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Definition of Dramatic Irony
Dramatic irony is a plot device often used in theater, literature, film, and television to highlight the difference between a character's understanding of a given situation, and that of the... read full definition
Dramatic irony is a plot device often used in theater, literature, film, and television to highlight the difference between a character's understanding of a given... read full definition
Dramatic irony is a plot device often used in theater, literature, film, and television to highlight the difference between a... read full definition
Chapter 5
Explanation and Analysis—Famous Someday:
In Chapter 5, when Pino leaves Milan for Casa Alpina, he arrives at Chiavenna and meets a young man named Alberto Ascari, a race-car driver who offers to take Pino closer to his destination in the Swiss Alps. Although Pino does not know it, he has met a future celebrity: Alberto Ascari will soon become a world-famous Formula One driver after World War II ends. Ascari, a real figure from history, won multiple Formula One World Championship races in the early 1950s after WWII. However, at this early point of the novel, Alberto is still a young man and—like Pino himself— is closer to childhood than adulthood. To highlight both Pino and Ascari’s unawareness of Ascari’s future fame, Sullivan utilizes dramatic irony during their brief exchange:
“I believe you,” Pino said, his heart still pounding. “What’s that?” Ascari asked, puzzled. “I believe you’re going to be a race car driver someday,” Pino said. “A famous one. I’ve never seen anyone drive like that.” Ascari couldn’t have smiled more if he tried.
It is ironic that Pino believes Ascari will become a famous driver one day, saying as much to Ascari himself. Of course, Ascari will rise to become one of the most famous race-car drivers in world history not many years later. Readers may understand this fact quite clearly, and it is thus humorous that Pino and Ascari simply haven’t lived long enough to witness Ascari’s rise to fame. Sullivan uses irony to highlight the presence of a young Ascari in the novel, without directly referencing his real-life fame and success.
