George Orwell- A Hanging
In George Orwell’s “A Hanging”, the roll of irony is distinctly present. Irony can be found in a lot of statements Orwell uses about how the prisoner that is about to be hanged. Irony is the use of comments by the writer to communicate with the reader on a subtle level. Orwell uses irony to show the reader how he is against capital punishment, instead of just stating that he is. Orwell seems to be struggling with the idea of death and through the use of irony, he describes how a man about to be hung, acts as if everything is normal. When the guards are walking the prisoner to the Gallows, the prisoner sidesteps a puddle. This passage shows that there is still instinct in the prisoner and that he doesn’t quite feel like his life is over. “And once, in spite of the men who gripped him by each shoulder, he stepped slightly aside to avoid a puddle on the path.” Even though the guard was holding him, he still managed to side step the puddle and avoid it as it may have made him uncomfortable. Also, he still has human instinct, because people tend to avoid what will make them uncomfortable, and walking through a puddle would do just that. This is ironic because he is about to die, and yet he doesn’t want his feet to
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Some common words found in the essay are:
Prisoner Gallows, Orwells Hanging, Hanging Orwell, capital punishment, orwell portrays, orwell irony, irony reader, orwell irony reader, walking prisoner gallows, guards walking prisoner, story capital punishment, life story death, prisoner gallows, guards walking, story death, life story, orwell makes, story capital,
Approximate Word count = 1067
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)
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