Implied Irony in Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice

This book first takes the reader through an in-depth discussion of discourse in fiction, authorial presence and irony. Then, an analytical reading of Pride and Prejudice is presented, relying on two theories concerned with the pragmatics of irony to illustrate how foreknowledge of the entire novel heightens the reader’s perception of irony in free indirect discourse (FID). Whilst acknowledging that the definition of irony as echoic language effectively describes the way the narrator seems to “ventriloquize” other voices, the book shows that a multistage approach can better account for the processes involved, given that activation of the initial (non-ironic) meaning occurs when FID causes the first-time reader to confuse the characters’ voices with narrative report. By relying on multistage theories to account for irony generated by FID, the book presents a different approach, and, therefore, constitutes essential reading for scholars and students desirous of broadening their understanding of this narrative technique.