2. Dramatic irony occurs when a character on stage is not aware of something the audience or reader knows to be true. In Act V, Scene 3 of Romeo and Juliet, why are the following lines of Romeo dramatically ironic?
Death, that hath sucked the honey of thy breath,
Hath had no power yet upon thy beauty,
Thou art not conquered. Beauty's ensign yet
Is crimson in thy lips and in thy cheeks,
And death's pale flag is not advanced there.
A: Death is associated with a pale flag rather than a black one.
B: Unknown to Romeo, Juliet is not really dead
C: Romeo hopes against hope that Juliet may still be alive.
D: Romeo realizes that the fued between the Capulets and the Montagues will never end. (my answer)
It is B. In the passage, Romeo sees her in the tomb, dead-like, and says that she does not look dead. That is situation irony- he is not aware that she is not dead and describes her as it is. Only the audience notices that.
Romeo sees Juliet in the tomb, dead-like, and says that she doesn't look dead. That is circumstance incongruity he doesn't know that she isn't dead and portrays her he sees her.
