Otter's Jug-Band Magi Irony

Improved Essays
In the television special, “Emmet Otter’s Jug-Band Christmas,” it uses irony to convey its theme. The plot somewhat resembles that of the short story, “The Gift of the Magi,” by O. Henry. This is because both apply irony to express a theme. In “Emmet Otter’s Jug-Band Christmas,” Emmet and his mother Alice live on the side of the river and are very poor. Christmas is approaching and they have no money to buy the other a present. They both stumble upon the talent show taking place in town. The reward for the winner is money. Both want to win so they can buy the other person a present. Emmet uses his mother’s washtub to take part in a talent show. If he wins, he can buy a piano for his mother. Alice, Emmett's mother, sells Emmet’s toolbox so

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    Anse, Addie’s husband, waits on the porch, while their teenage daughter, Dewey Dell, fans her mother in the July heat. The night after Addie dies a heavy rainstorm sets in; rivers rise and wash out bridges the family will need to cross to get to Jefferson. The family's trek by wagon begins, with Addie’s not-embalmed body in the coffin. Along the way, Anse and the five children encounter various difficulties.…

    • 458 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    For example, even the title itself is an example of situational irony. In the story, Detective Branigan received an invitation to the murder of Gregory Abbott. This is ironic because in the end Gregory did indeed die, therefore, Branigan was invited to witness…

    • 517 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    The Wonderful Wizard of Oz is an example of irony. The whole plot of the story and characters are a sample of situational irony. Dorothy goes to the wizard to try and find a way home. Later on she finds out she could’ve done that earlier. The Lion seems to be wimp who ends up being brave.…

    • 101 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Figurative Language: Irony- The City of Ember In The City of Ember, irony occurs all throughout the novel. One such instance is when Lina and Doon discover the mayor’s secret storeroom in the Pipeworks: “‘The mayor has a secret treasure room in the Pipeworks’” (158).…

    • 1269 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    “The Open Boat” by Stephen Crane and “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” by Flannery O'Connor both embody situational irony. When reading The Open Boat and A Good Man Is Hard to Find, excitement level is enhanced through the author’s use of situational irony defying what the reader expects and what the author actually reveals in the final moment. Both O'Connor and Crane develop their stories as if they were a roller coaster ride but, with a twist at the end. It surprises me that ordinary and average people are willing to trade in the stillness of the ground for a chance to be tossed around in the until they often loose conciseness. The force of twisting tracks, loops and turns send chills through the rider’s body.…

    • 932 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Diana’s homecoming date arrived late and left early—without her. When her friends took her home, they hugged her and said, "What a great night and date!" Diana’s friends are trying to jokingly make the point that they know it was a bad night and a terrible date.…

    • 673 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In “Popular Mechanic”, Carver told us two issues in the story. However, as the Carver told us at the ending line if the story, “In this manner, the issue was decided,” the author did not make clear what ‘issue’ was ‘decided.’ The ‘issue’ that the text describes as ‘decided’ could be either the argument between the parents or the fate of the baby but not both. Both parents repeatedly say they want the baby. Hence, if the meaning of the last line can never be known, what happens in the story can never be known as well.…

    • 820 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    While The Machine That Won the War by Isaac Asimov and The Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin are both very ironic stories, they have two different types of irony. The main theme of The Machine That Won the War is a machine, called the Multivac. Yet it is found out the machine really did not win or even help out in the war, ironically contradicting the title. The results were just being doctored by John Henderson, the main character, and his superior, Jablonsky, to make it seem the machine actually won the war.…

    • 385 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Another section of the story that displays situational irony is "Let 's shout for help," he said; he said; "in this lull our voices may carry a little way. They will not carry far through the trees and undergrowth," said Georg, "but we can try. Together, then. " This is ironic because they are shouting out into the wild, but they know it is not going to help. In the end, when…

    • 1804 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Authors may use different types of literary devices to maintain the reader’s attention in a story. A metaphor, simile, flashback, imagery, and an allusion are all examples of literary devices that can be used in a story to keep the reader engrossed. Kate Chopin used literary devices in her story “Desiree’s Baby” which helped her contribute to the success of the story. Kate Chopin used imagery on paragraph 6 to describe L’Abri and explain why it is a sad place to visit. Imagery is a visual symbolism the author uses to capture the reader’s interest.…

    • 1423 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The literary device, irony, can be used for many different parts in a story. Irony plays a key role to keep a story progressing. It has the capability to, increase focus on main events, see things from a different perspective, and create suspense. Eric Wright is a remarkable author who understands how to create and use irony in a story. Wright interprets irony throughout his story Twins to develop his characters.…

    • 829 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Theme Of Racism In Sonny's Blues

    • 1029 Words
    • 5 Pages
    • 1 Works Cited

    Irony is shown from the start to the end of this story through the direction of lifestyle each brother chose to lead. Isn't it ironic that two brothers brought up under the same roof took two totally different paths? Sonny chose music as a career, not very secure or stable; on the other hand, his brother chose to go to college and become a math teacher, an extremely stable position. Sonny's lifestyle is a very carefree one while his brother's isn't. Sonny is free and single while his brother is married with children.…

    • 1029 Words
    • 5 Pages
    • 1 Works Cited
    Superior Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Understanding the Irony in Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery” When someone wins the lottery they should win money or prizes or maybe even an expense paid vacation. No one ever dreams of being the winner of your own stoning. Shirley Jackson wrote about a cold blooded murder that the reader would not be prepared for and would lend to the shock value of becoming emotionally involved in this story. The reader is gently pushed in the direction of comfort and safety when the story begins through Jackson 's ironic themed style of writing.…

    • 1399 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The author Tina Fey in her excerpt Bossypants, uses comic irony, situational irony, and the incongruity theory of humor to reveal that negative experiences can result in positive outcomes. Throughout the story, comic irony was most evident in the people’s dialects. For instance when Tina Fey refers to the people that ask her about her scar just because “ it’s so beautiful” as “disgusting.” Usually when somebody sympathizes with you and calls a mark on your body beautiful you are grateful, because they were able to see beyond your somewhat tragic experience that left you with that mark, and that mark didn't make you seem any less beautiful in their eyes.…

    • 447 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    As well as that, authors tend to view irony as an effective way to develop the theme in many different stories. An example of how effective the use of irony can be is shown in the short stories “Barney”, by Will Stanton, and “The Gift of the Magi”, by O. Henry. In “Barney”, irony is used to develop theme by accentuating the unintended circumstances that technology can cause. On the other hand, irony develops the theme of “The Gift of the Magi” by portraying how people can sacrifice their belongings in order to please their true love. Both of these short stories get their messages across more significantly by the use of irony, exhibiting just how much irony can contribute to the quality of literature.…

    • 1488 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays