IRONY IN JONATHAN STROUD'S THE AMULET OF SAMARKAND

Abstract

One of literary devices that can be applied to literary works is irony. The irony as literary device is a figure of speech in which the speaker’s meaning is far from the usual meaning of the words or quite the opposite. In this study, the author analyzing the irony in novel The Amulet of Samarkand, to get in-depth explanation of the types of irony in the novel, how it was portrayed and how it was connected to the plot of the story. Furthermore, this study is part of literary criticism since the researcher approach the literary work by New Criticism theory then interprets and analyze the literary work by Kennedy’s theory of irony. The theory of irony applied to analyze the irony as a literary device in the novel The Amulet of Samarkand by Jonathan Stroud. The findings show that there are five kinds of irony in the novel; verbal irony, dramatic irony, cosmic irony, situational irony, and ironic point of view. Hence, the researcher found that each of irony works to the plot as it was play roles as an agent to move the plot to its rising action and climax, and the it works to emphasize some important point in the plot as well. The important points in the plot that emphasized by the irony such as; the naivety of Nathaniel, the discrepancy of the thing being done and its result, and the cunny nature of the demon.