Dramatic irony is when the audience is aware of something that the characters do not yet grasp. “ ‘O Romeo, Romeo! wherefore art thou Romeo? Deny thy father and refuse thy name; Or, if thou wilt not, be but sworn my love, And I'll no longer be a Capulet.’ ‘Shall I hear more, or shall I speak at this?’ “ (II. …show more content…
“Come, bitter conduct, come, unsavoury guide. Thou desperate pilot, now at once run on The dashing rocks thy seasick, weary bark. Here’s to my love!” (V. iii. 126-129). This quote is dramatic irony because the readers or audience of the tragedy know that Juliet is not yet dead, but since the letter from the Friar Laurence never reached Romeo, he is unaware. This is a pivotal point in the play because it is the moment Shakespeare really starts pulling on the reader’s heartstrings with the death of the play’s main character. Knowing the two star-crossed lovers take their lives in the very beginning only makes matters worse, because you know their demise is inevitable. I chose this quote because it is a crucial part in the scene that really makes Romeo and Juliet a tragedy.
William Shakespeare uses the literary technique of dramatic irony to draw in the audience. This particular type of irony pulls the reader into the play because they are concerned about the well being of the characters. Then knowing important information that could eventually lead to the heartbreak, sadness or even death of that character, just makes the them even more drawn into the play. Overall dramatic irony, as well as other literary devices draw the reader's or audience’s attention deeper into the play as the plot continuously grows more complicated and characters become more