“The Unknown Citizen,” a poem written by W.H. Auden, alludes to a time of great change in American history, where the poem is meant to mock the government’s viewpoint of the perfect role model for an unrealistic, impractical citizen. The author, W.H. Auden, writes and intends for the historical context of his poem to be in the late 1930’s, when America was going through the Great Depression. Citizens were losing a sense of nationalism for America and had begun to negatively view the government. During this time period, the government had also begun to distribute Social Security cards with personalized federal numbers to American citizens, which was the mark of depersonalization in America’s political system. As a result, the tone is one of mockery, satire, and most importantly, irony. The ironic outlook is evident in some of the following aspects of the poem: the speaker, the portrayal of the speaker, the audience, the speaker’s situation, incongruity between the character’s words and the situation, use of diction, use of humor, and unique characteristics of the poem.
The author’s poem is told from the viewpoint of a member of the State, or American government; however, the author and speaker are different people in this particular poem. Textual evidence for the speaker of the poem is evident in the parenthetical title of the poem: “This Marble Monument is Erected by the State.” In this case, the “State” is the American government, as the speaker is a member of the State. The State closely monitors an American citizen who serves as a perfect role model for his fellow citizens in the view of the government. In addition, the speaker supports his political background by reporting his sources of how he discovers the citiz...
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... as going to war, but also his private life, such as having children. Thus, the title is ironic, and it represents the satirical view of the author who indirectly comments on the total control of the State over its citizenry.
Thus, "The Unknown Citizen" reveals irony. The poem is a bitter satire against forms of government that only want their citizens to conform to the governments' norms. The State recognizes the unknown citizen for his abiding by the government's and carefully examines and records all aspects of his life. In turn, the speaker of the poem, a member of State, asks two rhetorical questions at the end to the audience to determine the relevance of the citizen's happiness. The State treats the citizen like an individual when describing his life, but marks him as a number like everyone else; therefore, the tone of the poem is sheer irony.
Like salt and pepper to beef, irony adds “flavor” to some of the greatest works of literature. No matter if readers look at old pieces of work like Romeo and Juliet or more modern novels like To Kill a Mockingbird, irony’s presence serve as the soul fuel that pushes stories forward. By definition, irony occurs when writers of books, plays, or movies destine for one event or choice to occur when the audiences expects the opposite; like Tom Robinson being found guilty after all evidences point other ways in To Kill a Mockingbird. These unique plot twists add mystery and enjoyability to hundreds of books. From the very beginning of The Chosen, a novel written by Chaim Potok, to the very end, irony’s presences does not leave the reader at any
A captivating novelette in which a man’s priority is to serve only for his brothers, Ayn Rand’s Anthem illustrates a society that has suffered the ghastly consequences of collectivism. She depicts an oppressive culture in which the word “I” is unheard of and men belong to the collective “We.” Men’s lives are determined through the Council of Vocations, a group that maintains a powerful dictatorship by subjugating the public from the beginning of their lives. The idea that “If you are not needed by your brother men, there is no reason for you to burden the earth with your bodies” (Chapter 1) has been forced into average mindset of the vehemently maintained society. In contrast, Rand mocks the totalitarian civilization through the main character Equality. Since he was born, Equality possessed a quick mind and constantly strayed apart from his peers. Through his life, he shows an unwilling behavior to conform not only to his name, but also to the rules of society. After he is found guilty of independent thought, he is sadistically beaten and dragged into the Palace of Corrective Detention, an unguarded jail that castigates the public of their wrongdoings. Shackles are unnecessary as a result of the brainwashed society and their compliance to obey orders, which consequently allows Equality to escape. In a collective society, citizens are denied their inalienable right of individualism, which ultimately eliminates all thoughts of opposition. Through their submission, the presence of their souls vanishes and society deems the collectivist tenet true. The lack of guards and old locks in the Palace of corrective Detention symbolize the evils that result from a collectivist society.
Revenge is the opportunity to retaliate or gain satisfaction for a real or perceived slight ("revenge"). In “The Cask of Amontillado” by Edgar Allan Poe, Montresor, the narrator, is out for revenge. Montressor seeks revenge against Fortunato and thinks he has developed the perfect plan for “revenge with impunity” (Baym). Montresor never tells the reader why he feels Fortunato deserves punishment. He only says that Fortunato causes him “a thousand injuries”until “[venturing] upon insult” (Baym ?). As a result, Montresor plans to bury Fortunato alive.
