Student’s Page­
Name: ________________________________
The Crucible
Date:_________________
Act II
Irony
Objective:
Identifying irony in a play
Activity
Arthur Miller uses various forms of irony—verbal, situational, and dramatic—in The Crucible. Working in
your group, locate examples of irony in Act II, and paraphrase or quotation the incidents as evidence on
the Irony Chart. Then identify the type of irony the incident illustrates and explain how the incident is an
example of that type of irony.
Here are some examples of the three types of irony from Act I:
1.
erbal irony: In the very beginning of Act I, Parris is almost hysterical over Betty’s condition: “Oh,
V
my God! God help me! Betty. Child. Dear child. Will you wake, will you open up your eyes! Betty,
little one…” A caring father would be worried for her health; however, Parris’ main concern is about
his job security and maintaining his authority in the town.
2.
ituational irony: Reverend Hale enters with a rational attitude and feels he must convince the
S
others that, “We cannot look to superstition in this. The Devil is precise; the marks of his presence
are definite as stone, and I must tell you all that I shall not proceed unless you are prepared to believe
me if I should find no bruise of hell upon her.” This becomes ironic when Hale becomes the primary
person who makes Tituba confess to witchcraft, which she has not committed.
3.
ramatic irony: An example of dramatic irony is when Parris asks, “Your Ruth is sick?” Readers
D
know that Ruth is not really sick, but the characters do not.
S - 71
Reproducible Student Worksheet
Student’s Page­
Name: ________________________________
The Crucible
Date:_________________
IRONY CHART
Incident
Type of Irony
S - 73
Explanation
Reproducible Student Worksheet