Duffield's Refusal of Money
One of the ironic elements in the novel is the way the main character refuses to be influenced by money. Even though he came from an extremely poor family, Hurtle Duffield refuses wealth and chooses to live a simple and difficult life. This is made even more ironic by the knowledge that Hurtle Duffield does not have to do this since he comes from a wealthy background.
Duffield's Abandonment
The family unit is described as being the place where a child should feel the most protected and at ease; a family should do everything in their power to take care of their children and make sure they are safe. Because of the way the families are described, it is ironic to see how the main character was abandoned by his own family so that they could have more money.
Mrs. Courtney and Vivisection
There is dramatic irony in Mrs. Courtney taking up vivisection as her chosen cause at the same time as she has paid money to a poor family in order to take in their son as her own, a son whose great promise she hopes can be bestowed on her less promising daughter through careful cultivation. The correlation is not an exact one, but it seems that Mrs. Courtney is essentially studying Hurtle for her own purposes much the way the scientists study the animals. When she declares, weeping, that she hopes her children may never grow up to be cruel – cruel like those scientists – there is a deeper significance to her statement regarding her own actions in Hurtle's life that seems to be lost on her.
Rhoda's Character
That the most pitied character in the novel ends up being the most well-adjusted – the least hysterical and the most content at the end of her life – is a delightful, unexpected twist. For all that people projected on her, Rhoda simply came to accept her lot in life and decided to stop suffering.
