Verbal irony occurs when an author or character says one thing but means something else.
Eg: When it is a dark, gloomy, rainy day, and someone says "what a nice day"
Situational Ironies -
Situational irony is an inconsistency between what the audience or reader expects and what actually happens.
Eg: When you have stayed up all night cramming for a test the next day, and the test is actually next week.
Dramatic Ironies -
Dramatic irony occurs when an audience or reader knows something that a characters does not know.
Eg: On a TV talk show, a guest thinks she is there to have a makeover, but the audience knows that she will soon be confronted by her cheating boyfriend.
Of Mice and Men Ironies
"She yells and we got to hide in an irrigation ditch all day with guys lookin' for us, and we got to sneak in the dark and get outta the country. All the time somethi' like that - all the time. I wish Icould put you in a cage with about a million mice an' let you have fun.' His anger left him suddenly. He looked across the fire at Lennie's anguished face, and the he looked ashamedly at the flames." (Pg 11)
This is a verbal irony becasue George doesn't want Lennie to get hurt, he siad becasue he was angry. They got in trouble becaseu Lennie wanted to pet the girl, but when George says he would like to put Lennie in a cage with a million mice he doesn't mean it. Becasue he knows that if he did it he would just be hurting LEnnie and causing him to be scared of mice. George didn't mean to say it.
"An' she stopped givi' 'em to ya. You always killed 'em." "They was so little.' he said, apologetically. "I'd pet 'em, and pretty soon they bit my figers and I pinched their heads a little and they was dead." (Pg 10)
"Lennie said, 'Oh! That's nice,' and he stroked harder." "And then she cried angriliy, 'You stop it now, you'll mess it all up.' She jerjed her head sideways, and Lennie's fingers closed on her hair and hung on. 'Let go,' she cried. 'You let go!"
"Don't you go yellin' , ' he said, and he shook her; and her body flopped like a fish. And then she was still, for Lennie had broken her neck." (Pg 91)
This is situational irony, because something we didn't expect happened. We knew Lennie killed mice becasue he just wanted to pet them, and they would get angry or scared and he killed them by accident. We just never expected Lennnie to end up killing and actual person, the same way. He just wanted to pet Curley's wife, she wanted him to stop. She tried screaming, and he killied her by accident.
"Lennie turned his head and looked off across the pool and up the darkening slopes of the Gabilans." "George began. he reached in his side pocket and brought out Carlson's Lunger; he snapped oo the safety, and the hand and gun lay on the ground behind Lennie's back." (Pg 105)
This is dramatic irony, becaseu the reader knows that George is gonna kill Lennie, but Lennie odesn't know. He is facing the other ways while GEorge is getting all his courage to shhot him. This all takes place without Lennie knowing.
