Verbal irony-the grandmother forgets that she’s diabetic
One of the iconic scenes in the movie featuring the grandmother who is a diabetic addicted to sugar shows her stopping Gloria from taking the cake away from her. After Gloria cynically comments that it’s bad for her as a diabetic, the grandmother replies that she forgot that she is diabetic. Gloria tells her that it seems that she always forgets this fact when it’s time to eat, which falls into verbal irony.
Antonio asking of Gloria to iron his shirt
In a scene that precedes the unfortunate accident that leads to Antonio’s death, he asks of Gloria to iron his shirt for his meeting with Ingrid. He is blatantly abusive and dismissive of her. The irony lies in him asking his wife to iron his shirt, so he can go and meet his mistress.
Irony of the ending
Alone at last and rid of all the obligations that suffocated her, Gloria feels empty instead of relieved. This emptiness is filled with her younger son returning to her to be a man of the house. Seemingly a feminist message showing the struggles of a housewife, the ending shows that the inherent insecurity and feminine fear of taking control. Gloria is miserable because she has no control and at the end she is miserable yet again when she has all the control, until her son comes back to take over.
Not wanting to face the truth
In the scene at the pharmacy when Gloria tries to buy antidepressants, the worker there gives her a wake-up call, telling her that she is an addict and that she needs a doctor’s prescription. Gloria refuses to face the truth and the reality of her situation. The same applies to the scene when she lets her younger son live with the pedophile dentist. Gloria refuses to see what’s right in front of her, refuses to see the truth.
