The irony of love
Love is a complicated affair, and it requires the mutual affection of two people, for it to work perfectly. For instance, Pasha secretly admires Zari, but ironically, Zari admires Doctor, Pashas' mentor! Consequently, it is ironic that you can love someone, but that person has zero affection towards you.
The satire of political intolerance
Iran's political authority uses SAVAKI, an intelligence agency, to silence any critic of the government plan. In a democratic state, criticism of the government is vital in improving government decisions and providing better services to society. Ironically, Iran is using SAVAKI to kill political activists. For instance, SAVAKI is after the head of Doctor Who is a university lecturer and political activist.
Zari’s mourning
The government prohibits the morning of people who die due to opposing the political authority in place. The doctor is a political activist, and his activities are prohibited within the community. When Doctor ignores government warnings, he is killed. Zari has been engaged to Doctor for a while, and when he dies, she decides to do the unexpected, mourning him in public! Since Zari knows that she has gone against the government directives, she burns herself to death while mourning her love.
Institutionalization of Pasha
Pasha is not a visitor to Iran because he knows how the government executes rebels who oppose it. For instance, Doctor is Pasha's mentor, and he ends up being executed by SAVAKI because of his activism. Pasha falls in love with Zari, Doctor's lover, an indication that his association with rebels is ripe. When Doctor is killed, Zari burns herself while mourning him. Pasha runs to save Zari, but he is caught and institutionalized by the state. Consequently, Pasha's unrelenting association with activism is satirical because he already knows the consequences.
The irony of Soraya
The reader realizes that Soraya disguises herself as Zari, and she wants to convince Pasha to love her. Ironically, Zari is dead, and the reader concludes that these characters are traumatized to the extent of disguising themselves. Soraya tells Pasha that she will wait for him until he returns from America. Pasha has no plans of coming back, but Zari satirically promises to wait for him.