Review the detail. the king in "the lady or the tiger" is described as being "semibarbaric." how is this an example of verbal irony? you can either be a barbarian or you can be civilized. it is the "lady or tiger" events which keep the king from being completely barbaric, since they give him a safe outlet for his barbarism. the king is just as barbaric as his subjects, who are entertained by the events in the arena. kings have immense power, and therefore cannot be uncivilized.

If the king decides a crime to be worthy of such, he will order the subject accused to be put into an arena. The public will surround this man or woman, and they will be placed before two doors. Behind one of the doors lies a beautiful spouse; behind the other, lies a tiger. The result was said to determine the innocence (or lack of it) of the accused by way of fate's hand. Being called "semi-barbaric" is ironic because barbaric means "to be savagely cruel," not just uncivilized. One cannot be somewhat savagely cruel. Semi-barbaric is an oxymoron since barbarism is innately the most extreme extent of cruelty, there is no moderation about it. Just because there are two doors, one with a gracious fate, does not lessen the barbaric nature of the tiger behind the other door. 

 You can either be a barbarian or you can be civilized.

What paragraph are you talking about