Have you ever told a friend “I’m doing great” through gritted teeth when your day was actually terrible? If so, then you’ve used verbal irony. It’s a versatile tool writers use to add layers of meaning, emotion, and depth to characters and situations. This literary device can be utilized in both comedic and dramatic contexts. In this article, we’ll define this technique, explore situations when writers might use it, and discuss the difference between verbal irony and sarcasm.
What is Verbal Irony?
Verbal irony is a literary device that expresses the opposite of what is said. This is typically for humorous or emphatic effect. While the definition might sound simple, it can take several different forms. Writers must pay attention to their chosen genre, narrative style, and intended audience when utilizing it in their work. Let’s dig a little deeper into a few examples of this dynamic figure of speech.
| Type of Verbal Irony | Definition | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Understatement | This type of verbal irony occurs when a speaker intends to draw attention to a concept or situation by downplaying its importance. | Your friend gets a small stain on their brand-new shirt and says “That’s just what I needed today.” |
| Overstatement | This form of verbal irony relies on exaggeration or hyperbole to emphasize the ridiculous nature of a statement or scenario. | Someone who is terrified of spiders might scream “Don’t worry, I love creepy-crawlies” when they see one. |
| Sarcasm | The difference between sarcasm and verbal irony can be subtle but generally boils down to intent. Whereas any type of verbal irony might be deployed humorously, sarcasm relies on sharp wit and a mocking tone with the aim of humiliating, criticizing, or otherwise upsetting its target. | Your roommate comes home from an outing and, upon seeing your distraught expression, chirps “Well, don’t you look like you’re having a good time?” |
As you can see from the above examples, context and delivery often play a key role in recognizing the different types of verbal irony.
Why Writers Use This Technique
This brings us to a vital question—why would writers deliberately use a figure of speech that relies on non-literal language? In conversation, most people find verbal irony (particularly in the form of sarcasm or witty banter) to be a fun way to comment on absurd or challenging situations.
Verbal irony functions in much the same way in writing, helping readers to:
- More fully connect with characters. By utilizing understatement, overstatement, or even just simple turns of phrase that differ from a character’s true feelings or beliefs, a writer can highlight a speaker’s state of mind, beliefs, or personality.
- Develop themes within their writing.
- Add a layer of humor or satire. Writers might choose to incorporate witty remarks, absurd exaggerations, or understated assessments of ridiculous scenarios into their prose. The goal? To entertain the reader or gently poke fun at human folly. Consider how The Onion uses verbal irony to satirical effect in this headline from a 1995 article: “Clinton Deploys Vowels to Bosnia; Cities of Sjlbvdnzv, Grzny to Be First Recipients.”
Whatever a writer’s reason for employing this device in a literary work, they’re using a tried and true technique.
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Other Types of Irony
While various types of irony exist, it’s easy to get them confused. In addition to verbal irony, there’s also:
- Situational Irony: Situational irony thrives on the contrast between expectation and reality. In a narrative, the writer will set a reader’s expectations, then defy them with an unexpected outcome. The discrepancy between what was expected and what occurs creates a sense of surprise, amusement, or even disbelief.
- Dramatic Irony: Imagine watching a horror movie where you know the killer is lurking behind the door, but the oblivious character walks right in. That’s dramatic irony—the audience possesses knowledge that the characters lack, increasing suspense.
Think of these ironies as tools in a storyteller’s toolkit. Situational irony surprises us with outcomes. Dramatic irony keeps us on the edge of our seats by providing suspense. Verbal irony uses words to express a different meaning. Once you understand the differences between these types of irony, you can better execute each in your writing.
From Ancient Greece to the Silver Screen
Believe it or not, the word “irony” can be traced back to a stock character in ancient Greek comedy: the eiron. Masquerading as a fool, the eiron used his seeming stupidity to cleverly trick his opponent. Like the eiron, verbal irony appears as one thing on the surface while actually meaning the opposite.
Today, we can find this type of irony in a wide range of communicative situations. These situations can range from casual, everyday conversations all the way to highly scripted political speeches. Verbal irony also crops up across a broad range of genres, forms, and media. Here are just a few examples of verbal irony in action:
- You walk outside into a hailstorm and grumble “lovely weather we’re having” to the person next to you.
- After an extremely stressful day, you exclaim “this is fine, everything’s fine” while gesturing wildly to emphasize that things are definitely not fine.
- The characters in Shakespeare’s plays often utilize irony to emphasize their hidden motivations, meaning, and state of mind.
- The Simpsons consistently uses verbal irony to make humorous commentary about everyday life.
Just keep in mind that successfully deploying verbal irony, especially in writing, often requires a fine-grained understanding of your characters’ personalities and situations. After all, your readers or audience members need to be able to recognize that your intended meaning is the opposite of the literal words on the page or screen. This can be especially difficult in writing, when readers are unable to hear a character’s tone of voice.
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FAQs on Verbal Irony
What is a verbal irony example?
Say your friend completely bombs an audition and says, “Well, that went well” as soon as they come out of the room. In this case, they’ve used verbal irony. They are expressing that they are unhappy with the way their audition went by stating they are happy with it.
Is verbal irony sarcasm?
This is a question that often causes some confusion. Essentially, all sarcasm is verbal irony but not all verbal irony is sarcasm. That’s because in some instances the technique conveys humor, whereas sarcasm is always hurtful. Think about the difference in tone, intent, and intended outcome when identifying if something is just verbal irony or actually intended as a sarcastic barb.
Conclusion
From ancient Greece to modern day sitcoms, verbal irony is a timeless literary device. Writers can use this technique to include understatements, overstatements, and sarcasm in their writing. Doing so is an effective way of indirectly characterizing different people in a novel. Or, if you’re writing a speech, you can use verbal irony to add some levity to your presentation. Regardless of how you use it, remember that this technique requires practice to perfect so be patient as you become familiar with it. Whether you intend to pursue a career as a writer or speaker, you now have the knowledge you need to use this literary device well.
