As synchronicity would have it, I had a debate with Mycroft about that very same Alanis song, just the other day...(a true Napalmian Debate)...so, with that in mind, excuse me while I indulge in a bit of sophistry. (Or, if you just hate it when I do this, please move along...there's nothing to see here. *Grin*)
First, the lyrics to the song in question:
Ironic - Alanis Morrisette An old man turned ninety-eight
He won the lottery and died the next day
It's a black fly in your Chardonnay
It's a death row pardon two minutes too late
Isn't it ironic... don't you think
(chorus)
It's like rain on your wedding day
It's a free ride when you've already paid
It's the good advice that you just didn't take
Who would've thought... it figures
Mr. Play It Safe was afraid to fly
He packed his suitcase and kissed his kids good-bye
He waited his whole damn life to take that flight
And as the plane crashed down he thought
"Well, isn't this nice."And isn't it ironic ... don't you think
(repeat chorus)
Well life has a funny way of sneaking up on you
When you think everything's okay and everything's going right
And life has a funny way of helping you out when
You think everything's gone wrong and everthing blows up
In your face
A traffic jam when you're already late
A no-smoking sign on your cigarette break
It's like 10,000 spoons when all you need is a knife
It's meeting the man of my dreams
And then meeting his beautiful wife
And isn't it ironic... don't you think
A little too ironic.. and yeah I really do think...
(repeat chorus)
Well life has a funny way of sneaking up on you
And life has a funny way of helping you out
Helping you out.
And now, the term in controversy:
i·ron·ic ( P ) Pronunciation Key (-rnk) also i·ron·i·cal (-rn-kl) adj.
1. Characterized by or constituting irony.
2. Given to the use of irony. See Synonyms at sarcastic.
3. Poignantly contrary to what was expected or intended: madness, an ironic fate for such a clear thinker.
i·roni·cal·ly adv.
i·roni·cal·ness n.
Usage Note: The words ironic, irony, and ironically are sometimes used of events and circumstances that might better be described as simply “coincidental” or “improbable,” in that they suggest no particular lessons about human vanity or folly. Thus 78 percent of the Usage Panel rejects the use of ironically in the sentence In 1969 Susie moved from Ithaca to California where she met her husband-to-be, who, ironically, also came from upstate New York. Some Panelists noted that this particular usage might be acceptable if Susie had in fact moved to California in order to find a husband, in which case the story could be taken as exemplifying the folly of supposing that we can know what fate has in store for us. By contrast, 73 percent accepted the sentence Ironically, even as the government was fulminating against American policy, American jeans and videocassettes were the hottest items in the stalls of the market, where the incongruity can be seen as an example of human inconsistency.
Grokked all that, boys and girls? I knew you could!
So, really...nearly all of the things in the song could be argued as being, in fact, ironic - especially if you consider that the whole purpose of the song is, clearly, "exemplifying the folly of supposing that we can know what fate has in store for us."
First, the lyrics to the song in question:
And now, the term in controversy: Grokked all that, boys and girls? I knew you could!
So, really...nearly all of the things in the song could be argued as being, in fact, ironic - especially if you consider that the whole purpose of the song is, clearly, "exemplifying the folly of supposing that we can know what fate has in store for us."
-Jn-
Efreeti Sophist