A Poisonous Delicacy (Situational Irony)
Although its poison could easily kill a person if the fish is improperly prepared, fugu is considered a delicacy and a novelty in Japan. The narrator of "A Family Supper" begins the story by explaining how the deadly fish rose to popularity in the period following WWII, with home cooks undertaking the dangerous gutting procedure and then inviting neighbors to take their lives into their hands by dining on the potentially lethal fish. In this instance of situational irony, Ishiguro emphasizes the peculiar phenomenon of people being drawn to a dish whose enjoyment is enhanced by its attendant risk.
The Old Woman in the Photograph (Situational Irony)
In the middle of dinner, a photograph on the wall behind Father's shoulder catches the narrator's eye. The narrator's hands go still and he asks who the old woman in the white kimono is. With irritation, Father explains that it is a photograph of the narrator's mother, taken shortly before her death. Upon looking at it more closely, the narrator explains that he couldn't tell because it was hanging in the dark. However, in an instance of situational irony, the photograph shares the same details the narrator earlier gave his sister when describing the ghost he once saw in the garden. This eerie coincidence suggests the narrator saw his own mother's ghost long before she died.
Kikuko May Travel to America (Dramatic Irony)
At the end of the story, the narrator's father invites the narrator to live at home again, adding that he hopes Kikuko will return once she has graduated in the coming spring. However, the reader knows Kikuko told the narrator that she has been invited to hitchhike across America with her boyfriend and likely has no intention of returning home. In this instance of dramatic irony, the reader knows the narrator is concealing this information from his father in order to spare the old man's feelings and let him live in the fantasy of not having to be alone for the rest of his life.
