Irony as a visual argument
pp. 297-307
in: Juan Redmond, Olga Pombo Martins, Angel Fernández (eds), Epistemology, knowledge and the impact of interaction, Berlin, Springer, 2016Abstract
Argumentation fields are extraordinarily varied. Depending on the area in which we move, our argumentative strategies should be appropriate for achieving the greatest success. The strength of a good argumentation must remain meaningfully in an argument developed in a logically valid way and rhetorically embellished, obtaining as a result a persuaded audience who consequently accept it.Irony, as a rhetorical trope of language, not only embellishes the argument, but it can also be a particularly persuasive argument itself. The ironic argument has some characteristic features such as its dependence on an active audience ready to interpret it, or its proximity to humor, which outlines a characteristic way of approaching the world of the ironic speaker. We will show how irony works within the written speech using Joan Fuster's aphorism as an example; and then, we will explore the possibilities of ironic argumentation in the visual field through one of Banksy's paintings.