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Examples Of Irony In The Wizard Of Oz

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Many books have irony, but no book utilizes it more than L. Frank Baum in The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. Some of these numerous ironic things include, Scarecrow having no brain but solves most of the problems. Tin Woodman has no heart, yet he still feels emotions. Cowardly Lion says he has no courage, but he is incredibly courageous when he needs to. In the book, these supporting characters encounter their ironic internal conflicts along their journey through Oz. Scarecrow has no brain but manages to solve most major problems in the story. "Here is a great tree, standing close to the ditch. If the Tin Woodman can chop it down, so that it will fall to the other side, we can walk across it easily" (Baum 41). This citation shows that Scarecrow has the ability to solve problems and come up with great ideas without the need of a brain. This is something that nobody in their group could think of, not even Dorothy, so it's ironic that someone like Scarecrow, who does not have a brain, came up with such a great idea. The Scarecrow solves numerous major conflicts like this one throughout the story even though he supposedly does not have a brain. …show more content…

"For if I should kill another bug or beetle I should surely cry again" (Baum 36). This citation expresses Tin Woodman's emotion towards living things despite him not having a heart. This is ironic for the Tin Woodman because when you think of someone with no heart, you usually think of someone who expresses no emotion or just doesn't care about anything or anyone. Tin Woodman clearly shows a lot of emotion though, most humans wouldn't even be upset over accidentally killing a bug. Even though Tin Woodman has no heart and should not feel sentiment, he persistently is

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