Steven Seduces Ann (Dramatic Irony)
After John asks his neighbor Steven to keep his wife company while he is away, believing that the three of them will play cards together that night, Steven convinces Ann that John will not return that night. Implicit in Steven's "insolent" smile and constant assurances that they will be alone is Steven's desire to have sex with Ann—a possibility Ann herself entertains. In this instance of dramatic irony, John remains oblivious to how his friend and wife are flirting in his absence. Ross uses this irony to inject tension into the story, as the reader is uncertain whether John will return and catch Ann cheating with Steven.
Cheating Makes Ann Realize Her Future is With John (Situational Irony)
Steven and Ann's flirtation eventually leads to them sleeping together. Afterward, Ann is full of guilt. While she had convinced herself that she was miserable with John and Steven represented the possibility of a new sense of fulfillment, the experience in fact makes her realize how much she loves John and wants to be with him in the future. In this instance of situational irony, Ann realizes the need to recommit herself to John only after she has betrayed him.
There is Paint on John's Palm (Situational Irony)
After sleeping with Steven, Ann wakes to discover John is standing over her. She wants to cry out but feels paralyzed. She soon wakes up and realizes she had only been having a nightmare: she had believed a shadowy version of John was in the room because she had fallen asleep watching shadows on the wall. However, when Ann kneels down to hold John's frozen hand at the end of the story, she notices a smear of white paint on his palm. In this instance of situational irony, Ann realizes that in reality John had come home and seen her in bed with Steven. The paint on his hand is from touching the still-wet bedroom door she had painted earlier in the day. The implication of this ironic twist is that John had gone back out to die in the blizzard because he was heartbroken over Ann's betrayal.
