"Eliza was more relieved than upset": An Irony
Peter's demise does not upset Eliza. Instead, Eliza experiences relief as if Peter was her enemy instead of her husband. Smiley explains, “They had been married for a little over two years…Eliza had hardly known Peter at the time." Eliza was coerced to marry Peter.; she did not love him. Therefore, their marriage was not out of love but out of parental insistence. Therefore, when Peter dies, Eliza feels relieved because she will not have to be married to a man she has never loved.
The Irony of Peter’s Prosperity
Peter gives Eliza's parents the impression that he is an affluent man with plenty of money. The impression appeals to the parents who offer Eliza to her as his wife. However, Elizabeth realizes that “Whatever wealth he had was all in the future.” This realization means that he is not wealthy, but he dreams of being one. The parents fall for the mirage of affluence that Peters conjures. Future wealth is not assured; something such as death could occur before one gets the wealth.
"Girl, there are some rolls in the Kitchen": An Irony
After Eliza spends her night with Mr. Harwood, his wife ironically invites her to breakfast. Mrs. Harwood comes to the room where Eliza is and tells her, "Girl, there are some rolls on the kitchen table, if you care for one, and Raul will run you back to that place." Mrs. Harwood knows that Eliza was intimate with her husband, but still, she invites her to breakfast as if she were her guest. Mrs. Harwood does not mind her husband’s deeds of finding sexual gratification from prostitutes. Although Eliza had worried whether she would get breakfast the previous night, this unexpected invitation alarms her. She becomes uncomfortable and leaves without taking the rolls.
