I do not want you to agree with me
Rakitin is in love with Natalya and will o everything in his power to make her happy. Throughout the play, Rakitin listens to everything Natalya tells him and obeys her every word. Rakitin is happy to obey and he believes that by not criticizing Natalya, he will make her happy. Ironically, Natalya tells Rakitin that instead of making her happy, his lack of confrontation makes her feel bored and unhappy.
Lazy yet still the best
One of the most ironic elements in the play is the way in which Beliayev is described. The characters point out time and time again how he is a lazy person, good for nothing in their opinion. Still, despite this, he stands out because of his intellect. In fact, ironically, Beliayev is praised time and time again because he is capable of doing extraordinary mental tasks which apparently no other character is capable of doing.
I love him, thus he must go
One ironic element is presented in the third act where Natalya realizes he is in love with Beliayev. She realizes she has feelings for the man because she is jealous of Vera and the attention she receives from Beliayev. To resolve this problem, Natalya takes a drastic measure, deciding to send the young man away. This decision is ironic because by doing this, Natalya hurts herself in the process as well.
Confronting the woman who loves another
Rakitin makes every imaginable effort to make sure he is close to Natalya at all times. He is there for her and tries to comfort her when she is upset, as he does in the third act. Rakitin does this because he is in love with Natalya and would do anything to make her happy. Ironically, Natalya does not love him but rather another man and in the third act, Natalya is upset because she realized she must send the man she loves away. In this context, she is comforted by Ratikin who does not appear to be bothered at all by the knowledge that Natalya loves another man.
The only one left out
At the end of the play, Natalya falls ill, heartbroken to hear the man she loves will be going far away from her estate. Everyone else in the house knows the reason why Natalya is sick all of a sudden and decides not to ask her about it. Ironically, the only man in the house who is in the dark about what happened is Natalya's husband, the one who had the power to make sure none of the events which caused his wife happened.
