VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST – GRADUATE STUDIES ********************** LÊ THỊ HƢƠNG A STUDY ON IRONY IN SHORT STORIES BY EDGAR ALLAN POE (Nghiên cứu tính mỉa mai truyện ngắn Edgar Allan Poe) M A Minor Program Thesis Field: English Linguistics Code: 60220201 HA NOI – 2016 VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST – GRADUATE STUDIES ********************** LÊ THỊ HƢƠNG A STUDY ON IRONY IN SHORT STORIES BY EDGAR ALLAN POE (Nghiên cứu tính mỉa mai truyện ngắn Edgar Allan Poe) M A Minor Program Thesis Field: English Linguistics Code: 60220201 Supervisor: Trần Thị Thu Hiền, Ph.D HA NOI – 2016 DECLARATION I hereby certify my authority of the research submitted entitled “A Study on Irony in Short Stories by Edgar Allan Poe” in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Hanoi, 2016 Lê Thị Hƣơng i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Throughout accomplishing this thesis, namely “A Study on Irony in Short Stories by Edgar Allan Poe”, several outstanding individuals are integrally involved and make substantial contributions First of all, my deepest gratitude goes to all my lecturers at University of Languages and International Studies, Vietnam National University, Hanoi, for their endless enthusiasm and undeniable helpful lectures I would be very grateful to the staff of the Post-graduate Department for their support during the time of studying I especially would like to express my sincere gratitude to my supervisor Dr Trần Thị Thu Hiền for her invaluable guidance, insightful comments and endless support of material I would like to take this opportunity to thank Dr Ngô Tự Lập for his discerning comments, helpful advice and inestimable material support My thanks are extended to my friends, who gives me wise idea and always ready to help me whenever I have difficulties Last but not least, my warmest thanks are due to my family, especially my mother for their unconditional love and continual encouragement To all mentioned, and to many more, my heart extends the most enormous thanks Hanoi, 2016 Lê Thị Hƣơng ii ABSTRACT The research aims at studying irony in Edgar Allan Poe‟s works represented in three short stories - The Cask of Amontillado, The Tell- Tale Heart, and The Black Cat The theory of irony in literature suggested by Muecke (1969) is mainly adopted as the analytical framework in this study This research utilizes quantitative and qualitative methods with priorities given to the qualitative The data is collected by means of reading, identifying, classifying and reporting them into the analysis 31 samples of ironical expressions were found in Poe‟s three short stories, of which there is one sample both verbal and dramatic ironies The results show that verbal, situational and dramatic ironies are mainly used in Poe‟s works In addition, the findings reveal that irony can be created by ten techniques in the art of irony including pretended advice or encouragement to the victim, pretended agreement with the victim, rhetorical question, innuendo and insinuation, ambiguity, false statement, internal contradiction, fallacious reasoning, hyperbole and stylistically signalled irony This study hopes to bring additional knowledge to learners about types of irony as well as a typical technique of creating irony in Edgar Allan Poe‟s short stories in particular and an awareness of using and interpreting irony in literary works in general iii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page DECLARATION i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii ABSTRACT iii TABLE OF CONTENTS .iv LIST OF TABLES vii PART A: INTRODUCTION 1.1 Rationale of the study 1.2 Aims of the study 1.3 Scope of the study 1.4 Significance of the study 1.5 Research methodology 1.5.1 Research questions 1.5.2 Research methods 1.5.3 Data collection and analysis 1.6 Design of the study PART B: DEVELOPMENT CHAPTER I:THEORETICAL BACKGROUND AND LITERATURE REVIEW 1.1 A brief history of irony studies 1.2 Definitions of irony 1.3 Classification of irony 1.3.1 Verbal irony 1.3.2 Situational irony 1.3.3 Dramatic irony 1.3.4 Romantic irony 10 1.4 Essential