The best proof of manhood
The day when Frank committed adultery became a special one, for “no single moment of his life had ever contained a better proof of manhood than that”. He felt like a real hero, he was an embodiment of masculinity. The irony of that was the fact that neither his status of a husband nor two children was good enough to be the proof of manhood.
Power and brutality
When Frank left Maureen’s apartment, he broke into “an exultant run, and he ran all the way to the Fifth Avenue”. It felt like his blood was going to boil, he felt alive, powerful and almighty. Frank was walking that quickly that he almost stepped into a baby carriage. The woman started shouting to him, but he refused to look back, “for an eagle or a lion would have refused”. He “felt like a man”. Frank’s idea of a real man could be considered an irony.
The former debutante
Jack Ordway had been always talking about his wife as a beautiful, joyful, and careless woman, who liked to have fun and made him attend as many social events as possible. The irony was that the “former debutante, the chick” was a lie. Instead of the social butterfly, Frank saw an aging woman, who blamed her husband for “allowing the world to collapse”. Jack Ordway made up that story to save his face and hide his obsession with alcohol.
