Irony, Its Use and Effect in Henrik Ibsens play `Hedda Gabler`

Running Head : Irony

Irony , Its Use and Effect in Henrik Ibsens play `Hedda Gabler` br

Irony , Its Use and Effect in Henrik Ibsens play `Hedda Gabler`

Introduction

That which is evident requires no introduction , elaboration or appreciation . For example , milk is white and it is evident light is bright and it is evident . Irony is something that one presents which is not actually there but has to be comprehended . Imagination and sixth sense play important roles in understanding the situations of irony and the reader or viewer has to

apply oneself to get at the reality . Irony is defined as thus : Use of words to convey the opposite of their literal meaning . A statement or situation , where the meaning is contradicted by the appearance or presentation of the idea : Three kinds of irony are commonly recognized : Verbal irony .irony of situation and dramatic irony . Dramatic irony involves a narrative , in which the reader knows something about present or future circumstances that a character in the story does not know (Nordquist ) Does irony contribute to the telling effects and enhance the latent beauty of the play to make it more purposeful and enjoyable ? In the play Hedda Gabler , Ibsen exposed other stresses of modern life by showing the inner pressures and conflicts that inhibit and even destroy the individual . Some of these pressures stem from conditioning , i .e . from the individual 's internalizing society 's values (Henrik ) The effects of dramatic irony that he successfully achieves in the play are due to this approach in his writings

The author has the tough job at hand when he uses the tool of irony . He has to criticize a particular aspect of a character prevailing situations in the society , and things like that , without publicly hitting out . He has to the audience , by tactfully using the art of displeasing . The viewers need to see the validity in the criticism of a particular character and nod in approval . The ironical situation has to be appreciated and it needs to have the subtle logic behind it . It has to touch the bs of reality to appeal to the reason and emotions of the viewers . The time-element and the period during which the play sees the light of the day , are also important as the story mostly depicts the prevailing social conditions of the time Ibsen lived from 1828 to 1906 . Poverty is a blessing in disguise for the authors , as it provides them with authentic stories to develop and it extracts the best literary talent within them . The moral degeneration of the society invariably attracts the attention of the . The tool of irony is used by Ibsen to highlight the differences and attitudes of lifestyles of aristocratic and bourgeois worlds . Wordplay and pun are the important weapons of irony for a playwright and Ibsen is an expert in this warfare . Using dramatic irony means , the playwright writes `two plays simultaneously ' The verbatim dialogues of the characters , and secondly the implied meaning in such dialogues...