Deliberate ignorance
An English proverb says, "Once bitten, twice shy." Ironically, Samuel calculatedly ignores the warning presented by the bloody red birds flying above his home. The first time the birds flew into Samuel's home, his wife died of a strange disease. Samuel's daughter, Caroline, is scared and hopes that such birds will never reappear in their home because they symbolize bad luck. However, the bloody red birds reappear after several years. When Caroline tells her father something bad is about to happen, Samuel deliberately ignores the warning.
The irony of the diagnosis
There is situational irony when the doctor offers a wrong diagnosis to the girls despite seeing their physical symptoms. Caroline expects the doctor to closely study the symptoms and offer the right medication to the girls. Instead, the doctor does the contrary. After administering the wrong diagnosis, the girls’ health situation worsens.
The irony of the teaching staff in the boarding school
The reader learns that the boarding is fully enrolled by girls. Ironically, the school only has three teachers, Samuel, Caroline, and David. Throughout the text, the reader does come across any new teacher, which raises the question of the quality of education offered in the school. In addition, except for Caroline, who has an educational background, Samuel and David are not graduates. Therefore, the composition of the teaching staff in the newly opened boarding school needs to be bettered.