elements of irony 11 1.5 Grades of irony 12 iv 1.5.1 Overt irony 12 1.5.2 Covert irony 12 1.5.3 Private irony 12 1.6 Detecting and interpreting irony 13 1.7 Previous studies 14 CHAPTER II: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 16 2.1 Edgar Allan Poe and his works 16 2.1.1 Biography of Edgar Allan Poe 16 2.1.2 Edgar Allan Poe's horror story writing style 16 2.1.3 Three short stories by Edgar Allan Poe 17 2.2 Research questions 19 2.3 Research methods 20 2.4 Data collection 20 2.5 Data analysis 21 2.6 Research procedures 22 2.7 Reliability and validity 22 CHAPTER 3: COMMON TYPES OF IRONY IN EDGAR ALLAN POE’S SHORT STORIES 24 3.1 Frequency of use of common types of irony in Poe‟s short stories 24 3.2 Verbal irony 25 3.2.1 Verbal irony in The Cask of Amontillado 25 3.2.2 Verbal irony in The Tell- Tale Heart 27 3.3 Situational irony 27 3.3.1 Situational irony in The Cask of Amontillado 27 3.3.2 Situational irony in The Tell- Tale Heart 30 3.3.3 Situational irony in The Black Cat 31 3.4 Dramatic irony 33 3.4.1 Dramatic irony in The Cask of Amontillado 33 3.4.2 Dramatic irony in The Tell- Tale Heart 34 v 3.4.3 Dramatic irony in The Black Cat 35 CHAPTER 4: THE CREATION OF IRONY IN EDGAR ALLAN POE’S SHORT STORIES 36 4.1 Frequency of use of techniques for creating irony in Poe‟s short stories 36 4.2 Techniques for creating irony in Poe‟s short stories 37 4.2.1 Pretended advice or encouragement to the victim 37 4.2.2 Pretended agreement with the victim 37 4.2.3 Rhetorical question 38 4.2.4 Innuendo and insinuation 38 4.2.5 Ambiguity 38 4.2.6 False statement 39 4.2.7 Internal contradiction 39 4.2.8 Fallacious reasoning 39 4.2.9 Overstatement 40 4.2.10 Stylistically signalled irony 40 4.3 Poe‟s use of irony 42 4.4.The effects of irony in Poe‟s short stories 42 PART C : CONCLUSION 45 Recapitulation 45 Concluding remarks 46 Implications of the study 47 3.1 Implications for interpretation of irony in literary works 47 3.2 Implications for teachers teaching American and English literature 47 3.3 Implications for students learning American and English literature 48 Limitation of the study and suggestions for further research 49 REFERENCES 50 APPENDICES I vi List of tables Table 2.1: Corpus analyzed in the study 21 Table 3.1: Occurrence and Percentage of types of irony in Poe‟s short stories .24 Table 4.1: Occurrence and Percentage of techniques for creating irony in Poe‟s short stories 36 vii PART A: INTRODUCTION 1.1 Rationale of the study It is obvious that English has become an important part not only in communication but also in many other aspects of life; therefore, mastering this foreign language is of great importance Learning English through literature works is a good way When learning literature works, we can not ignore to study stylistic devices which make works more intriguing and interesting Similarily, when learning stylistic devices, we can not pay no attention to studying irony However, how to study it well is still a difficult question for many learners Irony is an interesting language phenomenon used frequently in any spoken or written genre Simply, irony is a contrast between what is said and what is meant; what is expected to happen and what actully happens; or what readers know and what characters believe Irony is a rhetorical device in literature which is often employed to gain the desired effect of being scoffing, satirical, humorous and amusing Moreover, real life is full of ironical expressions and situations Therefore, the studying of irony in the literature works brings it closer to the life Edgar Allan Poe is one of the great American writers; he is also known as a master of horror and irony who has the ability to use every word to his advantage, thus creating a short story of great substance In most of literary criticism dealing with Edgar Allan Poe, little attention has been accorded to irony In this sense, this title, namely “A Study on Irony in Short Stories by Edgar Allan Poe” is conducted to help learners understand irony concepts, identify and interpret types of irony in Poe‟s short stories in particular and in literature works in general more easily 