The irony of Winton’s behavior with the gun
It's ironic that Winton's gun behavior as a child was motivated by powerlessness, yet as an adult, he refuses to keep a gun in his house. As a child, he had to find power in a weapon, but as an adult, he has discovered a more constructive way to cope with his feelings of powerlessness by embracing creativity and a sense of community. It was not expected of someone who had felt powerful owning a gun to be against owning a gun at any point in his life.
The irony of Winton's fear of the hospital
It is ironic that Winton fears the hospital because of his father's injury, while his wife works as a nurse on an oncology ward while heavily pregnant. Despite his fear, Winton recognizes the hospital's purpose as a place of both fear and hope and progress, recognizing that it is ultimately a place dedicated to helping people. His wife's work in the hospital, then, serves as a reminder that hope and progress can emerge from difficult circumstances.
The irony of Winston campaigning for a vulnerable coral reef
Despite his reservations about tribalism, Winton becomes an unlikely campaigner for a vulnerable coral reef in The Battle for Ningaloo Reef, teaching him to value connections between people of diverse political and ideological backgrounds. This is ironic, given that Winton's essay "Twice on Sundays" reflects on his experiences growing up in a church community that fosters tribalism. Furthermore, in "Letter from a Strong Place," Winton expresses a sense of being suffocated by the overwhelming history of the place he is living in, a sentiment he also expresses concerning churches and other religious institutions. As a result, it's ironic that Winton is advocating for a cause that values diversity and connection despite his own wariness of tribalism, particularly within religious contexts.
Irony of surfing
In his essay "The Wait and the Flow," Winton distances himself from the surfing community as it becomes more aggressive and sexist, but he still finds a group of like-minded surfers and enjoys the meditative pattern of waiting for a wave and allowing it to carry him to shore. Despite the increasing aggression and sexism in the surfing community, Winton was able to find a group of like-minded people who shared his passion for the sport. The irony of Winton's situation is heightened by the fact that he can find solace and peace in the very activity from which he had previously distanced himself.
The irony of Winston’s social class
It's ironic that Tim Winton, a successful middle-class novelist, is struggling to accept his own success while many of his family members are unable to read his books due to a lack of education. This is demonstrated by the juxtaposition of Winton's childhood memories and his adult experiences, in which he has achieved success and recognition as a writer but his family is still unable to understand or access his work. This irony highlights the injustice of educational inequality and the reality that not everyone has the same chances in life.
