Irony of Amat’s silence
Amat, as the only witness of what happened to Maya, soon learns that his silence has a high price. As he gets pulled into the team more, he notices how easy it is to keep silent in exchange for feeling included. At the end, he learns to cost of his silence after his mother opens up his eyes about the importance of doing the right thing, as her son.
Perpetrator and victim
After Maya reveals the truth of what happened to her, the reaction of the town is dominantly against her, blaming her, and victimizing Kevin. It shows how the victim is demonized as the perpetrator, and the actual perpetrator is victimized by the entire community.
“Perhaps that makes it easier for them. As if it’s the boy who’s the victim.”
Irony of being a female victim
Through Maya, the novel shows the cruelty that follows a female victim of rape. After she reveals what happened to her, all the questions are directed to her instead of the perpetrator, and they all indicate the victim-blaming mentality. The novel describes the irony of her being younger than Kevin, a fifteen-year-old girl, but becoming a “young woman” in the situation while Kevin is referred to as “boy”.
Irony of the ending
Maya takes a shotgun with the intent to kill Kevin. The entire plot indicates that she is ready for one of them to die, for the other to live. At the end, she fires without a bullet, and reveals that she wanted to make him afraid of the darkness, just like her. The entire plot builds up to this moment that takes an unexpected turn.