1.2 Aims of the study The study aims at: (1) finding out common types of irony in Edgar Allan Poe‟s short stories; (2) investigating the creation of irony in Edgar Allan Poe‟s short stories; (3) suggesting the implications for teaching and learning irony in literature works REFERENCES Vietnamese [1] Đinh Trọng Lạc (1994) 99 Phương tiện biện pháp tu từ NXB Giáo dục [2] Hoàng Văn Quang (1989) Truyện kinh dị Edgar Allan Poe (tập truyện ngắn) Quảng Nam - Đà Nẵng: NXB Lao động [3] Hoàng Kim Oanh (2011) Sự Tiếp Nhận Edgar Allan Poe Việt Nam Luật án tiến sỹ ngữ văn Viện hàn lâm khoa học xã hội Việt Nam Học viện Khoa học Xã hội [4] Ngơ Bích Thu (2014) Nghệ Thuật Xây Dựng Cốt Truyện Của Edgar Allan Poe Luật án tiến sỹ ngữ văn Viện hàn lâm khoa học xã hội Việt Nam Học viện Khoa học Xã hội [5] Khổng Đức (2009) Edgar Allan Poe khát khao sáng tạo huỷ diệt Hà Nội: NXB Thời đại [6] Ngô Tự Lập (2002) Tuyển tập Edgar Allan Poe Hà Nội: NXB Văn học English [7] Abrams, M.H (1999) A Glossary of Literary Terms, 7th ed Boston: Wadsworth [8] Abrams, M.H & Harpham, G.G (2009) A Glossary of Literary Terms 9th ed Boston: Wadsworth Cengage Learning [9] Aliaga, M & Gunderson, B (2002) Interactive Statistics New Jersey: Prentice Hall [10] Attardo, S., Grice, P., Sperber, D & Wilson, D (2009) Concise Encyclopedia of Pragmatics Mey, L (ed.), Elsevier [11] Attardo, S (2001) Humorous Texts: A Semantic and Pragmatic Analysis Mouton de Gruyter [12] Attardo, S (2000) “Irony Makers and Functions: Towards a Goal-Oriented Theory of Irony and its Processing” Journal of RASK ,12, 3-20 [13] Austin, J.L (1962) How to Do Things with Words Clarendon, Oxford [14] Barbe, K (1995) Irony in Context New York, NY: John Benjamins 50 [15] Berrendonner, A (1981) Elements De Pragmatique Linguistique Paris: Minuit [16] Booth, W C (1974) A Rhetoric of Irony Chicago: The University of Chicago Press [17] Clark, H.H & Gerrig, R.J (1984) “On the Pretense Theory of Irony.” Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 113, 121-126 [18] Cohen, L., et al (2007) Research Methods in Education London and New York: Routledge [19] Colston, H.L (1997) „I've Never Seen Anything like It: Overstatement, Understatement, and Irony” Metaphor and Symbol Volume 12, Issue 1, 43-58 [20] Cuddon, J.A (1977) A Dictionary of Literary Terms Harmondsworth: Penguin Books [21] Dews, S., Kaplan, J., & Winner, E.(1995) “Why Not Say It Directly? The Social Functions of Irony” Discourse Processes.Volume 19, Issue [22] Elleström, L (2002) Divine Madness: On Interpreting Literature, Music and the Visual Arts Bucknell University Press [23] Gibbs, R W & Colston, H L (2007) Irony in Language and Thought: A Cognitive Science Reader Lawrence Erlbaum Associates [24] Grice, P H (1975) Logic and Conversation Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press [25] Jönsson, M (2010) “Irony in Online Reviews: A linguistic approach to identifying irony” Advanced Undergraduate Level Research Essay University of Gothenburg [26] Jorgensen, J., Miller, G A & Sperber, D (1984) Test of the mention theory of irony Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 113, 112–120 [27] Kalbermatten, M.I (2006) Verbal Irony as a Prototype Category in Spanish: A Discoursive Analysis Unpublished Dissertation University of Minnesota [28] Kreuz, R J., & Roberts, R M (1993) “On Satire and Parody: The Importance of Being Ironic” Metaphor and Symbolic Activity, Volume 8, Issue 2, 97-109 51 [29] Kreuz, R J., & Roberts, R M (1995) “Two cues for verbal irony: Hyperbole and Ironic Tone of Voice” Metaphor and Symbolic Activity Volume 10, Issue 1, 21-32 [30] Lemieux, M (1991) The Evolution of Irony in the Short Stories of Chekhov Master thesis McGiIl University [31] Lüders, J (2010) “Stylistic Devices” retrieved from: http://fr.scribd.com/doc/95257249/Stylistic-Devices [32] Muecke, D C (1969) The Compass of Irony London: Methuen [33] Muecke, D.C (1982) Irony and the Ironic London and New York: Methuen [34] Nunan, D (1992) Research Methods in Language Learning Cambridge University Press [35] Poe, E.A (1984) Complete Stories and Poems of Edgar Allan Poe USA: Publisher [36] Roman, B., Gassmann, O., Sabine, R., & Marco, Z (2013) How qualitative and quantitative research differ? Switzerland: University of St Gallen [37] Shively, R.L., Menke, M.R & Manzón-Omundson, S.M (2008) “Perception of Irony by L2 Learners of Spanish” Issues in Applied Linguistics Volume 16, No 2, 101-132 Regents of the University of California [38] Sperber, D & Wilson, D (1986) Relevance: Communication and cognition Oxford: Blackwell [39] 2011 Springboard English Textual Power, Level College Board [40] Sova, D.B (2007) Critical Companion to Edgar Allan Poe: A literary reference to his life and work Cristina Mandoiu [41] Thompson, A R (1948) The Dry Mock: A Study of Irony in Drama, Berkeley: University of California Press [42] Yoder, T.S (2008) Hume on God: Irony, Deism and Genuine Theism Continuum International Publishing Group [43] Yus Ramos, F (2000) “On reaching the intended ironic interpretation International” Journal of Communication, 10 (1-2), 27-78 52 [44].http://www.poestories.com/ [45].http://poestories.com/read/amontillado [46] http://poestories.com/read/telltaleheart [47] http://poestories.com/read/blackcat [48] http://www.literarydevices.com/irony/ [49].http://www.ukessays.com/essays/english-literature/authors-use-of-irony-inshort-stories-english-literature-essay.php#ixzz3p1R8lqTj 53 APPENDICES APPENDIX Figure 2.1: Poe’s ten most translated works Translated times No Works Prior to 1945-1986 1987- 2009 1945 period period Total The Black Cat (8/1843) (Con Mèo Đen) 13 15 The Tell- Tale Heart (1/1843) (Trái Tim Thú Tội) 0 15 15 The Cask of Amontillado (11/1846) (Thùng Rượu Amontillado) 12 14 13 10 13 9 The Gold Bug (6/1843) (Con Cánh Cam Vàng) The Masque of the Red Death (5/1842) ( Mặt Nạ Tử Thần Đỏ) The Fall of the House of Usher (9/1839) (Sự Sụp Đổ Ngơi Nhà Dòng Họ Usher) The Muders on the Rue Morge (4/1841) (Vụ Án Mạng Đường Morge) Ms Found in a Bottle (10/1833) ( Bản Thảo Tìm Thấy Trong Chai) The Purloined Letter (18441845) (Lá Thư Bị Mất Cắp) 10 Ligeia (9/1838) (Quỷ Nhập Tràng) (Adapted from Hoàng Kim Oanh, 2011) I APPENDIX Occurrence of types of irony in Poe’s short stories Verbal irony in Edgar Allan Poe’s short stories  Verbal irony in The Cask of Amontillado (1846) (1) ―My dear Fortunato, you are luckily met.‖ (23, p.1) (2) ―Come,‖ I said, with decision, ―we will go back; your health is precious You are rich, respected, admired, beloved; you are happy, as once I was You are a man to be missed For me it is no matter We will go back; you will be ill, and I cannot be responsible Besides, there is Luchesi ‖ (72-75, p.3) ―Enough,‖ he said; ―the cough‘s a mere nothing; it will not kill me I shall not die of a cough.‖ ―True true,‖ I replied; ‖ (76-78, p.3) (3) ―I drink,‖ he said, ―to the buried that repose around us.‖ ―And I to your long life.‖ (86-87, p.3) (4) ―You not comprehend?‖ he said ―Not I,‖ I replied ―Then you are not of the brotherhood.‖ ―How?‖ ―You are not of the masons.‖ (113, p.4) ―Yes, yes," I said; ―yes, yes.‖ ―You? Impossible! A mason?" ―A mason,‖ I replied (116, p.5) ―A sign,‖ he said, ―a sign.‖ ―It is this,‖ I answered, producing from beneath the folds of my roquelaire a trowel (109 - 118, p 4-5) (5) In pace requiescat! (195, p.7)  Verbal irony in The Tell- Tale Heart (6) I loved the old man (7-8) ―I was never kinder to the old man than during the whole week before I killed him.‖ (15-16, p.1) II (7) You fancy me mad Madmen know nothing But you should have seen me You should have seen how wisely I proceeded-with what caution-with what foresightwith what dissimulation I went to work! Ha!-would a madman have been so wise as this? (13-23, p.1) If you still think me mad, you will think so no longer when I describe the wise precautions I took for the concealment of the body (91-92, p.3) Situational irony in Edgar Allan Poe’s short stories  Situational irony in The Cask of Amontillado (1846) (8) The title in “The Cask of Amontillado‖ The word cask, meaning wine barrel, is derived from the same root word used to form casket, meaning coffin in which the dead lay down (9) Second situational irony is Fortunato's name The Italian name Fortunato means ―fortunate‖; however, he is actually very unfortunate (10) It was about dusk, one evening during the supreme madness of the carnival season, that I encountered my friend (18-19, p.1) Its walls had been lined with human remains, piled to the vault overhead, in the fashion of the great catacombs of Paris (125-127, p.5) (11) He had a weak point this Fortunato He prided himself on his connoisseurship in wine (11- 12, p.1) ―Amontillado!