Question

which figure of speech is used in this text? his guardians were extremely old - fashioned people and did not realize that we live in an age when unnecessary things are our only necessities. —oscar wilde, the picture of dorian gray options: euphemism, paradox

Explanation:

A paradox is a statement that seems contradictory but reveals a truth. Here, "unnecessary things are our only necessities" is contradictory (unnecessary vs. necessary) yet highlights the ironic reality of the age. A euphemism is a mild/indirect term, which doesn't apply here.

Answer:

paradox