Selfish parents
The parents of this memoirist are undeniably selfish, because they prioritize their addictions above their roles as parents. That sounds like a harsh commentary against their character, but it is also a comment on the painful reality of drug addictions. Because of human intelligence, humans have been able to create supernatural temptations; human drugs are more powerful than human bodies or minds were evolved to navigate. This makes a martyr of the memoirist whose life was painfully ironic because of parents who stole from her instead of sacrificing for her.
The irony of school success
Liz ends up going to Harvard and becoming a teacher. That means that she is ironically successful, because the book suggests that for a while, it wasn't clear whether she would even finish school. Her home life made school emotionally impossible, and she carried shame that made her socially isolated as her peers failed to understand her trials, and as she struggled to keep her head up. However, despite all of this, she remains a skillful and intelligent student. The reason for this? Her parents' chronic failure to be trustworthy made her prone to think for herself, and she ended up as a skillful problem solver.
The loss of innocence
Because of the sins of her mother, Liz must endure fates for which there are no human solutions. She is exposed to sexual violence at a young age because of a child molester who provides drugs to her family, probably for sexual favors by Liz's mother. The loss of innocence is situationally ironic for the reason Liz's mother correctly identifies; it means that Ma has failed to protect her daughter from her own vicious lifestyle. Although the parents pretend everything is fine, the painful revelation is unignorable.
The wildly opposite fates
By comparing Liz and her mother, an obvious irony becomes apparent. They have wildly different fates, which is perhaps ironic or perhaps not, however it is ironic that Liz should succeed so remarkably, especially when the reader considers how actively Liz's parents worked to harm her future by exposing her to spiritually dark and emotionally scarring habits. The irony here is actually hope, which Liz shares with other people and children who suffer similarly. Because of the ironic life decisions that Liz made to become powerful and independent, she is able to argue that the future might be worth hoping for.
The missing father
Liz's most intimate emotional experience of childhood is the chronic absenCe of her father, emotionally and physically. He is dangerous because of the way his drugs affect his psychology (addiction makes people extreme, especially if they can't "score" when they want to) so he is a complicated father figure. But nothing is more confusing that coming to consciousness with her father in prison, and then him suddenly returning one day. When he comes home, her life is defined by dramatic irony; she doesn't know anything about life, and she doesn't know anything about this father who is hers, but who is also particularly volatile and scary to her.
