[Bradley Olson]

You are right, Shaahayda, to relate courtroom drama to the sociological function of myth. But the issue of distorting the record, manufacturing evidence and the like, isn’t a use of irony. That is simply lying. Deception, fraud, propaganda, and similar rhetorical tropes are not properly ironic. One might, however, reflect on one’s unpleasant courtroom experience after the fact in an ironic matter. Irony has the quality of pointing to and highlighting truth, it has the awareness of the dual nature of things. There is an ample supply of irony to draw from; Two soothsayers cannot meet without smirking at each other, writes Cicero. I feel I am becoming a god, said a dying emperor. Oscar Wilde’s last words were said to have been, “Either that wall paper goes or I do.” These examples show the power of irony to cut through obfuscation, hubris, and ornamentation.

Thank you again for your lovely compliments; I am grateful and so pleased to be able to have these kinds of conversations.