Conflicting Desires
The author depicts human beings as ironic characters who are unsatisfied with whatever situation. For instance, people can ask for rain, but when it does, they start complaining about its destructive nature and praying for sunny days. The author refers to older Cuban women in Havana who curse the wind forgetting that they cursed the summer heat. The author writes, "In little Havana, the older Cuban women would wear heavy woolen overcoats and curse the wind, forgetting that in the summer, they carried parasols and cursed the heat." Consequently, human beings are never satisfied in whatever scenario because their desires are endless.
Cowart’s Expectation
Cowart is jealous and expects Tom to be a poor husband to Sandy. The author writes, “He had always wanted to hate the man who'd replaced him, wanted to hate him for what he did, which was corporate law, how he looked, which was stocky and chesty, with the build of a man who spent lunchtimes lifting weights at an expensive health club, wanted to imagine that he was cruel, a thoughtless lover, a poor stepfather, an inadequate provider, but he was none of those things." Ironically, Tom exhibited a completely different character from Cowart's expectations because he became the best husband and stepfather to Becky. In addition, Tom makes a trip to Miami to meet Cowart and tells him that he is ready to fully adopt Becky and give her the fatherly love she deserves.
The Irony of love
Cowart is divorced from his wife, Sandy, and he vows that he will not get married because he wants to live alone. Sandy marries Tom, and she starts over again. Ironically, when Sandy tells Cowart that she is expecting Tom's child, he gets annoyed. Paradoxically, Cowart had vowed nothing to do with Sandy except co-parenting. The reality is that Cowart still loves Sandy, but she no longer loves him because she is married to another man.
