Dramatic Irony: Interpretations of the Elevator
The President and his advisers' conversation about what is going on in the Elevator is full of dramatic irony because the reader knows exactly how safe and harmless Charlie, Wonka, and the grandparents are, but those below decide first that they are enemies of the state and then that they are aliens. Someone remarks that the astronauts must be so powerful that they don't have to wear spacesuits, and that the bed must be a bomb. It is absurd, and the dramatic irony heightens that absurdity.
Dramatic Irony: Congratulating the President
After Wonka, Charlie, and Grandpa Joe successfully save the Commuter Capsule from destruction by the Knids, people from around the world send telegrams to the President to congratulate him on a job well done. This dramatic irony comes from the fact that he did nothing whatsoever, and from the fact that he considered the Elevator and those within it menaces just moments prior. It helps showcase how the President has fooled the world, by virtue of his occupation of the office, into thinking he is clever and brave.
Situational Irony: Miss Tibbs
Dahl creates a situation brimming with irony in that an elderly former Nanny is the Vice President and the real power behind the President; this is not something that makes any sense to the reader, and it reinforces the author's subtle commentary on the vacuousness of power.
Verbal Improvement: Wonka
When Grandpa Joe complains that his wife is now a baby, Wonka cannot help himself but say, "A great improvement, sir...don't you agree?" (113). This is ironic, of course, since no old man would want a screaming infant for their wife. Wonka's ironic words are intended to poke fun at Grandma Josephine's normally cantankerous personality.
