, which has survived the lapse of centuries even to this day, he would not go too near him.
As Chauvelin's commitment to equality and brotherhood clearly does not extend to Jewish people, Orczy implies that the leaders of the French Republic are prejudiced hypocrites. Ironically, Orczy never acknowledges her own personal prejudices, which inform much of The Scarlet Pimpernel.
Related Themes:
