Dramatic Irony

Dramatic irony is the application of the words and actions of the characters for making different sense for the audience, than they make for characters of the work. So, the result of it, the greater knowledge, that is given to the audience and that information characters don’t know. (Jeffries 150)

Molière in their works uses dramatic irony too (in which a characters of the play is ignorant of knowledge given to the audience). This figure of speech occurs over the time of the play and occasionally. One example of that type of irony is foundation for all play. It consists in a way of treatment of poor Lucinda. It creates the plot of the play. Lucinda’s father very stingy and he don’t want to share his money to the first suitor that comes into his palace. So, Lucinda and her suitor Clitander makes a planm to teach him a good lesson and in deceitful manner, force Sganarelle to accept the marriage. Their plan consists of application of the way of daughter’s treatment. Sganarelle believes, that the best treatment of his daughter will be marriage, and Clitander disguised of doctor play for him performance. And the marriage took place after all ceremonies needed for it.

There is one more example of dramatic irony in the work. But it was revealed by the Sganarelle. Four counselors tried to lie to the Sganarelle in order to enrich their pockets for account of Sganarelle. But they failed. Sganarelle knows all about their businesses and quickly realized, why they offer him such ways of treatment.

So, in this work of literature, Molière used the dramatic irony, in order to make fun of stinginess of the Sganarelle and show, how two people, who love each other, can overcome any difficulties with the help of mother wit. But in some ways the reader feel sorry on the fate of Sganarelle. He didn’t want marriage of his daughter, but he was deceived, by inventive youth minds. So, the dramatic irony can be considered to be unfunny joke.