You Won't Be Very Popular (Verbal Irony)
Preuss and Meyer are taking Kirschbaum to examine Hardtloff when Preuss tells the doctor, "'Your situation isn’t exactly enviable, I can see that. If you succeed in saving the Sturmbannführer’s life, you won’t be very popular with your own people, I imagine.'" This is an example of understatement, which falls under the category of verbal irony, because Preuss's words are less severe than they should be in reality. In truth, Kirschbaum's situation is far worse than not enviable—it is dire. If he fails to save Hardtloff, he will be killed. At the same time, if he saves Hardtloff, he will likely be worse off than simply being unpopular with the Jews. Preuss's understatement can be seen as a way to assert power over Kirschbaum. He speaks with irony because he knows that Kirschbaum is not able to contradict him, and it forces Kirschbaum to consider his terrible position.
Lina Looks for Jacob's Radio (Dramatic Irony)
In chapter 24, Lina searches for Jacob's radio, which the reader knows does not exist. This is an example of dramatic irony—Lina perceives her situation to be different from how the audience understands it to be in reality. Lina even believes that she finds a radio, though the reader knows this could not be possible. The object is described as follows: "some delicate latticework, a little knob, glass, and round." It is clear that this cannot be a radio, but even the reader is left in the dark about the object until Jacob enters and asks about the kerosene lamp that Lina has taken out.
Kowalski Does Believe Jacob (Situational Irony)
Kowalski seems to not believe Jacob when Jacob confesses about not really possessing a radio. His response is to smile with a "sly look" and wink before he leaves Jacob's residence. Accordingly, the reader expects Kowalski to resume asking Jacob for news the following day. Yet, in an instance of situational irony—where something occurs in the plot that contradicts the audience's expectations—Kowalski is dead of suicide by the next morning. This situational irony forces the reader to consider whether Jacob should confess to more people, or if it is better to continue lying about the radio.
The Radio Repairman (Dramatic Irony)
After Jacob's first attempt to pretend that his radio is broken, Kowalski introduces him to Josef Neidorf, who was a radio repairman before the ghetto went into effect. Kowalski's purpose is clear—he intends to have Neidorf fix Jacob's radio. This is an instance of dramatic irony because the audience knows that the radio does not exist. Thus, Kowalski's understanding of his position differs from how the reader perceives the situation. This irony leads to a dramatic situation in which Jacob attempts to explain how he already fixed his radio while knowing much less about the mechanics of radios than Neidorf does.
