Question

select the verbal irony in the passage. mr. john dashwood did not have the strong feelings of the rest of the family... but he promised to do everything in his power to make his sisters comfortable. his father was relaxed by such a promise, and mr. john dashwood had then leisure to consider how much there might wisely be in his power to do for them. he was not an unpleasant young man, unless to be rather cold hearted and rather selfish is to be unpleasant, but he was, in general, well respected, since he conducted himself with manners in the discharge of his ordinary duties. adapted from jane austen, sense and sensibility

Explanation:

Verbal irony involves saying something that contrasts with the intended meaning or reality. Here, Mr. John Dashwood promised to help his sisters, but then he "had leisure to consider how much there might wisely be in his power to do for them"—implying he'd limit his help. His promise of full support contrasts with his actual intent to be selfish, creating irony. The underlined sentence ("Mr. John Dashwood had then leisure to consider how much there might wisely be in his power to do for them") shows this: his promise was sincere - sounding, but his subsequent consideration reveals he'll act selfishly, making the promise ironic.

Answer:

Mr. John Dashwood had then leisure to consider how much there might wisely be in his power to do for them