Irony

[Drygon]

@corkboard

Um, no. If you need a knife and don’t have any cutlery, it’s misfortune, mishap, bad luck. But if you have 10,000 spoons, it’s sort of a cruel joke; all you need is for one of them to be a knife. That’s a different situation than misfortune.

If you fly all the time and one of those times your plane crashes, that’s misfortune. But if you’ve never flown because you’re afraid of crashing, despite all of the data about how flying is statistically the safest way to travel, and then you finally decide to do it and that one time your plane crashes, it’s something more than just misfortune.

I believe that I’ve heard the term “ironical” used to describe such situations.

[KneadToKnow]

@Drygon

I believe that I’ve heard the term “ironical” used to describe such situations.

Hearing someone call a lectern a podium doesn’t make it the right term.

[Aspidistra]

@corkboard

If you fly all the time and one of those times your plane crashes, that’s misfortune. But if you’ve never flown because you’re afraid of crashing, despite all of the data about how flying is statistically the safest way to travel, and then you finally decide to do it and that one time your plane crashes, it’s something more than just misfortune.

No, if you drive instead because you’re afraid of flying, and end up dying in a 3 car pile-up on the freeway THAT is ironic.

[corkboard]

@Aspidistra

No, if you drive instead because you’re afraid of flying, and end up dying in a 3 car pile-up on the freeway THAT is ironic.

I bet she had a hell of a time shoehorning those lyrics into the song.

[mecaenas]

@corkboard

Um, no. If you need a knife and don’t have any cutlery, it’s misfortune, mishap, bad luck. But if you have 10,000 spoons, it’s sort of a cruel joke; all you need is for one of them to be a knife. That’s a different situation than misfortune.

If you fly all the time and one of those times your plane crashes, that’s misfortune. But if you’ve never flown because you’re afraid of crashing, despite all of the data about how flying is statistically the safest way to travel, and then you finally decide to do it and that one time your plane crashes, it’s something more than just misfortune.

Ok so you don’t think ‘misfortune’ is the right term, that’s fine, but whatever you think it is, it’s not irony.

[Attack_from_the_3rd_dimension]

I’ve always thought it would be interesting, maybe for busking, to rewrite the song so that it was, well, ironic-er, although the story of how the song was written is too perfect.

So:

It’s like rain, on your wedding date
when you’re a meteorologist
and you predicted the other way.
Who would have thought, it figures

It’s a death row pardon two minutes too late
for a murderous bicycle courier.

A traffic jam when you’re already late
and you’re the one who left the city in that state

It’s like ten thousand spoons when all you need is a knife
and you’re the person who cut the knives out of your life.

Thoughts?

[StrangeBird]

I have seen alternative lyrics before, but I can’t remember them off-hand.

The guy who was afraid to fly was on his way to a convention for those afraid of flying, etc. If I can find them, I’ll post them here

[Argent_Towers]

“They couldn’t hit an elephant at this dist—BOOM!”

“I am de only one in dis room who is qualified to—BOOM!”

[Electronic_Chaos]

@Attack_from_the_3rd_dimension

I’ve always thought it would be interesting, maybe for busking, to rewrite the song so that it was, well, ironic-er, although the story of how the song was written is too perfect.

So:

Thoughts?

Something like this?

[corkboard]

@mecaenas

Ok so you don’t think ‘misfortune’ is the right term, that’s fine, but whatever you think it is, it’s not irony.

I’m aware of that. I’m not arguing that is is irony. I’m asking if there’s a good catch-all term for those types of situations.