Logan
The entire narrative structure of the book is constructed upon a solid foundation of irony. Logan’s job as a Sandman is to chase down Runners and bring them a little futuristic justice. The novel then becomes a story of Logan being a Runner trying to escape the futuristic justice delivered by the Sandmen.
The Runner’s Cruel Irony
The characters that decide to become Runners do so as an act of rebellion against the government mandate that nobody is allowed to live past the age of twenty-one. Part of this rebellion is fueled by legends about the existence of a place called Sanctuary where people can age naturally. Although the worst imaginable type of completely arbitrary authoritarian decision, the death sentence everyone knows is coming is at least one that is painful and as pleasant as possible. The irony is that death by Sandman is exactly the opposite: one of the most gruesomely painful deaths imaginable.
Crazy Horse
The novel is in some ways a work of speculative fiction and within that element there is, of course, much irony. One of the ironies is that the mammoth sculpture of Crazy Horse has been finished when in reality that doesn’t seem likely to happen even by the present-day of the story: the year 2116. Even more ironic, however, is that to an iconic symbol of the American genocide perpetrated against indigenous people becomes the new headquarters for the government.
Ballard
A mysterious, semi-legendary and mythic character named Ballard is significant to the belief fostered in the existence of Sanctuary that causes some to become Runners. For much of the book, Logan questions whether Ballard even exists or is just some sort of wish-fulfillment. Ultimately, Logan does meet Ballard and it is tremendous irony that he turns out to someone Logan has known all along.
Sanctuary
The impetus for the events which lead to Logan becoming a Runner is nestled firmly in his being a company man. He is not just a Sandman because he happened to fall into the job; he is a true-blue believer in the system. So much so that at the beginning of the story he imagines proving himself a hero on his own last day—he is to turn twenty-one on the next—by following some clues indicating Sanctuary actually does exist and destroying it to forever end this who business of running. Ironically, the book ends with Logan not only discovering Sanctuary exists, but escaping to it with Jessica.
