Dramatic irony occurs when the audience has more knowledge of a person or an event than the characters in the text. The effect is achieved through structure, in which the audience is given information early in the text that becomes relevant later. The audience can infer meaning from events or actions of characters that may be different from the inferences made by the characters themselves.

Dramatic irony is found throughout “The Queen of Spades.” One of the clearest examples is Tomsky’s comments at the ball. While dancing with Lizaveta, he makes a passing reference to a young officer who seems to have attracted Lizaveta’s attention. The audience knows that Lizaveta has invited Hermann into her bedroom, so the audience can empathize with Lizaveta’s fear that her plan has been exposed.

The dramatic irony is heightened when Tomsky remarks on Hermann’s character. He says that Hermann possesses “the profile of Napoleon and the soul of Mephistopheles” (26), though he frames the comments as a joke. When Tomsky makes these remarks, he is unaware that Hermann has become obsessed with the countess’s trick and has hatched a plan to gain access to the countess’s house.