The Fellowship of the Ring

by J.R.R. Tolkien

The Fellowship of the Ring: Irony 1 key example

Definition of Irony

Irony is a literary device or event in which how things seem to be is in fact very different from how they actually are. If this seems like a loose definition... read full definition
Irony is a literary device or event in which how things seem to be is in fact very different from how they actually are. If this... read full definition
Irony is a literary device or event in which how things seem to be is in fact very different from how... read full definition
Book 2, Chapter 2
Explanation and Analysis—Trifle:

Elrond, an ancient and powerful elf who leads the Elven realm of Rivendell, uses verbal irony in an important scene in which representatives of the elves, humans, dwarves, and hobbits meet to discuss the return of Sauron and the reappearance of The One Ring: 

"You have done well to come," said Elrond. "You will hear today all that you need in order to understand the purposes of the Enemy. There is naught that you can do, other than to resist, with hope or without it. But you do not stand alone. You will learn that your trouble is but part of the trouble of all the western world. The Ring! What shall we do with the Ring, the least of rings, the trifle that Sauron fancies? That is the doom that we must deem."