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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
Chapter 14: Wavey
Explanation and Analysis—Irene Warren:
When the aunt tells Quoyle the story of her yacht upholstery business in Chapter 14, Proulx uses dramatic irony to disclose certain information about the aunt's past to the reader:
"I started the yacht upholstery, you see, after my friend died. In 1979. What these days they'd call a 'Significant other.' Warren. That's who I named the dog after." [...] Her face flashed elusive expressions. Didn't tell Quoyle that Warren had been Irene Warren. Dearest woman in the world. How could he understand that? He couldn't.
While the aunt shares details about her past, she carefully avoids stating the gender of her "significant other" to Quoyle. Same-sex marriage was not legalized in Canada until 2005, and in the 1990s (when the novel is set) only about half of Canadians supported it. It is possible that in the more isolated area in which they live, the social politics are more conservative, and the aunt wants to avoid drawing undue attention to herself.
However, Proulx wants the reader to know the truth about the aunt. This choice is unsurprising considering that Proulx's most famous story, "Brokeback Mountain," published in The New Yorker in 1997, is about a pair of male lovers who attempt to keep their love secret for decades.
Related Themes:
