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Examples Of Situational Irony In The Ransom Of The Red Chief

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In O. Henry's story, “The Ransom of the Red Chief,” eight distinct examples of irony are present throughout the entire selection. O. Henry writes with both situational and verbal irony, which results in a comedic account of a rowdy boy's kidnapping. Situational irony involves an event in which actions have an effect that is opposite from what was intended. Verbal irony is when the intended meaning of a statement differs from the meaning that the words appear to express. There are three examples of verbal irony and five examples of situational irony in “The Ransom of the Red Chief.” The first example of verbal irony is in the beginning of the story. “There was a town down there, as flat as a flannel-cake, and called Summit, of course.” The irony is that a town that was flat was named Summit, which would have the reader think the town was high. …show more content…

The name Ebenezer is usually associated with a greedy person, so it is ironic that the name is present in a story about a ransom. The third and final example of verbal irony is when Sam refers to Red Chief when he says, “Perhaps," says I to myself, "it has not yet been discovered that the wolves have home away the tender lambkin from the fold. Heaven help the wolves!" says I, and I went down the mountain to breakfast.” After all of Red Chief's actions up to this line in the story, it is ironic that he would be called a tender lambkin. A more suitable comparison would be a wild

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