Question

read the sentence from an interpretive literary analysis.
amy tan describes jing - meis mothers efforts to get her to become a prodigy: \i soon found out why old chong had retired from teaching piano. he was deaf.\
which revision of this sentence most accurately uses a literary term?

• amy tan points out the allusion in jing - meis mothers efforts to get her to become a prodigy: \i soon found out why old chong had retired from teaching piano. he was deaf.\
• amy tan points out the irony in jing - meis mothers efforts to get her to become a prodigy: \i soon found out why old chong had retired from teaching piano. he was deaf.\
• amy tan points out the imagery in jing - meis mothers efforts to get her to become a prodigy: \i soon found out why old chong had retired from teaching piano. he was deaf.\
• amy tan points out the theme in jing - meis mothers efforts to get her to become a prodigy: \i soon found out why old chong had retired from teaching piano. he was deaf.\

Explanation:

1. Allusion: A reference to an outside work/figure, which is not present here.
2. Irony: A contrast between expectation and reality. Jing-mei's mother hires a piano teacher to make her a prodigy, but the teacher is deaf—this is a sharp, unexpected contrast that fits the definition of irony perfectly.
3. Imagery: Descriptive language that appeals to the senses, which this sentence does not rely on.
4. Theme: A central message of a work, which this single detail does not represent.

Answer:

Amy Tan points out the irony in Jing-mei's mother's efforts to get her to become a prodigy: "I soon found out why Old Chong had retired from teaching piano. He was deaf."