Macmillan Holdings, LLC. Grammar Girl, Grammar Girl's, QDnow, and Quick and Dirty Tips are all trademarks of Macmillan Holdings, LLC. Isn't it ironic? Mike grammar I really enjoyed the video and your insightful analysis of it. One of my pre-service teachers shared it with me, and I think she will try to use these kind of resources with her class. http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/grammar-irony.aspx?commentid=19543#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/grammar-irony.aspx?commentid=19543#Comments Thu, 01 Oct 2009 19:47:34 GMT Tern grammar Good answer, I am looking for the solution of the same question. Find the movies or mp3 you are looking for at download-the-movie.net the most comprehensive source for free-to-try files downloads on the Web http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/grammar-irony.aspx?commentid=16879#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/grammar-irony.aspx?commentid=16879#Comments Thu, 07 May 2009 16:57:57 GMT Jeremy grammar GG, why use "oversimplification" when "simplification" would do. :) http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/grammar-irony.aspx?commentid=16277#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/grammar-irony.aspx?commentid=16277#Comments Fri, 27 Mar 2009 20:31:59 GMT 2Wire09 grammar Why no videoooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!111 ): http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/grammar-irony.aspx?commentid=15619#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/grammar-irony.aspx?commentid=15619#Comments Tue, 03 Feb 2009 18:54:56 GMT Brent grammar Ha ha ha ha that IS ironic. The plane towards the end was more interesting then you no offense. P.S. The video took forever to load so no more video, OK. EVER! http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/grammar-irony.aspx?commentid=15368#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/grammar-irony.aspx?commentid=15368#Comments Fri, 16 Jan 2009 03:00:54 GMT anonymous grammar Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha. No Video Please you must be joking!! :D LOL!! http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/grammar-irony.aspx?commentid=15249#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/grammar-irony.aspx?commentid=15249#Comments Wed, 31 Dec 2008 01:41:17 GMT Dave grammar I needed to reset my iPod today and just now discovered a video episode on the feed! Some have made negative comments about the way the video was shot, but I think it is great. It captures some of that elusive 'cinema verite' quality that is sadly missing from contemporay Hollywood movies. Please keep it up the good work. Also welcome is your foray into territory that is beyond the realm of grammar. It reminded me of an old skit from SCTV...An elementary school teacher like Andrea Martin was teaching the weekly vocabulary list. She was teaching words like train, skyscraper, playground, bridge, and so forth. The last word on the vocabulary list was "existentialism." Somehow, explaining 'irony' is more ambitious than teaching "'Can' vs. 'May'." A few comments about 'irony'. The entire Palin campaign reminded me of the famous quote attributed to Mr. Tom Lehrer ("Poisioning Pigeons in the Park"). He said that irony died the day the Henry Kissinger was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. It rendered political satire obsolete. That was the day the whole world became ironic, making irony difficult to recognize. This is why: In order to recognize the irony in the Kissinger incident, a person has to have an invariant expectation of what kinds of acts are worthy of the Prize. For example, my expectation of what is worthy of the Prize doesn't include being responsible for the deaths of thousands of people. I see the world the same way as Mr. Lehrer. In the post-modern world, there are no fixed standards. This view was expressed in President Nixon's famous statement that "anything the President does is legal." Since Kissinger received the Nobel Peace Prize, then by definition, whatever he did must merit the Prize. From this perspective, there is no way to recognize irony. I think it has something to do with conformity/authoritarianism, but it is more complex than that: Since the Nobel committee is a authority figure, whatever they do must be correct. Each award redefines what Peace prize-winning work is. Everyone who receives the Prize must deserve it. In that way, no award can be ironic. This is the case with Palin. In the old-world view, we had the quaint idea that candidates nominated by major parties were qualified. With that expectation, the nomination of an idiot (and the adoring response to the idiot) is seen as ironic. The post-modern interpretation matches the Kissinger example. The Republican party is the authority figure: Therefore, whoever they nominate must be qualified. It even became sensible to talk of Palin as a a leading candidate for President in 4 years! The Turkey slaughter video was such a clear example of irony because it seemed to be exaggerated to the degree that you usually see only in staged comedy skits. It was a parody of the standard interview clip that we see in the evening news. Normally they are staged and shot in an artifical way to make the candidate look patriotic. They stand in front of a flag, or some soldiers, or with pretentious-looking politicians, for example. The framing of the Turkey slaughter scene copied the look of one of these shots, except the executioner and his machine substituted for the standard background. Especially good was the casting of the executioner and the way in which both he and Palin glanced at each other. It was as if he was saying to her, "hey, I'm on camera killing animals" and she didn't care at all!! How we became inured to irony is a great question and is far beyond the realm of grammar. That's all! http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/grammar-irony.aspx?commentid=15225#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/grammar-irony.aspx?commentid=15225#Comments Tue, 23 Dec 2008 04:49:37 GMT Bill grammar I loved the video! I'd definitely tune in for more. http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/grammar-irony.aspx?commentid=15219#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/grammar-irony.aspx?commentid=15219#Comments Sun, 21 Dec 2008 17:58:34 GMT Kris grammar The clip of Sarah Palin and the slaughterhouse IS ironic. Not because she went to a slaughterhouse to pardon the turkey, but because WE saw a clip of a man slaughtering a turkey when we'd tuned in to watch one being pardoned. It's difficult to cover all types of irony in a single five-minute podcast, but GG did an excellent job of showing one type of irony. Way to go, Grammar Girl. http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/grammar-irony.aspx?commentid=15067#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/grammar-irony.aspx?commentid=15067#Comments Sun, 07 Dec 2008 04:19:48 GMT pudge grammar I hear you, but there's no reason this SHOULD be ironic. Of COURSE there's turkeys being killed there. Why else go there to pardon a turkey in the first place? http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/grammar-irony.aspx?commentid=15063#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/grammar-irony.aspx?commentid=15063#Comments Sun, 07 Dec 2008 02:37:36 GMT Thu, 01 Oct 2009 19:47:34 GMT http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/grammar-irony.aspx feedback@quickanddirtytips.com (Managing Editor) feedback@quickanddirtytips.com (Webmaster) en-us