Plainview name (verbal irony)
One of the clearest ironies of the film is Daniel Plainview’s name. The name is highly suggestive of a lack of complexity mixed with a forthright character and simple perspective. In fact, Plainview is an extraordinarily complex individual who is not particularly forthcoming with information about himself and is given to disingenuous motives at best and outright deceit at his guarded worst.
Deafness (situational irony)
When H.W. is leaving Daniel’s mansion, Daniel shouts the phrase “Bastard from a basket!” at him repeatedly, mocking his status as an orphan. But of course H.W. is deaf, and once he turns his back on Daniel he cannot hear a word he says. Daniel is attempting to launch one more cruel and vicious verbal attack against H.W., but in his drunken state he may not fully comprehend that H.W. cannot actually hear him. Daniel’s power over other people is usually afforded through his speech, and this instance shows that he has no power over H.W. anymore.
