Bonus Post (BP): Tips for Using Irony in Stories

The other day, I came across a YouTube video called "Sincerity: Hollywood's Forgotten Currency" (Here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DuTwM...) which introduced me to the concept of sincerity and irony in fiction. For anyone unfamiliar with them, sincerity is when a story takes itself seriously, while irony is when a story pokes fun at itself. An example is in the movie The Incredibles, when the villain, Syndrome, says, "You sly dog, you got me monologuing!" poking fun at villainous monologues.

Although it's become more prevalent in modern media, irony also has a bad reputation, and for a good reason. While it can bring humor and subversion to a story, it can also mock the audience for enjoying it. And if the characters aren't taking the story seriously, why should we?

But at the same time, some of my favorite tv shows, Community and Firefly, use irony to great effect. And as with almost every trope in fiction, there's a place for it in the right contexts. When used correctly, irony can bring humor and good subversion to a story. In this post, I'm going to offer some tips on how to do that.

But before I do, please note that I do not consider myself an expert on this topic, and I do not consider the feedback I'm about to give as some sort of gospel on writing advice. This is my first time offering writing tips publicly, and I recommend anyone looking for advice on this subject to check out others posts and videos.

My first tip is to use irony sparingly. The example I listed above in The Incredibles is the only point of irony in the entire movie, save for a brief the discussion between two characters that's also about monologues. The rest of the movie is perfectly sincere and not afraid to take itself seriously, and that helps to keep it engaging for the audience.

Second, don't use irony in big moments. If you use it during times when audiences are supposed to be gripped, irony could suck them right out of the experience. It's better used during lighthearted or calm moments that we aren't supposed to take too seriously.

Third, make sure that irony fits the characters and/or situation. One of the most well-known ironic moments in cinema is in the the first Avengers movie, when Loki is about to give a great villainous speech about his worth, but before he gets very far, the Hulk promptly grabs him and smashes him into the ground multiple times. Part of the reason the scene is so great is because it's in character for both Hulk and Loki.

And fourth, balance out irony with sincerity so it doesn't go overboard. Firefly is great at this. While it does have a good few bits of irony in its short run, it always balances it out to where it doesn't mock itself. Take this exchange, for example:
Wash: "Psychic though? That sounds like something out of science fiction."
Zoe: "We're living on a spaceship, dear."
Wash: "...so?"
It circles right back to being sincere.

So, those are my tips for using irony in fiction! As I said before, I don't consider myself an expert on this topic, and I recommend you also search for more advice from people who aren't me. But anyway, thanks for reading!