Hamlet kills Polonius behind the tapestry because he suspects that it might be Claudius, but when he unveils the body and discovers that it is Polonius, he shows no sign of guilt at all. He acts like he is “convinced that he is the complete master of an obviously unhealthy situation” (Prosser Pg. 125). A person who wants nothing more but justice for the death of a loved one would feel bad for killing an innocent person during the process, but that is not the case with Hamlet. He shows no sign of guilt or remorse towards the death of Polonius, because he is clearly past the point of justice and is seeking revenge.
In Sophocles’ Oedipus Tyrannus and Seneca’s Oedipus, dramatic irony is used to demonstrate and emphasize a character's disloyalty, ignorance, and blindness. Oedipus starts out as a prosperous king at the beginning of the play but ends up torturing himself at the end of both plays. Except for the almighty Teiresias, all the characters in the plays such as Oedipus, Jocasta, Creon, the Messenger, and the Chorus know nothing about what is to come therefore their speeches contain a lot of dramatic irony. However, the most dramatic irony is brought to light within the speeches of Oedipus. Oedipus specifically states, “no special favors and no personal ties will tear the guilty party from my grasp,” (Seneca 210).
World Literature I (ENGL 2111.08) October 17, 2012 Irony What is Irony? Irony is incongruity between the actual result of a sequence of events and the normal or expected result or an event and result marked by such incongruity. It can also mean the incongruity between a situation developed in a drama and the accompanying words or actions that is understood by the audience but not by the characters in the play. The works of the Odyssey, Oedipus and Jataka are full of ironic content. Some of the works have verbal, dramatic and situational irony.
Macbeth is the story of a man whose ambitions have brought him to commit treason and murder. There is irony and symbolism in the play, which contribute to the acceptance of this masterpiece. Three forms of irony are evident in Macbeth: dramatic irony, being the difference between what the audience sees and what the characters believe to be true; verbal irony, the difference between what is said and what is meant; and situational irony, the difference between what actually happens and what is expected. A theatergoer witnessing a performance of Macbeth may develop presumptions about what is actually true and what is actually a truth. When it is contrary to what the character in the play believes to be true, a dramatic irony occurs.
On the hand, there lies Claudius. The reader has just learned that he was willing to kill his own brother to become king. Murder is a horrible thing, but killing your own brother for your own selfish needs is far beyond horrible. When learning this, in combination with feel bad for Hamlet, the reader is left hating Claudius for what he has done. Additionally, this is a very important scene in the play.
Sophocles adores exploiting the use of dramatic irony in his prose. Dramatic irony is the theatrical effect achieved by leading an audience or reader to understand the disparity between a situation and the accompanying speeches, while the characters in the play remain
Chaucer’s Use of Satire In the reading "The Prologue" by Geoffrey Chaucer, one will find that satire is the most used literary device throughout the entire story. The definition of satire is the use of irony, sarcasm, ridicule, or the like, in exposing, denouncing, or deriding vice, folly, etc. (Dictionary.com) Strictly following that definition, the satire in the prologue is brilliantly used to break down the characters lives and reveal their flaws and human errors. Every one of the pilgrims on the journey is satirized to some extent, although the narrator is more critical of some more than others. Chaucer uses the narrator to describe each of the pilgrim’s flaws either through physical description, or by describing the pilgrim’s actions, or ways of life.
As far as the comedy plot is concerned, there is the common trait that it connotes the comic poet’s view of the society but not like the tragedies, which were ultimately based on legend and myth. Thematic Content of the Comedy Aristophanes comedy was significantly characterized by comic fantasy. Ideally the plays presented problems in the society and ultimately offered plausible solutions in the most comical way
Hamlet is often hesitant to do things, for example where he had the chance to kill Claudius in the chapel but couldn’t bring himself to do it, not because he would be killing another human but because he wanted Claudius to suffer and not go straight to Heaven. Although a case could be made that Hamlet’s actions are not moral or good, they are certainly not deranged or mad. There is only one moment where Hamlet acts rashly, motivated purely by anger and vengeance, and that is when he kills Claudius. On the other hand, Hamlet does appear to be deeply emotionally
Furthermore, Shakespeare exhibits how Hamlet chose to devise a plan of acting mad, rather than avenging his father’s death immediately, progressing to his demise. On the other hand, Hamlet questions the appearance of his father: “The spirit that I have seen may be the devil”(II.ii.610,611). Consequently, Shakespeare conveys that Hamlet’s indecisiveness about his father’s murderer necessitates him to procrastinate more, and lead further to his death. However, Hamlet accomplishes the opportunity to murder Claudius, yet believes it is not the right time: “Up, sword, and know thou a more horrid hent”(III.iii.91). In fact, he desires that “...his soul may be damned and black as hell”(III.iii.97).