Perfect Mexican Daughter (Dramatic Irony)
While Amá and Apá are convinced that Olga is the "perfect Mexican daughter," the reader knows details about Olga's life that these characters do not. While Olga was indeed reserved and respectful, she was not as chaste as they believe. Rather, she was in a years-long affair with a married man, and she became pregnant with his child before her untimely death. In this way, Sánchez uses dramatic irony to explore the intangibility of "perfection." The novel demonstrates that life is difficult and is full of unexpected challenges, and it is braver to overcome adversity instead of striving for perfection.
Amá's Hardships (Situational Irony)
Throughout the novel, Julia vilifies her mother and is unable to understand her sadness and hostility. Julia is convinced that Amá is unable to empathize with her own grieving process, and Julia often feels alone as she navigates the trauma of being a first-generation American immigrant. This mutual sense of misunderstanding leads the two to have a fraught relationship. However, as the novel progresses, Julia understands that Amá has endured numerous hardships throughout her life and is deeply traumatized from a violent attack she endured while crossing the border to the United States. In this way, situational irony is used to flip Amá's initial characterization as a heartless, cold mother.
Julia's Trip to Los Ojos (Situational Irony)
After Julia's suicide attempt, Amá and Apá encourage her to visit Los Ojos in order to reconnect with her family and get space from her life in Chicago. Julia is defiant, as she worries she will feel isolated from her friends at home and disconnected from her studies. However, visiting Los Ojos ends up being an incredibly generative period for the protagonist. Upon her return, she grows closer with her family and feels more comfortable in her own skin.
Going Through Amá's Belongings (Situational Irony)
Julia hates when Amá goes through her belongings and snoops around—it is an invasion of privacy that gives her anxiety. It is ironic when she visits Los Ojos and goes into her mother's former bedroom to look around. In this role reversal, Julia grows more empathetic as she begins to see Amá and Apá less as parents and more as people. Amá and Apá's relatability allows Julia to develop a more positive relationship with them upon her return to Chicago.
