When reading a story it usually is habit for the reader to take the narrator at their word. However, in narrative irony we cannot do this. The person, situation, statement, or circumstance is not as it would seem. Many times it is the exact opposite of what it appears to be. The author sets us up to be tricked and we have to allow this to follow the story line. This is unfamiliar for most of us as readers, but then again, so is life.
             In a narrative romance, the story line is one that most people are very familiar with. They should be, as the romance is one of the first types of stories heard as very young children. Everyone knows that Cinderella gets to marry the prince, for this to not happen would be wrong. In narrative romance, the hero goes through conflict in order to win their heart's desire. However, real life is not this. The good guy doesn't always get what they want, or if they do, it does not happen the way it does in the stories. Northrop Frye stated that the "central principle of ironic myth is best approached as a parody of romance: the application of the romantic mythical forms to a more realistic content which fits them in unexpected ways. In this way narrative irony can be said to be a parody of romance.
             Romantic literature is some of the oldest stories, being the dominate pattern in both Anglo-Saxon and medieval English literature. The primary purpose behind this pattern is for the hero to realize his or her desire. However, the quest, motives, and desires are almost otherworldly. Our hero does not seem to be mere mortal (although this may indeed be the case). An excellent description of this pattern can be found in Foulke and Smith's "Narrative Romanceâ€":
             The central character in the romantic mode, although human, is assumed to have powers beyond those of ordinary men. He may be associated with the divine, display supernatural attributes, or perform miraculous or mysterious deed...