Innuendos: The Enemy of Ego: Do you agree?

Irony is the art of innuendo, an indirect suggestion often with sinister connotation. It is also the art of double dealing in words. The basic purpose of irony is to make a contrast between appearance and reality. But there are many types of irony; verbal irony, situational irony, sarcastic irony, dramatic irony, cosmic and romantic irony…

But critics use irony according to character and situation.

Jane’s irony is light, quick and bearable. Therefore she uses irony in her style to expose the foibles of her characters internal and external thoughts, feelings and emotions. Here Sara Martin says, “Jane Austen’s irony is based on her experience and observation, but limited in the four walls of a house and outdoor character takes part in it.”

The novel Pride and Prejudice reveals irony in theme, irony in style, irony in tone, irony in characters, irony in diction and in the main plot. David Emerson says, “Irony is the soul her novel.” As we see the main plot revolves around Darcy and Elizabeth affair. It exposes intricacy and simplicity. Darcy and Elizabeth intricacy is set against Jane and Bingley simplicity. Jane and Bingley reveal simple and pious nature while Darcy and Elizabeth both have complex nature. Martin Buber says, “Simplicity and intricacy develop the main story.”

Besides, Jane Austen uses irony in her characters’ tone. The opening of the novel is ironic, “It is truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a good wife.” Jane writes in chapter LIII about Mr. Wickham in ironic tone, “He is a fine fellow as ever I saw…I am prodigiously proud of him. I defy Mr. William Lucas himself to produce more valuable son-in-laws.”

These lines expose the best light irony.

On the other hand irony in situation is also prominent. When we red Mr. Darcy’s remarks about Elizabeth, “She is not hand some enough to temp me.” But her beautiful eyes captivate my heart. First Mr. Collins proposed Elizabeth after this ignoring her he started taking interest in Charlotte.

Elizabeth thinks that Wickham and Lydia elopement will mar their future but her idea proved wrong and brings the two lovers close and their closeness soon changes into marriage. Irony in characters is bitter in the novel. Elizabeth is proud of her perception and hates Jane’s blindness to his faults. Darcy always thinks that he is a gentleman but his proposal is not suitable for marriage.

Wickham is physically graceful and attractive but his manners are not bearable. Bingley’s sisters hate the Benet’s family because of vulgarity that was against their family tradition.

But is a fact that the technique of ironic statement makes free Jane Austen from the negative commentary on her characters.

Most of the critics say that Austen uses dramatic irony in her novels to startle the readers and critics. As we see in chapter XLII that she does not know when her master Mr. Darcy will marry but in Elizabeth’s ears is echoing he is not beautiful enough to temp her. When Darcy departs from Netherland he congratulates her in ironic words with more craft. Sometime a single word shows the whole truth, as, “O, single, my dear, to be sure. “A single man for a large fortune four or five thousand a year what a fine thing for our girls…”

To sum up, there is no use of vulgar words in her novels. Jane writes her reality in her novels and supports it with her observation, decorates the novels with diction. But there is no morality in her novels for the readers. She criticizes marriages bases on physical beauty and greed for money and praises the marriages bases on real understanding. She ridicules hypocrisy and pretentiousness in fine words. She does not preach any philosophy of life, any morality in her novels. She writes in the novels what she observes in society.