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Question

What is dramatic irony?

3 years ago

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291 Replies

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13283 views

J

Justice Torphy


291 Answers

D
Dave Sansom

Dramatic Irony is the audience are aware of something that characters on stage are not aware of.

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Sian H Verified Sherpa Tutor ✓

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Dramatic irony is when the audience is aware of a particular event or action on stage which has been disclosed by a certain character but the other characters are unaware of this: it is a little like being in on the secret. The audience member, or the reader, is treated to inside information.

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Tholang Matela Maloi

Dramatic irony takes place when you, the reader of the novel or the audience of the play, know something that the characters don't. It is a literary device commonly employed in plays and can take several forms.

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Hester M Verified Sherpa Tutor ✓

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Dramatic irony is when the audience or reader are aware of the significance of something that the character is not. For example, in 'Macbeth' Lady Macbeth faints upon discovering King Duncan's death. However, we, as the audience, know that moments earlier she was smearing the guards in Duncan's blood! In this instance, this is important because it helps us understand how cunning and deceptive Lady Macbeth is.

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Rebecca Bowsher

Dramatic irony is when something is known to the audience but not to the character. It can be the secret of another character, an event, or information that is shared with the audience but not with the character.

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Isabelle Henderson

Dramatic Irony occurs mainly in a play where the audience knows a piece of information that a key character does not.

For example: In Romeo and Juliet the character Paris tells the Friar that he and Juliet are going to be married on a certain day BUT we, in the audience, already know that Juliet has said that she would rather die than marry Paris.

H
Hannah Brooke

When you as the reader of whatever you’re reading, knows something which the character dosen’t

C
Chloe S

When the audience knows something that a character(s) do not.

G
Guy Lambert

When the audience knows something that the character does not i.e. If a character were to say "I will have a great day today", and we already know that someone is planning to make his day awful!

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Sophia Verified Sherpa Tutor ✓

Engaging English teacher with a background in theatre and playwriting!

A technique in literature whereby the audience or reader is made aware of something in that text that other characters are not. For example, when Romeo thinks Juliet is dead but we, the audience, know she has merely taken a sleeping potion.

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Jennifer Mellors

A technique often used in theatre or other media, also sometimes in print. The main feature of such is that the 'audience', reader or consumer is made to know more of what is happening than the character.

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Lina Missin

Dramatic irony is a literary tool (often used in theatre, but also seen in other forms of literature), wherein the audience is aware of something that the characters are not. This may create tension, suspense or even humour in some cases.

C
Christelle York

Dramatic irony occurs when the audience or reader possesses knowledge that characters within the story do not. This creates a contrast between what the characters understand and what the audience knows, often leading to heightened tension or humor in the narrative.

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Julie L Verified Sherpa Tutor ✓

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Hi Justine, it's when the audience knows something that the characters on stage don't.

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Fiona R Verified Sherpa Tutor ✓

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It's a literary device, whereby the audience or reader has a greater knowledge of what is happening than the characters within a play or narrative.

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