Victory and battle
The irony of the Victory tour is that at the end of the novel, the soldiers are sent back to active service on the frontlines in Iraq, raising the valuable question—what is meant by "Victory?" If it were military victory, wouldn't that imply that there is no more "frontline" battling to return to? Billy understands that the victory they are celebrating has to do with the culture of the war and the sentiments of Americans that are guided by the government and their active media presence. The "Victory" does not end the war, but rather symbolizes a victorious government agenda to convince the public that the war in Iraq was good.
The government agenda
Through dramatic irony, the novel gradually reveals to Billy Lynn's character that what felt at first like true honor and reward was in fact a publicity stunt designed to make the public to feel comfortable with the ongoing war in Iraq. Notice that although the war was allegedly "Victorious," the agenda of the war was never really articulated except for misinformation about weapons of mass destruction and potential government involvement in terrorist activity against the US. If the war is already won, then why do they send him back? This is drama proving to the reader that the US has more in mind than "Victory."
Fame for duty
There is a paradoxical irony relating to fame and duty because the major principle of "duty for one's nation" seems to be absolute self-sacrifice; that is what Billy Lynn is celebrated for in the media. But the fact that he is in the media is contrary to sacrifice because Billy gets to be the public hero while the entire nation supports him. That irony is removed when he is sent back to war; through that twist of fate he realizes that he never exited his duty. His duty simply changed from warfare to public relations, back to warfare again.
Honor and virtue
When Billy is sent back to war, he must reconcile two situationally ironic principles: On the one hand, he has just been celebrated by the entire nation more or less for his commitment to duty and service, but on the other hand there are other virtues to consider beside blind loyalty to a government. There is the virtue of pursuing happiness and establishing a life, a virtue which is treasured highly by the same government he is serving. It seems that he sacrificed his life, even though he has not died. He is clearly unable to justify leaving the military or else he would have done so.
The ironic romance
There is an automatic gravity that the reader understand when a Dallas Cowboys cheerleader informs Billy that she wants to be with him. That seems to be heading one direction, but then through irony that spans situation and drama, their relationship is torn short. To amplify the volume of this irony, the gal in question is one of the most publicly desired women of her entire culture. There are those to whom a Dallas cheerleader represents the height of physical attraction, so it is ironic that he comes so close to what would certainly have been a wonderful romance. Instead, he goes to war—again. Some thanks!
