Irony Essay

FINAL DRAFT

Austin
English 8
Mr. Salsich
December 3, 2009

Irony:
Some Unexpected Instances

(TS) There is nothing that is always predictable. (CM) At any given point, a situation can alter and have an ironic outcome. (CM) The ironic outcome is absolutely unpredictable and unexpected by participants of the circumstance. (CS) Irony happens everywhere including To Kill a Mockingbird and my personal experiences.

(TS) Several instances in To Kill a Mockingbird have ironic circumstances, making the events in the story all the more interesting. (SD) One unexpected event was Jem didn’t have to sneak into the Radley’s property to get his pants. (CM) When his pants were ripped off by the fence, he thought he would have to return to the Radley place at night and inconspicuously take his pants back. (CM) However, irony intervened when his pants were already neatly folded and sewed on their deck ready to be reacquired by Jem. (SD) Another unforeseen occasion was when Atticus shot a dog with “mad dog” disease. (CM) “Our [Scout and Jem] father didn’t do anything… He was not the sheriff, he did not farm, work in a garage, or do anything that could possibly arouse the admiration of anyone” (Lee, 223) which is an example of how boring Scout and Jem thought their father was. (CM) However, they didn’t expect their father was well known for his superb aim with guns. (SD) One of the most ironic situations that took place was when Scout broke up a group of rambunctious men who were ready to attack Atticus. (CM) At first, this group of men that Atticus referred to as a “mob” were determined to get by Atticus even if it meant running him down (dependent adverb clause). (CM) Nevertheless, when a young, nine year-old girl stepped in, the men were decent human beings again and left Atticus alone. (CS) There are quite a few ironic parts that take place in To Kill a Mockingbird and each generate a unique and interesting outcome.

(TS) Out of the many ironies that have transpired throughout my life, falling in love with music and developing a passion for guitar were the most unexpected events. (SD) When I was about ten years old, I had a schedule which provided me little free time. (CM) Karate was something I did that required a lot of time and dedication. (CM) After starting guitar, I had a great amount of difficulty handling both situations at once since they each necessitated a large quantity of time to handle (dependent adverb clause). (SD) Strangely enough, I never paid much attention to music when I was younger. (CM) I wouldn’t even listen to the radio on the way to school, but instead, I would simply watch trees and cars fly by as I daydreamed about still being asleep in bed. (CM) However, when I did listen to the radio on my way to school, I was exasperated by the artificial noises that were made by modern artists who used things like autotune to synthesize their voices. (SD) Later, after I had already started guitar, my first guitar instructor wasn’t a good one. (CM) Instead of learning an entire song, my instructor would teach me an intro leaving me yearning to learn the whole song rather than advancing to another intro. (CM) When he taught me, it was straight out of a book that wasn’t usually correct, but also the straight-out-of-the-book method doesn’t teach you one of the most powerful aspects of guitar: soul. (CS) The thought of becoming as good a guitar player as I am today never occurred to me when I was ten years old, making me believe that this is a fortunate and ironic outcome in my life.

(TS) Since there is always predictability in something, there is always irony to provide balance. (CM) Without irony to balance predictability, Harper Lee’s novel would be recognized as a dull book. (CM) However, if everything was ironic, I would never be prepared to learn or adapt to new methods of playing guitar. (CS) Irony appears in a copious amount of places in order to bring balance to books like To Kill a Mockingbird or even more importantly, our lives.