In the poem “To the Right Honourable William, Earl of Dartmouth, His Majesty’s Principle Secretary of State for North America, &c.” Wheatley brings out her true emotions and suffuses to the readers how she really feels. This poem praises the freedom that America has gained from
Poems are forms of communication that give an applicable view of the past, present and future events. Reading the poem titled “America”, written by Richard Blanco brought me memories from my childhood in my parent’s house and also what is happening now in my house as a parent. The poem explains how one person doesn’t have all the knowledge about something. It also, describes the daily life struggles I experienced during my childhood, when my parent 's and I moved from our hometown to live in another town becuase of their work and it brings to light the conflict of cultures I and my children are going through since we moved to United State of America .
When used effectively, suspense, in short stories, is used as a way to make the reader anticipate the outcome to a problem. The short story, “The Interlopers” by Saki uses multiple examples of situational irony effectively, which is used to create a great deal of suspense. These examples of situational irony are greatly emphasized through the use of symbolism and imagery. Thus, Saki uses irony that is expressed through the symbolism of the fallen tree, and the imagery of the wilderness, in order to effectively build up suspense to make the reader anticipate what happens next in the story.
Susan Gable’s Trifles is focused on discovering the killer of a local farmer in the twentieth century. In this play the amount of irony is abundant and the irony always relates to solving the murder. The two types of irony that are most easily discerned in Trifles are verbal and situational irony. Irony is when an author uses words or a situation to convey the opposite of what they truly mean. Verbal irony is when a character says one thing but they mean the other. This can be seen in the way the men dismiss the women. Situational irony is when the setting is the opposite of what one would think it would be for what the play is. This is seen through the setting being in a kitchen and various other aspects of the
In the short story, "Guests of the Nation," Frank O'Connor uses irony to illustrate the conflict which men face when their roles as combatants force them to disregard the humanity of their enemies. In both life and literature, irony exists when there is a contrast between expectation and reality. Verbal irony is defined as "a figure of speech in which the actual intent is expressed in words which carry the opposite meaning" (Thrall 248). In dramatic irony there is a contrast between a character's perception of a situation and the actual facts. Often "some of the actors on the stage or some of the characters in a story are 'blind' to facts known to the spectator or reader" (155) . The short story "Guests of the Nation" by Frank O'Connor illustrates both types of irony.
For years literature has molded and shaped the minds of many Americans for better or worse. Literature gives us entertainment and knowledge about things we may not have the opportunity to experience in our everyday lives. These written works have the power to influence readers and alter one’s opinions. This is just what Louis Simpson aimed to do, he was skeptical of the idea that America was picture perfect. During his life, he served in World War II, experiencing it all primarily. The victory of World War II left Americans feeling on top and unstoppable. Simpson fed off of this overwhelming optimism translating it into his poems (Faville). His goal was to pick apart the fantasized image we created for our country and expose the real truth
The poem expresses the tension between individuals and society. Authorities dominate our lives. We form our beliefs by listening to the opinions of not only priests, but politicians and other leaders in society as well. We absorb their ideals like a sponge. This has been a common trait of humanity ever since the agricultural revolution brought the division of labor and management positions into culture. Someone had to be on top and in charge. Those who listen to authorities are almost living their life as if they are asleep. They spend their days helpless and arrogant, unwilling to waken to an enlightening truth about society. A truth that says individuals have a say in what their live is about. The people who spend their days asleep accept the values and ideas that their society has set for them as they dream of the better days in the future that will never
The first thing to register when considering irony in Socrates, is that in no passage of Plato 's work does Socrates or any of his associates refer to him as an ironist. Rather, it was his opponents who accused him to be an eiron, that is, someone who practices irony . This, has to do with the fact that up until Socrates ' times, the standard understanding of the Greek word eironeia was exclusively that of deception or dissembling . More precisely, as David Wolfsdorf shows discussing a passage from Oppian 's On Hunting, erioneia '[...] is the use of deception to profit at the expense of another by presenting oneself as benign in an effort to disarm the intended victim [...] ' .
...aditionally sound according to the government, and since the Union is “sound” it is not really a Union. The sense of this poem depends greatly upon the tone, because literally the poem has a completely different connotation than it does if u considers the tone. The poet has a critical attitude towards this subject and it is clearly demonstrates once the reader analysis the poem.
In general, the discrepancy between appearances and reality is ironic. Irony is encountered throughout our daily activities and comes in many forms; verbal, situational. and the cosmic. Verbal irony is the most familiar kind, this occurs when we understand that.
During the poem the speaker does not address his readers. The readers are simply overhearing a man assessing the society in which he lives as he daydreams about what is could be and yet what it is not. It is evident that his goal is to get the readers to look down upon this society which is so caught up in daily routine; prohibiting anyone from having freedom of imagination. This detachment that is created between the speaker and his readers incorporated with the boring monotone at the very beginning of the poem gives the readers a negative impression of the society before they begin to analyze the actual words of the poem.
The title of the story represents irony when the true essence of the title is completely different from what the reader might think it to be.