Chapter four contains an example of situational irony. Towards the beginning of the chapter, Kathy explains that all students were pretty scared of Miss Emily. She says that the students' hearts sank if they were somewhere they weren't supposed to be and saw Miss Emily coming
because it was as if she had an "extra sense" and always knew where they were hiding. This is ironic because in the above quote, Kathy says that "nothing too awful would come out of it." Students wouldn't be yelled at or punished like they would if another teacher caught them. It is situational irony because people would expect that if the students are scared of Miss Emily and hearts sank when she caught them that it would be because she gave the harshest punishments. This is not the case at all. The only downfall of being caught by Miss Emily was that "you'd fallen in her estimation" (44). Readers wouldn't think that this would matter to teenagers; however, this irony further illustrates that these students are not your average teenagers. They are (in more ways than I think I understand right now) different. Normal teenagers could care less about what their teachers or other adults think about them as long as they have their friends. The students of Hailsham are different. They still value their friendships; however, they ironically fear being seen as someone who does not follow the rules more than the punishments for not following the rules. For this reason, Miss Emily who does not scream or take away privileges is more feared by the students than all the other guardians. The purpose of the author using situational irony was to explain the quirks of Miss Emily's character, as well as her effects on students. The situational irony is effective because it stresses another way in which these students are not average teenagers in a way that still fits in to the storyline and provides another anecdote about Kathy's time at Hailsham.
because it was as if she had an "extra sense" and always knew where they were hiding. This is ironic because in the above quote, Kathy says that "nothing too awful would come out of it." Students wouldn't be yelled at or punished like they would if another teacher caught them. It is situational irony because people would expect that if the students are scared of Miss Emily and hearts sank when she caught them that it would be because she gave the harshest punishments. This is not the case at all. The only downfall of being caught by Miss Emily was that "you'd fallen in her estimation" (44). Readers wouldn't think that this would matter to teenagers; however, this irony further illustrates that these students are not your average teenagers. They are (in more ways than I think I understand right now) different. Normal teenagers could care less about what their teachers or other adults think about them as long as they have their friends. The students of Hailsham are different. They still value their friendships; however, they ironically fear being seen as someone who does not follow the rules more than the punishments for not following the rules. For this reason, Miss Emily who does not scream or take away privileges is more feared by the students than all the other guardians. The purpose of the author using situational irony was to explain the quirks of Miss Emily's character, as well as her effects on students. The situational irony is effective because it stresses another way in which these students are not average teenagers in a way that still fits in to the storyline and provides another anecdote about Kathy's time at Hailsham.
not sure I understand the picture that goes along with this entry!
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