Question

None of the old dreams had been abandoned. The Republic of the Animals which Major had foretold, when the green fields of England should be untrodden by human feet, was still believed in. Some day it was coming: it might not be soon, it might not be with in the lifetime of any animal now living, but still it was coming.
. . . It might be that their lives were hard and that not all of their hopes had been fulfilled; but they were conscious that they were not as other animals. If they went hungry, it was not from feeding tyrannical human beings; if they worked hard, at least they worked for themselves. No creature among them went upon two legs. No creature called any other creature “Master.” All animals were equal.

–Animal Farm,
George Orwell

Which statement best explains why this passage is an example of irony?

An unexpected event occurs that surprises the reader.
The text ridicules the animals for their naive way of thinking.
The characters make statements that are the opposite of what they really mean.
The reader knows that there is a difference between what is expected and what occurs.

Answer 1

The reader knows that there is a difference between what is expected and what occurs.

Explanation: The animals’ stated ideals (equality, no animals on two legs) contrast sharply with what actually happens later in the story (the pigs become tyrannical and walk on two legs), creating situational irony.