Irony
At the end of "Death by Scrabble," how do we know what type of irony there is?
We, as readers, are surprised by the ending. Therefore, it is situational irony.
What letter of STEAL is used in this passage?: “Dee, though. She would always look anyone in the eye. Hesitation was no part of her nature” (1).
A for Actions
Could also be considered direct characterization.
Identify all five parts of SLIME.
Subject
Lesson
Ideas
Message
Evidence
List the four factors that build suspense.
- reader empathy
- reader concern
- impending danger
- escalating tension
What type of irony occurs when the audience knows something that the characters do not?
Dramatic irony.
Is this direct or indirect characterization? How do you know?
"Judson Webb loved his personal possessions and became furious if they were touched by any hand but his own” (1).
Direct characterization--the narrator is telling us exactly what Judson is like.
What makes a theme "universal"?
A theme is universal when it is easily relatable to a wide audience and it is found in many stories/movies/shows/plays/songs/etc.
How does an author build suspense through pacing?
How is dramatic irony different from situational irony?
Dramatic irony: the audience knows more than the characters. The audience is not surprised whenever the characters discover something they did not expect.
Situational irony: the audience does not know more than the characters. The audience is just as surprised when something unexpected occurs.
In “Death by Scrabble,” we do not know much about the wife except for what the speaker (her husband) tells us. What letter of STEAL is this?
E for Effect on Others
We only know what effect the wife is having on the husband.
Note: this does NOT mean that we know exactly what the wife is like! The narrator is biased, so we only know a biased version of her.
What theme might this passage include?
“Out came Wangero with two quilts. They had been pieced by Grandma Dee and then Big Dee and me had hung them on the quilt frames on the front porch and quilted them” (5).
Possible answers:
--People have different ideas about how to preserve heritage.
--Family relationships are complex.
--People often have different levels of connection to their community.
How does an author build suspense through irony?
Situational irony makes us expect a different outcome than what actually happens, so we look for more details to confirm the outcome we expect.
Dramatic irony builds suspense by making us wait to see if or when the characters learn what we already know.
A man drops his phone into the gutter. "Well, that's just great." What impact does the man's sarcasm create?
Possible answers:
- emphasizes his opposite emotions
- makes us empathize with him because we know it is not "great."
In “Everyday Use,” Mama and her daughters are introduced from Mama’s perspective. How does this shape our understanding of the characters?
We only know the characters from Mama's biased perspective. We know only what Mama tells/shows us about her, Dee, and Maggie.
Consider: How would the story be different from Dee's perspective?
A main theme in “Ruthless” is revenge. How do we know this is a theme even though it is not explicitly stated?
Possible answers:
- repeatedly brought up even though it isn't stated.
- main lesson: trying to get revenge is pointless OR revenge can backfire.
How does an author build suspense through imagery?
What effect(s) could dramatic irony have on the reader or audience? Explain
Possible answers:
- makes the audience more engaged because we are waiting for the characters to learn what we already know
- makes us excited/scared/nervous/interested
In “Ruthless,” we learn that Judson “had always been ruthless in business and whenever anything crossed him. Things had to be done his way” (2). What is being emphasized about Judson? How does the author want us to feel about this character?
The author might not want us to like Judson because he is emphasizing these bad qualities.
Explain how an author develops theme throughout a text.
Implied through the subject, main lesson, or message; adding symbolism, imagery, metaphors, other figurative language; there is a LOT of evidence.
From “Ruthless”: “Don’t worry about your poor little burglar. No one is going to get hurt who hasn’t got it coming to him” (2).
What trick is being used to build suspense? How does it build suspense?
Foreshadowing is being used here because the author is hinting that whoever gets poisoned will have it coming to him. We are on the lookout to see whether or not the victim deserved the poison or not.