In a key example of situational irony in the story, the Nationalist Party canvassers claim to worship Charles Stewart Parnell—hoping to continue his strong moral and political legacy—while actively undermining his legacy by behaving in lazy and immoral ways. For example, rather than performing their jobs well and canvassing even in the rain, all of the men end up in the Committee Room, drinking and gossiping by the fire.
What’s more, most of the men are clearly inefficient canvassers when they are out trying to solicit votes for their candidate—Henchy tells lies about Tierney (claiming he doesn’t belong to the Nationalist Party if that’s what someone wants to hear) and Crofton is “not worth a damn as a canvasser” because he belongs to the Conservative Party (and only begrudgingly joined Tierney’s campaign after his candidate dropped out).
All of this is ironic as, were the men truly taking Parnell’s political legacy seriously, they would be much more strategic and focused. That they are all wearing the ivy leaf pins to honor Parnell while spending the day bickering amongst themselves in the Committee Room shows that the youth are hypocritical actors leading the Party in an ineffectual direction.
