Equal Situational Ironies Cause Distinct Results

        Those two short stories “The Necklace” and “The Story of an Hour” both have situational irony that occupies more parts than other kinds of irony. Two different types of women suffer from the same tortures between hope and reality, but the fate trifle with them in diverse degrees causing them dissimilar effects.

First, in “The Necklace”, the protagonist Mathilde endures twice times in irony, and they are not too serious than another leading role in the next story. Mathilde is a vainglorious and she deems she is born to live in the high class, but her husband is just a poor public servant. That’s the first situational irony. The second one is Mathilde borrows her best friend’s necklace than loss it. The couple work so hard and finally buy a new necklace, but she doesn’t know the one she loss is a common costume necklace. She puts in quite energy in order to buy a real one to replace the lost fakery. Then, there is only one situational irony in “The Story of an Hour”. The leading role Louise who doesn’t feel happy in her marriage and doesn’t have courage to divorce. So she does nothing but to have a sense of self-pity. Louise is happy after hearing her spouse’s death in the train accident. It’s a great opportunity that she can free from a misfortune marriage. However, she finally knows that her husband’s death is a misunderstanding. Her spouse doesn’t die. Ultimately she dies because she can’t accept the truth.

        Both two female-protagonists in the stories are tragic women. One exhausted herself because of her misunderstand, and the other one die because of the tease of destiny. Same situational irony of destiny but distinct bearing degrees causes the diverse results in the two women.