Irony of Baxter
Baxter seems, to the untrained eye, to be the epitome of a powerful young man with authority and street cred. He has a strong, muscular frame, and his possessions indicate his wealth. Henry, however, notices distinctive tics and characteristics that denote a neurological disorder like Huntington's Disease: the world that Baxter is holding onto so desperately will inevitably deteriorate along with his brain.
Irony of Theo's Youth
Perowne sees Theo as an overgrown adolescent holding on to his habits and innocence into adulthood. Despite his messy room, late hours, and smooth face, however, Theo has a maturity beyond his years and possibly even beyond Henry's. He has the ability to harness beauty through his music that Henry can only dream of. In that sense, Henry's young son is more artistically mature than he is.
Irony of Grammaticus's Training
John Grammaticus, Rosalind's father and the grandfather of Daisy and Theo, is a poet, as well as Daisy's and Theo's major guide in the realm of art (poetry for Daisy, music for Theo). As his influence takes hold of the two, however, his affection for them starts to be replaced by jealousy and criticism, especially with Daisy, as she begins to win awards he himself had once earned. He realizes that he has accidentally created a rival for himself, and so his encouraging praise often turns to harsh and often unwarranted criticism.
Irony of Saturday
This novel purports to be the account of the events of a single day in the life of Henry Perowne, neurosurgeon. However, despite the specificity of the events, this novel deals with far more than a single day: it incorporates events from Henry's entire life, as well as large-scale ethical and political issues that extend even to today. This particular Saturday, then, ironically grows into a microcosm of a man's entire life.
Irony of Daisy's Nakedness
When Baxter breaks into the Perownes' house, he sees Daisy (an attractive young woman) and orders her to completely undress, holding her mother at knifepoint. When she does so, it is revealed to all present that she is pregnant. This sudden realization ironically makes her nakedness embarrassing, rather than stimulating (as Baxter had intended). Later, after she reads Baxter poetry, he sees her nakedness as strange, so he asks her to dress again.
