Irony of Frank Loomis
Frank Loomis’s family is very wealthy and is seen as being upstanding citizens of their community. However, he has an affair (while married) with a poor, destitute woman, all while trying to force her family off of their land so that he can use it for farming.
Irony of the Cookbook
Royal claims that he loves Mattie and that they’ll be happy together, but in reality, doesn’t truly understand her. He doesn’t understand her reading and bookish habits, and when he gets her a birthday present, he gets her a cookbook. Rather than actually try to understand her interests and get her a book she would really love, he gets her a book that’s representative of the domestic life he wants his ideal wife to have. His attempt to act like he understands her backfires when he reveals that he does not understand her at all.
Irony of Mattie and her Brother
Mattie feels guilt at the idea of leaving her farm because she promised her mother, before she died, that she would stay on the farm and help her father and her sisters. Ironically, her older brother, who should take on more responsibility because of his age, has no problems with leaving the family and forcing Mattie to take full responsibility for her siblings.
Irony of Minnie
Minnie loves her husband and is excited to have children with him. However, after having children, she realizes how traumatic it can be: her body is wrecked, she’s terrified to have sex out of a fear that she’ll get pregnant again, and is overwhelmed by everything in her life. Her dream life turns out to be far more difficult than she anticipated, and becomes a source of nearly constant stress.
Irony of Grace’s Letters
Mattie reads Grace’s letters enthusiastically after Grace dies, because she wants to find out what happened to her. However, as she reads them and learns what happened to Grace, she becomes even more disheartened with the world because she learns the horror of what happened to Grace.