‖ ―I have my doubts.‖ ―Amontillado!‖ ―And I must satisfy them.‖ ―Amontillado!” (30-34, p.2) ―Luchresi cannot tell Amontillado from Sherry." ―And yet some fools will have it that his taste is a match for your own ―Come, let us go.‖ (37-39, p.2) (12)―Proceed,‖ I said; ―herein is the Amontillado.‖ (137, p.5) A moment more and I had fettered him to the granite (140-141, p.5) Withdrawing the key I stepped back from the recess (144-145, p.5) (13) My heart grew sick; it was the dampness of the catacombs that made it so (191-192, p.7) III  Situational irony in The Tell- Tale Heart (14) For his gold I had no desire I think it was his eye! yes, it was this! He had the eye of a vulture a pale blue eye, with a film over it Whenever it fell upon me, my blood ran cold; and so by degrees very gradually I made up my mind to take the life of the old man, and thus rid myself of the eye forever (7-12, p.1) (15) I smiled, for what had I to fear? I bade the gentlemen welcome (107) In the enthusiasm of my confidence, I brought chairs into the room, and desired them here to rest from their fatigues, while I myself, in the wild audacity of my perfect triumph, placed my own seat upon the very spot beneath which reposed the corpse of the victim (107-113, p.3) (16) It grew louder louder louder! (130, p.4) I admit the deed! tear up the planks! here, here! it is the beating of his hideous heart! (137-138, p.4)  Situational irony in The Black Cat (17) From my infancy I was noted for the docility and humanity of my disposition My tenderness of heart was even so conspicuous as to make me the jest of my companions I was especially fond of animals, and was indulged by my parents with a great variety of pets (13-16, p.1) I grew, day by day, more moody, more irritable, more regardless of the feelings of others I suffered myself to use intemperate language to my wife (38-40, p.2) (18) On the night of the day on which this cruel deed was done, I was aroused from sleep by the cry of fire The curtains of my bed were in flames The whole house was blazing (83-84, p.3) (19) Alas! neither by day nor by night knew I the blessing of Rest any more! I started, hourly, from dreams of unutterable fear, to find the hot breath of the thing upon my face, and its vast weight an incarnate Night-Mare that I had no power to shake off incumbent eternally upon my heart ! (171-175, p.5) (20) I aimed a blow at the animal which, of course, would have proved instantly fatal had it descended as I wished But this blow was arrested by the hand of my IV wife Goaded, by the interference, into a rage more than demoniacal, I withdrew my arm from her grasp and buried the axe in her brain.‖ (185- 189, p.5) (21) My heart beat calmly as that of one who slumbers in innocence I walked the cellar from end to end I folded my arms upon my bosom, and roamed easily to and fro (236-237, p.6) (22) by a cry, at first muffled and broken, like the sobbing of a child, and then quickly swelling into one long, loud, and continuous scream, utterly anomalous and inhuman a howl a wailing shriek, half of horror and half of triumph, such as might have arisen only out of hell, conjointly from the throats of the dammed in their agony and of the demons that exult in the damnation (251-255, p.7) Of my own thoughts it is folly to speak (256, p.7) I had walled the monster up within the tomb! (262, p.7) Dramatic irony in Edgar Allan Poe’s short stories  Dramatic irony in The Cask of Amontillado (1846) (23) The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as I best could; but when he ventured upon insult I vowed revenge (1-2, p.1) (24) The man wore motley He had on a tight- fitting parti-striped dress, and his head was surmounted by the conical cap and bells (20-21, p.1) (25) ―And the motto?