The_Purpose_Of_Irony

The Purpose Of Irony In Daphne duMaurier’s Rebecca, the protagonist and narrator, Mrs. de Winter, strives to claim her proper role at Manderly and in her marriage as she deals with the inhibitions placed on her by her false image of Rebecca, Mrs. Danvers adoration of Rebecca, and Maxim’s reluctance to discuss his late wife, Rebecca. When reading the novel Rebecca, one must ask what the purpose of using irony in is. The role of irony in a novel is one that is used quite often as a literary technique. Generally speaking irony is used to prove a point or to give a different perspective on things or an unsuspecting ending. When the new Mrs. de Winter is arriving at Manderly for the first time, she instantly loses any poise that she gained during her first seven weeks of marriage and honeymooning with Maxim. Daphne duMaurier describes Mrs. de Winter’s fears through her thoughts as she and Maxim are driving to Manderly and getting closer by the minute. “Any measure of self-possession I had gained hitherto… was like a rag now, fluttering before the wind…” (duMaurier, 62). Mrs. de Winter is feeling like her old-self again, and in mrs, de, rebecca, winter, maxim, about, manderly, never, woman, winter’s, late, herself, feels, way, one, maxim’s, everything, danvers, very, people, fact, even, wife, first, being, time, through, though, things, tells, out, irony, ever, beatrice, quite