The irony of male and female
When Will meets Andrea, they very quickly learn that they are both players in a similar game, and it is not a game that enjoys competition. They instantly strive to defeat each other, but as they compete, they are subject to irony, because the strategies of each player are shaped by their gendered psychology so that Will manages to con rich boys through feigned fraternity and rigged competition, but Andrea uses her seductive powers to make rich boys willingly give her money.
The ironic boon
This competition does not need a boon, but it does have a boon, and what's more, the boon is ironic to boot. First of all, this competition is literally a competition to collect a boon that neither deserve. The real boon is that the players agree that whoever should lose will leave the school forever, which means returning to the unfortunate home lives that made these desperate and seedy kids in the first place. The major irony of the boon is that the goal of the game is to win the prize without deserving it.
The playful darkness
The novel takes a stance on morality that is simultaneously disrespectable and also very fun. The Ulysses-like characters participate in wiles and deception for the worst possible motivation—straight up monetary greed. They are playfully evil, and the novel is a playful examination of how wonderfully powerful their skill in evil skills makes them. They are ironic players in the novel because the reader adopts an intentionally inappropriate moral stance to support one person or the other. The novel invites this picking-a-side through competitive prose.
The discovery of love
The discovery of love is an ironic aspect of the story because Will's entire world seems set in order until he meets Gatsby. As her name suggests, Will is brought into a confusing dilemma. He must pick between his reputation as a petty criminal and his feelings of true love. Suddenly, he realizes that romantically, he is unsuitable for a happy relationship with Gatsby for the same reason Fitzgerald's Gatsby is unsuitable for Daisy: they sacrificed integrity for profit.
The irony of acceptance
The romantic dilemma is a signal to an even deeper irony in their characters. For people who intentionally refuse societal standards, these two people are highly oriented by success and acceptance. They long for approval, and their competitive nature does not stop that from being the case. The irony of their respective characters can be seen most when a reader considers the home life each character has come from. They are raised in cut-throat situations and are secretly operating from scarcity mentalities. They want community, but they are too competitive and dishonest to attain the social welcome they so long for.
