Irony in A Pair of Tickets and A Rocking Horse Winner

Ricardo Cortez Prof. P. Vedula English-1102 (60384) 04 July 2012 Rough draft with markups on irony in â€Å"A Pair of Tickets† and â€Å"A Rocking Horse Winner† Two of the many definitions of irony that I like are found on dictionary.com. The first definition states that irony is â€Å"incongruity between what is expected to be and what actually is, or a situation or result showing such incongruity† (â€Å"Irony†). The second defines Dramatic irony as †¦irony that is inherent in speeches or a situation of a drama and is understood by the audience but not grasped by the characters in the play† (â€Å"Dramatic irony†). In reading D.H. Lawrence’s short story â€Å"A Rocking Horse Winner† and Amy Tan’s short story â€Å"A Pair of Tickets†, I find elements within each piece†¦show more content†¦All of these ironies play a key role in helping the reader to relate to the characters and personalize each story. Both authors use verbal ironies at the end of each of their stories to great effect.. At the end of â€Å"A Rocking Horse Winner†, Paul rides his horse in such a heated frenzy that he causes his health to be greatly affected. He is in fact in a coma and dying. Paul regains consciousness long enough to learn that the last horse he picked towin does in fact win. Paul fulfills his wish to make his family rich with over eighty thousand pounds in winnings. As he looks at his mother, Paul’s last words before he dies are â€Å"I am lucky!† (Lawrence). In â€Å"A Pair of Tickets†, there is a verbal irony when June meets her sisters for the first time. It is ironic that her mother, whom she resented, often fought with, and was embarrassed by, becomes a part of the joyful reunion when the three sisters murmur, â€Å"Mama, Mama† as if she is among them (Tan). Both of these uses of verbal irony greatly humanize the main characters. Both authors also use death in situational irony at the end of their stories. Lawrence uses Paul’s death to create a terrible irony in â€Å"A Rocking Horse Winner†. What should have been a lucky turn of events instead is a tragedy for everyone involved. While Paul lay dying, he asks his mother if he ever told her he was lucky, referring to anShow MoreRelatedStrategic Marketing Management337596 Words   |  1351 Pagescustomers’ values had changed – in that they were ready for hard disks, better graphics, faster operating speeds and new software – who managed to cope with this new breakpoint. Others, however, were quickly forced out. It was therefore something of an irony that Apple appear not to have recognized the real value of the shift they had generated and, as a consequence, failed to capitalize upon it to the extent that they might have done. By contrast, Bill Gates of Microsoft saw the opportunities of graphicsRead MoreDeveloping Management Skills404131 Words   |  1617 Pagesfrom Armenia. Previously a Group Manager. Worked hard to establish the Technical Services Phone Line, but now has pretty much left it alone. Office Administrator: Michelle Harrison, 41-year-old white female, single. Grew up on a ranch and still rides horses whenever she can. A strict administrator. There are a number of good folks here, but they don’t function well as a management team. I think Michael played favorites, especially with Janice and Leo. There are a few cliques in this group and I’m not