Situational Irony is the irony that a situation in which the actions that go on in the book that are different than what is intended and contrary to what the people in the book expect. For most of the situational irony it is started from irony, being the discrepancy between what is happening and what is expected to happen and it occurs constantly through the work. Some examples of Situational Irony in Treasure Island include how Jim Hawkins, described as a young boy, travels in a small boat to keep his treasure safe and find the new one while trying to take down a large boat full of pirates. This is situational only because you would assume that Jim would take a challenge with someone at his own level rather than someone way bigger which is what was not expected at all.
“Now, to tell you the truth, from the very first mention of Long John in Squire Trelawney's letter, I had taken a fear in my mind that he might prove to be the very one-legged sailor whom I had watched for so long at the old "Benbow." But one look at the man before me was enough.” (Treasure ISland, pg. 133). |
A second example is when Billy Bones hides in the inn of Jim's parents to stay away from people who are after him. He ends up dying after hiding for a while from a stroke or the "black spot". This happened because he had rum and couldn't get away from temptation.
This quote explains the irony of the situation of all the pirates getting together making Jim seem scared. There is no shown danger but pirates are typically dangerous and this is not what you would expect seeing pirates together but in this scene the irony is that they don't act the way people portray the "pirate" stereotype. |