What type of irony is used in The Unknown Citizen?

The main type of irony used in “The Unknown Citizen” is situational irony. It is ironic that the state is honoring the situation of a man brainwashed into lockstep conformity. It is also ironic that the state is so indifferent to the citizen it is “honoring” that it does not know his name.

How is The Unknown Citizen ironic?

Irony in the Careful Depiction of the Unknown Citizen Yet nobody knows his name; rather, he is known by only, say, his social security number: “To JS/07/M/378/.” He is a truly unknown citizen. To obliterate any hint of his individual identity, he does not have an address that anchors him to a specific locality.

Why is the title of The Unknown Citizen irony?

… as going to war, but also his private life, such as having children. Thus, the title is ironic, and it represents the satirical view of the author who indirectly comments on the total control of the State over its citizenry. Thus, “The Unknown Citizen” reveals irony.

What is the significance of the title The Unknown Citizen discuss the use of irony and satire in the poem?

Answer: W.H. Auden’s title “The Unknown Citizen” is ironic because, in fact, much is known about the supposedly “unknown” citizen. Like the unknown soldier whose body has been destroyed—the allusion in…

What does The Unknown Citizen satire?

The poem is a satire of standardization at the expense of individualism. The poem is implicitly the work of a government agency at some point in the future, when modern bureaucratizing trends have reached the point where citizens are known by arbitrary numbers and letters, not personal names.

What does the Unknown Citizen represent?

“The Unknown Citizen” Speaker This statue commemorates a dead man—the “unknown citizen”—and praises his life throughout. The poem builds a picture of an extremely invasive state that watches its citizens’ every move—and approves of this particular man because he never did anything that wasn’t officially allowed.

What does The Unknown Citizen represent?

What does The Unknown Citizen Project What is the significance of the title explain in detail?

The title of the poem itself, “The Unknown Citizen,” reminds the reader of the unknown soldiers who followed their countries’ calls, who gave their lives in defense of their countries, who died to ensure the continuity of the society for which they fought, and who stood for the bravery of all soldiers.

What is the purpose of The Unknown Citizen?

Overall, then, Auden’s “The Unknown Citizen” reads as a cautionary tale to modern society—asking people to question the relationship between the state and the individual, and to examine whether their government upholds the right values in terms of what it means to live a good life.

How is irony used in the Unknown Citizen?

Irony is present in the poems, “The Unknown Citizen” by W.H Auden, “Rite of Passage” by Sharon Olds, and “Bully” by Martin Espada. In the poem “The Unknown Citizen”, Auden’s use of irony is easy to see. In this poem he is describing a citizen who is essentially unremarkable.

What are the different types of irony in literature?

When speaking of irony there are different categories such as situational irony and dramatic irony. Situational irony is when the opposite of the expected results occur. Dramatic irony, however, is when the reader or the audience is aware of the reality of the situation, but the characters are not.

What is situational irony?

Situational irony occurs when the outcome of a circumstance or action does not match our expectations. Think about Aesop’s fable of “The Tortoise and the Hare.” Just like the hare, at the outset, we’d never expect the tortoise to win the race because hares are much faster.

How can irony be used to shock the audience?

This type of irony allows writer to make a strong impression by subverting the reader’s expectations. It can be used simply to shock or entertain, but it can also encourage an audience to reflect on a key theme. Dramatic irony is a structural device that involves the audience knowing something the characters are unaware of.