What is dramatic irony?
A technique, originally used in Greek tragedy, where a character's words or actions is clear to the audience or reader although unknown to the character.
Example
In John Boyne's, The Boy in the Striped pyjamas, the narrator (a nine year old boy) refers to his new home as Out-with.
Explanation
Readers easily interpret that Bruno is near to Auschwitz as we are too familiar with the horrific things that happened there. The nine year old has misheard or misinterpreted when the adults have said it to him. The irony is created through his innocent understanding which is painful to readers who know the full extent of the horror that was occurring in the world at that time. The way that adults 'look the other way' is highly symbolic of how the world chose to ignore those atrocities and the innocent child voice is the only character persistently asking 'why'.
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