‖ ―Nemo me impune lacessit.‖ ―Good!‖ he said (94-96, p.4) (26) “Ha! ha! ha! he! he! he! a very good joke, indeed an excellent jest.‖ (178, p.6)  Dramatic irony in The Tell- Tale Heart (27) I heard all things in the heaven and in the earth I heard many things in hell How, then, am I mad? (3-4, p.1) (28) The officers were satisfied My manner had convinced them (114, p.4) V (29) It was a low, dull, quick sound much such a sound as a watch makes when enveloped in cotton (122-123, p.4) They heard! they suspected! they knew! -they were making a mockery of my horror! (132-133, p.4)  Dramatic irony in The Black Cat (30) Yet, mad am I not and very surely I not dream (3, p.1) (31) Secure, however, in the inscrutability of my place of concealment, I felt no embarrassment whatever (233-234, p.6) The police were thoroughly satisfied and prepared to depart (238-239, p.5-6) VI APPENDIX Techniques for creating irony in Poe’s short stories Pretended agreement with the victim The Cask of Amontillado (1846) (2) ―Enough,‖ he said; ―the cough‘s a mere nothing; it will not kill me I shall not die of a cough.‖ ―True true,‖ I replied; ‖ (76-78, p.3) Pretended advice or encouragement to the victim The Cask of Amontillado (1846) (2) ―Come,‖ I said, with decision, ―we will go back; your health is precious You are rich, respected, admired, beloved; you are happy, as once I was You are a man to be missed For me it is no matter We will go back; you will be ill, and I cannot be responsible Besides, there is Luchesi ‖ (72-75, p.3) (3) ―I drink,‖ he said, ―to the buried that repose around us.‖ ―And I to your long life.‖ (86-87, p.3) Rhetorical question The Tell- Tale Heart (1843) (27) How, then, am I mad? (4, p.1) (7) Ha! would a madman have been so wise as this? (22-23, p.1) (15) I smiled, for what had I to fear? (107, p.3) Innuendo and insinuation The Cask of Amontillado (1846) (25) ―And the motto?‖ ―Nemo me impune lacessit.‖ ―Good!‖ he said (94-96, p.4) Ambiguity The Cask of Amontillado (1846) (4) ―You not comprehend?‖ he said VII ―Not I,‖ I replied ―Then you are not of the brotherhood.‖ ―How?‖ ―You are not of the masons.‖ (113) ―Yes, yes," I said; ―yes, yes.‖ ―You? Impossible! A mason?" ―A mason,‖ I replied (116) ―A sign,‖ he said, ―a sign.‖ ―It is this,‖ I answered, producing from beneath the folds of my roquelaire a trowel (109 - 118, p.4-5) False statement The Cask of Amontillado (1846) (1) ―My dear Fortunato, you are luckily met.‖ (23, p.1) (12)―Proceed,‖ I said; ―herein is the Amontillado.‖ (137, p.5) A moment more and I had fettered him to the granite (140-141, p.5) Withdrawing the key I stepped back from the recess (144-145, p.5) The Tell- Tale Heart (1843) (6) I loved the old man (7-8, p.1) ―I was never kinder to the old man than during the whole week before I killed him.‖ (15-16, p.1) Internal contradiction The Cask of Amontillado (1846) (26) “Ha! ha! ha! he! he! he! a very good joke, indeed an excellent jest.‖ (178, p.6) The Black Cat (1843) (17) From my infancy I was noted for the docility and humanity of my disposition My tenderness of heart was even so conspicuous as to make me the jest of my companions I was especially fond of animals, and was indulged by my parents with a great variety of pets (13-16, p.1) I grew, day by day, more moody, more VIII irritable, more regardless of the feelings of others I suffered myself to use intemperate language to my wife (38-40, p.2) (19) Alas! neither by day nor by night knew I the blessing of Rest any more! I started, hourly, from dreams of unutterable fear, to find the hot breath of the thing upon my face, and its vast weight an incarnate Night-Mare that I had no power to shake off incumbent eternally upon my heart ! (171-175, p.5) Fallacious reasoning The Cask of Amontillado (1846) (23) The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as I best could; but when he ventured upon insult I vowed revenge (1- 2, p.1) The Tell- Tale Heart (1843) (14) For his gold I had no desire I think it was his eye! yes, it was this! He had the eye of a vulture a pale blue eye, with a film over it Whenever it fell upon me, my blood ran