Which type of irony occurs when the audience knows something that a character does not?

• A. Dramatic Irony
• B. Verbal Irony
• C. Situational Irony
• D. Irony

Answer: (A)

Dramatic irony is at work when the audience knows something a character does not, which creates tension because we anticipate how the character will react and how events will unfold. This gap between what the audience knows and what the character believes drives suspense or humor, depending on the situation. For example, if the audience knows the villain is hiding in the room while a character confidently enters, we wait to see when the character will discover the danger. This differs from verbal irony, where someone says the opposite of what they mean, and from situational irony, where the outcome is opposite to what everyone expects. In this scenario, the defining feature is the audience’s knowledge that the character lacks.