Expert:
1)Please provide the name of story or play .
2)And please send an image of lines 273 -279.
User:
The name of the story is “ A Journey “The narrator is concerned about the fact that protagonist is afraid to tell anybody on the train that her husband is dead. knows that should she tell people she and her husband will be removed from the train. This could be important as it suggests that there may be a negative attitude towards death within society. Death is something to be seen from a distance rather than close proximity. With social opinion dictating that it may be inappropriate for the protagonist and her husband to continue their journey. How imposing social opinion actually is in the story is noticeable by the sense of panic that the protagonist feels on discovery that her husband is dead. She does not grieve his death rather she is concerned about hiding the fact that he is dead. If anything the protagonist is being practical under very difficult circumstances. She is also accepting of the conditions she finds herself in. Knowing that she will be judged by others due to the fact that her husband has died on the train. If anything Wharton may be suggesting that at times society can lack empathy.
The fact that the protagonist is in conflict with herself may also be significant as it suggests that she is torn between staying with her husband and leaving him. If anything Wharton manages to give the reader an insight into the emotions that the protagonist is feeling. She had aspirations for the future but due to her husband’s illness her own life has been put on hold. Taking on the responsibility as a caregiver or nurse to her husband. It is also possible that Wharton is highlighting how quickly an individual’s life can change from a life of happiness to one of misery without the individual having any control over how things turn out. Which is very much the case when it comes to the protagonist. Her life has been interrupted without her permission. She has no say in what will happen to her due to the accepted societal norms of the time. If she were to leave her husband she would become an outcast within society.
Situational irony is a type of irony where there is a discrepancy between what is expected to happen versus what actually happens in a situation.In “A Journey,” Edith Wharton's use of tone and imagery revolving around the wife, conveys the negative impact the death of a husband has on a woman to interact with others in a calm manner.Hence its a best example of situational irony.