cold; and so by degrees very gradually I made up my mind to take the life of the old man, and thus rid myself of the eye forever (7-12, p.1) The Black Cat (1843) (20) I aimed a blow at the animal which, of course, would have proved instantly fatal had it descended as I wished But this blow was arrested by the hand of my wife Goaded, by the interference, into a rage more than demoniacal, I withdrew my arm from her grasp and buried the axe in her brain (185- 189, p.5) Overstatement The Cask of Amontillado (1846) (23) The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as I best could; but when he ventured upon insult I vowed revenge (1- 2, p.1) The Tell- Tale Heart (1843) (27) I heard all things in the heaven and in the earth I heard many things in hell (3-4, p.1) 10 Stylistically signalled irony The Cask of Amontillado (1846) IX (9) The Italian name Fortunato means ―fortunate‖; however, he is actually very unfortunate (8) The word cask, meaning wine barrel, is derived from the same root word used to form casket, meaning coffin in which the dead lay down (24) The man wore motley He had on a tight- fitting parti-striped dress, and his head was surmounted by the conical cap and bells (20-21, p.1) (13) My heart grew sick; it was the dampness of the catacombs that made it so (191-192, p.7) (10) It was about dusk, one evening during the supreme madness of the carnival season, that I encountered my friend (18-19, p.1) Its walls had been lined with human remains, piled to the vault overhead, in the fashion of the great catacombs of Paris (125-127, p.5) (5) In pace requiescat! (195, p.7) (11) He had a weak point this Fortunato He prided himself on his connoisseurship in wine (11- 12, p.1) ―Amontillado!‖ ―I have my doubts.‖ ―Amontillado!‖ ―And I must satisfy them.‖ ―Amontillado!” (30-34, p.2) ―Luchresi cannot tell Amontillado from Sherry." ―And yet some fools will have it that his taste is a match for your own ―Come, let us go.‖ (37-39, p.2) The Tell- Tale Hear t(1843) (29) It was a low, dull, quick sound much such a sound as a watch makes when enveloped in cotton (122-123, p.4) They heard! they suspected! they knew! -they were making a mockery of my horror! (132-133, p.4) X (16) It grew louder louder louder! (130, p.4) I admit the deed! tear up the planks! here, here! it is the beating of his hideous heart! (137-138, p.4) (28) The officers were satisfied My manner had convinced them (114, p.4) The Black Cat (1843) (18) On the night of the day on which this cruel deed was done, I was aroused from sleep by the cry of fire The curtains of my bed were in flames The whole house was blazing (83-84, p.3) (21) My heart beat calmly as that of one who slumbers in innocence I walked the cellar from end to end I folded my arms upon my bosom, and roamed easily to and fro (236-237, p.6) (22) by a cry, at first muffled and broken, like the sobbing of a child, and then quickly swelling into one long, loud, and continuous scream, utterly anomalous and inhuman a howl a wailing shriek, half of horror and half of triumph, such as might have arisen only out of hell, conjointly from the throats of the dammed in their agony and of the demons that exult in the damnation (251-255, p.7) Of my own thoughts it is folly to speak (256, p.7) I had walled the monster up within the tomb! (262, p.7) (30) Yet, mad am I not and very surely I not dream (3, p.1) (31) Secure, however, in the inscrutability of my place of concealment, I felt no embarrassment whatever (233-234, p.6) The police were thoroughly satisfied and prepared to depart (238-239, p.5-6) XI ... ********************** LÊ THỊ HƢƠNG A STUDY ON IRONY IN SHORT STORIES BY EDGAR ALLAN POE (Nghiên cứu tính mỉa mai truyện ngắn Edgar Allan Poe) M A Minor Program Thesis Field: English Linguistics Code:... 2.1 Edgar Allan Poe and his works 16 2.1.1 Biography of Edgar Allan Poe 16 2.1.2 Edgar Allan Poe's horror story writing style 16 2.1.3 Three short stories by Edgar Allan. .. METHODOLOGY 2.1 Edgar Allan Poe and his works 2.1.1 Biography of Edgar Allan Poe Born in Boston, Edgar Allan Poe (1809-1849) was orphaned as a young child and taken in by the Allan family of