Hag-Seed

Hag-Seed Irony

Felix as Prospero (Dramatic Irony)

Although Felix volunteers to play Prospero in the performance, he does not seem to fully grasp how alike Prospero he is in real life. While he educates his students about the significance of prisons in The Tempest, it becomes clear to readers that Felix, too, is imprisoned by his own grief and desire for revenge.

Anne-Marie as Miranda (Situational Irony)

The character of Miranda is typically interpreted as an innocent young woman who obeys her father's every command. Anne-Marie, however, is a strong, outspoken woman who gets along well with the inmates at Fletcher Correctional. This irony in the relationship between actress and character ultimately helps paint a new portrait of the original Miranda, one in which her independence is foregrounded rather than her innocence.

Fletcher Correctional Facility (Situational Irony)

A welcome irony in the novel is the role that Fletcher Correctional plays. Despite its status as a prison and place of containment, Fletcher becomes the very space in which creativity can thrive and ultimately the space that allows Felix to free himself of his own personal prison.

The Performance of The Tempest (Situational Irony)

The fact that Felix chooses The Tempest as the performance in which he will enact his revenge is an ironic choice because it is part of the romance genre, which is not known for its revenge plots. Rather than choosing a tragedy (Hamlet, for instance, which is specifically about getting revenge for the murder of a king), Felix uses the deeper themes of The Tempest to craft a revenge plot out of a romance in which the central character is unaware of his obsessive compulsion for vengeance.