"Early that day the weather turned and the snow was melting into dirty water. Streaks of it ran down from the little shoulder-high window that faced the backyard. Cars slushed by on the street outside"
This excerpt from the short story "Popular Mechanics" by Raymond Carver is an example of imagery. This paints the picture of a stereotypical late February day in Indiana for me. The temperature is starting to rise, and the snow begins to melt. Because of daylight savings time, it is getting dark early outside. This also sets up the story very well because the story is very dark itself. It is also ironic because the thing that the parents want most, the baby, ends up dying because they are fighting over it. Also, the story's title does not make sense to me. A baby's murder resulting from a divorce does not seem like a popular mechanic to me.
Thursday, December 8, 2011
Situational Irony
"Zoe came up, slow, from behind and gave him a shove. His arms slipped forward, off the railing, out over the street."
This excerpt from the short story "You're Ugly Too" by Lorrie Moore is an example of situational irony. It is because Zoe is at a party with her boyfriend. She starts to push him off a balcony as a joke to flirt with him. However, he does not take this as a joke. Instead, he becomes upset and somewhat scared of her. When she sees this, all she thinks of is how she looks. It does not register to her that her boyfriend is weirded out by her because he believes that she tried to kill him. This also adds to the indirect characterization that Zoe is a very weird, awkward person.
This excerpt from the short story "You're Ugly Too" by Lorrie Moore is an example of situational irony. It is because Zoe is at a party with her boyfriend. She starts to push him off a balcony as a joke to flirt with him. However, he does not take this as a joke. Instead, he becomes upset and somewhat scared of her. When she sees this, all she thinks of is how she looks. It does not register to her that her boyfriend is weirded out by her because he believes that she tried to kill him. This also adds to the indirect characterization that Zoe is a very weird, awkward person.
Dramatic Irony
"Next think you know, they'll be wanting to go back to living in caves"
This excerpt from "The Lottery" by Shirley Jackson is an example of dramatic irony. It is because when the society is described, it appears that it is a pretty modernized society. There are schools and a town where people gather. However, these people are having a lottery to put someone to death. The method of death is stoning, a 1st century death penalty. The man here is upset that some places do not have lotteries anymore and that they're moving backwards in time. The reader can see that these people are already moving back in time by having the lottery. I also came to the conclusion that they had the lottery to offer up a sacrafice for a good harvest.
This excerpt from "The Lottery" by Shirley Jackson is an example of dramatic irony. It is because when the society is described, it appears that it is a pretty modernized society. There are schools and a town where people gather. However, these people are having a lottery to put someone to death. The method of death is stoning, a 1st century death penalty. The man here is upset that some places do not have lotteries anymore and that they're moving backwards in time. The reader can see that these people are already moving back in time by having the lottery. I also came to the conclusion that they had the lottery to offer up a sacrafice for a good harvest.
Dialect
"Do you know what Mr. Dooley is after telling me?"
This excerpt from the short story "The Drunkard" by Frank O'Connor is an example of a dialect. This helps the reader to identify that the speaker is Irish. The speaker of this quote is Mick Delaney, the father of the speaker. His best friend is Mr. Dooley; however, when the story starts, Mr. Dooley has died. Mick is deeply saddened by this and so much so that his wife believes he will turn to alcoholism to deal with his loss. Mrs. Delaney sends Larry, the speaker, with his father to ensure he doesn't drink. It works and Larry gets very drunk; he begins to get sick and cuts his head. At the end of the story, the reader is surprised to see that his mother is happy that he drank his father's alcohol because it prevented his father from getting drunk.
This excerpt from the short story "The Drunkard" by Frank O'Connor is an example of a dialect. This helps the reader to identify that the speaker is Irish. The speaker of this quote is Mick Delaney, the father of the speaker. His best friend is Mr. Dooley; however, when the story starts, Mr. Dooley has died. Mick is deeply saddened by this and so much so that his wife believes he will turn to alcoholism to deal with his loss. Mrs. Delaney sends Larry, the speaker, with his father to ensure he doesn't drink. It works and Larry gets very drunk; he begins to get sick and cuts his head. At the end of the story, the reader is surprised to see that his mother is happy that he drank his father's alcohol because it prevented his father from getting drunk.
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