Irony of Devil's Acre
“What’s Hell for some,” said the boatman, “is paradise for others. It’s the last truly free place. Somewhere you can buy anything, sell anything …”
The place, even the name of it, alludes to something that resembles Hell. There is a vast description of it: rotten, diseased even dubbed the Capital of Cholera. But, as Sharon points out the place is not all that what it seems, not everything is black and white. It depends from whose perspective it is looked at so it could be Hell for some and Paradise for others.
Old Man Sweeping the Ash in Devil's Acre Irony
“Can’t let the place go to hell.”
As they are searching for the wights' fortress the trio stumbles upon a man sweeping ash in front of his house but as soon as he does it a new pile of ash forms. Jacob asks him why he even bothers and this is what the man answers. The task in itself is ironic but the answer is even more. The place appears to be already gone to hell and that is what makes this remark ironic.
Irony of Hollows
"I had gotten close enough to understand that there was more than just void inside it. There was a tiny spark, a little marble of soul at the bottom of a deep pool. It wasn’t hollow—not really."
Hollows are called hollows because they are literally hollow, or that is what everyone thinks. But, as Jacob is able to look into them and control them, connect with them he begs to differ. There is a spark of soul inside them so they aren't really hollow.
Jacob's Normal Life Irony
Jacob wants to go back to his normal life for a while after all the insanity of peculiardom. He wants to catch his breath, enjoy being a normal teenager. But, as it turns out his return to normal life was not at all what he expected. He got bored of it pretty soon and started to miss the peculiardom. Normal life didn't bring him safety either, in fact it proved to be even more dangerous when his parents were about to send him to a mental hospital.
Oozing Street and Periwinkle Street Irony
The name of the Oozing Street makes one think that it will be decayed, diseased. The name doesn't inspire a positive connotation but, Oozing Street is described as oddly cheerful with window flowers and brightly colored houses. On the other hand Periwinkle Street, the name inspires a bright positive connotation but the street is described having muddy pavements and shabby, sagging houses.
