Irony of Raymond
Raymond is always torn between wanting to be the dutiful son that every Chinese parent dreams about and wanting to be his own man as dictated by the American Dream. His personal agendas and selfish desires always win out however and he ends up doing things that ultimately hurt people that he is in a relationship with. He wanted desperately to marry a Chinese-American girl who spoke Cantonese and was aware of the many cultural nuances that are so critical to the Chinese but could not sustain the marriage because he also wanted to be his own man and not be indebted to his father-in-law.
Irony of Darleen
Darleen was called the perfect Chinese wife because of her impressive credentials and pure ethnic Chinese roots. She, however, turned out to be Raymond’s greatest disappointment as he had to learn very quickly that marrying into a Chinese family also meant navigating many of the social intricacies that he had not been raised up to be sensitive to. Their marriage ended up in an ugly, painful divorce. Ironically, Raymond had entered into the marriage with the singular desire to live up to his parent’s expectations of who he should marry rather than out of genuine love.
Irony of Aurora
Aurora is of Eurasian descent which gifts her with beautiful features. Despite her great beauty, excellent work ethic, and great talent however she isn’t taken seriously as a photojournalist. In social settings she often prompts people to ask “what she is” which is a crass way of asking what race she hails from as her biracial heritage makes it difficult to pin down. She finds it difficult to fit in as often she feels that she isn’t “White” enough when around Caucasian-Americans and not “Asian” enough when around Asian-Americans.
Irony of Cultural Mindsets
There are two major cultural mindsets that Raymond Ding has embraced growing up, one being the American Dream and the other Traditional Chinese Values. It is ironic that these two concepts are nearly diametrically opposed to each other. The American Dream is all about the realization of the individual, his personal dreams, his aspirations, through hard work and sacrifice, sometimes even at the cost of family. The Traditional Chinese Value system places emphasis on serving the other, often sacrificing one’s personal ambitions and dreams in order to support the family.
Irony of Lust as Relationship “Fuel”
Raymond’s relationships are often started off by a great physical attraction to a woman. The relationship then moves on to passionate lovemaking then fizzles out just as quickly as it began as he realizes that he cannot put up with the drama they bring into the relationship or the complexity of having a partner in his life. It is paradoxical that despite his experiences from his previous relationships he doesn’t seem to realize that lust does not make for good relationship fuel.
