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Irony: the Style of “Late” Narrative in Autobiography

Abstract: The basic perspective of autobiography is retrospective, so it bears the characteristics of “late” narrative style, such as summary, dialogue, confession and apologia. Irony is also one of its features. Irony can be used to correct facts and to demythologize some legends. It is also a symbol of the autobiographer’s suspicion and sincerity, which give it the feature of philosophy: the representation of the rise of Eros in the field of knowledge. The rhetoric ability of irony usually enables autobiographer to construct his/her identity. It’s one of the useful perspectives for us to explore the depths of human nature, and thus it is necessary to understand the style of irony in autobiography.


Key words: autobiography; “late” style; irony; ration


Dr. Liang Qingbiao is Associate Professor of World Literature in College of Humanities at Jiangxi Normal University, China. He is part-time researcher at the Center for Life Writing, Shanghai Jiao Tong University. He is the editor and translator of The Biographer's Revenge: Essays of Modern Western Research on Life Writing (Guangxi Normal University Press, 2015) and author of A Modern Quest of Self: Rousseau’s Confessions and Modern Chinese Autobiography (Chinese Social Science Press, 2014).