Literary Analysis Essay on Richard Cory

Introduction

In poetry, there are various stylistic devices that the poet may choose to apply in their work to make it more captivating to read and also help them in passing the intended message to the leader more effectively. One such stylistic devices are the use of irony. The irony could be referred to as a situation in which things happen to the opposite of our expectations, i.e. the opposite of our expectations happens. There are three types of irony namely; Verbal irony where the author or poet uses words to meant the opposite of what they say. Situational irony, on the other hand, occurs where events happen to the opposite of our expectations. Finally, there is the case of dramatic irony whereby the audience is aware of something that a character is not.

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In Edwin Arlington Robinson poem "Richard Cory," the author has managed to apply irony and to be more precise, dramatic irony. At the beginning of the poem, we are presented with this character, i.e. Richard Cory who was everything which the poet and other individuals wished they could be. We are told that, Whenever Richard Cory went down town, We people on the pavement looked at him: He was a gentleman from sole to crown, Clean favored, and imperially slim ("Richard Cory by Edwin Arlington Robinson," 2019). This means that the people on the sidelines admired Robert Cory and the lifestyle he led. He appeared to be this guy who had everything under control; he even glittered when he walked.

However, one ironic thing happened, And Richard Cory, one calm summer night, went home and put a bullet through his head ("Richard Cory by Edwin Arlington Robinson," 2019). This is a perfect instance of dramatic irony where something happens to the opposite of our expectations. We expected that Cory was a well-accomplished gentleman who had little or no worries at all. However, to the opposite of our expectations, we come to realize that he was as troubled just as much as his admirers standing on the pavement.

Another instance of irony in the poem is when the author say that Richard Cory glittered when he walked. This is ironical in the sense that, the author exaggerates the social status the Cory held in the society.

The poet uses irony to drive home the point that there is more than meet the eye. In the eyes of his admiring observers, Richard Cory was the epitome of perfectionism, but it came to turn out that he was just as flawed as the rest.

The irony is effective in the poem in the sense that, it enables the author to provoke the readers interest. Through the irony, the poet informs the reader that although some individuals may tend to maintain a high-standards in terms of their outlook, by the end of the day we are all human and every individual has their flaws and shortcomings.

References

Richard Cory by Edwin Arlington Robinson. (2019). Retrieved from https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/44982/richard-cory