Situational Irony: Non-Violent Protests
Gandhi, Moorthy, and others of their ilk in the novel all campaign for a non-violent way of expressing their ideas and beliefs and try to transmit this way of protesting to the people who follow their teachings. Ironically, the protests which come as a result of the different points of view promoted by the two leaders are far from being peaceful and cause a lot of pain and destruction. This unfortunate irony is observable in most non-violent protests throughout history—the American Civil Rights Movement is an apt comparison.
Dramatic Irony: Skeffington Coolies
In the chapter on the Godaveri coolies, the first night that they settle down to sleep at the Skeffington Coffee Estate, they think "'This will be a fine place to live in,' and they slept the sleep of princes" (47). This is an example of dramatic irony because the reader knows that they are going to be overworked, treated poorly, denied autonomy, and subjugated by the powerful Red-man. There is nothing princely about their lives here, and Raja Rao chronicles the demise of their naive dream throughout the rest of the novel.
Situational Irony: Burning Down the Village
It may strike some readers as ironic that it is the women of Kanthapura who burn their own village down before they leave, and indeed, given how much they love their home it does seem surprising and ironic that they are the ones that burn it down rather than the soldiers and the police. However, even within this irony there is a sense of justice, because they are taking matters into their own hands and leaving the invaders with nothing to harvest, nothing to steal, and nothing to hold over their heads.
Situational Irony: Concubine
It is ironic that the only person remaining in Kanthapura is the Concubine, given the fact that this is a lowly position and seemingly not at all representative of Kanthapura as a special, sacred place.
