What You Don't Know Can Hurt You

"When dramatic irony occurs in tragedies, it is called tragic irony. The audience knows from the opening scene of Othello, for example, that the malevolent Iago is plotthing the demise of the noble general whom he pretends to serve faithfully, and that his epithet, "honest Iago", is entirely ironic." (Hamilton 46)

Is knowing information that the main characters don't know good or bad? Does it ruin the story, or add more suspense/comedy to the situations of the characters? For me, I enjoy knowing what's going on behind a character's back. I think it intensifies the suspense in a tragedy and makes comedies even more hilarious for the reader.

My favorite type of irony is tragic irony. When I read this above quote, I recalled how I felt while reading Othello in high school. I felt like I wanted so badly to warn Othello about what Iago was planning. Gretta's response to Steph's comment on dramatic irony is exactly how I feel about tragic irony. I believe tragic irony brings the reader closer to the main characters. You begin to care about them and want the best for them even though you know the worst is about to happen. For example, in Romeo and Juliet, I as a reader wanted both characters to survive and for their families to end their struggles. But, because of tragic irony being present in the story, I understood that a pleasant ending wasn't possible.