The narrator uses verbal irony when referring to Dr. Sloper's increased social standing after his wife’s death. It seems his self-imposed punishment has actually only improved matters for him:
For a man whose trade was to keep people alive he had certainly done poorly in his own family; and a bright doctor who within three years loses his wife and his little boy should perhaps be prepared to see either his skill or his affection impugned. [...]
[He] bore forever the scars of a castigation to which the strongest hand he knew had treated him on the night that followed his wife’s death. The world, which, as I have said, appreciated him, pitied him too much to be ironical; his misfortune made him more interesting, and even helped him to be the fashion.
In this passage, James employs verbal irony to highlight the paradoxical nature of societal judgments on a man like Dr. Sloper who is already “appreciated” by his world. Dr. Sloper expects his self-inflicted punishment—presumably the result of guilt following the deaths of his wife and son—to lead to either social ostracism or shame. Instead, society elevates him in stature, finding him more "interesting" because of his misfortune. He's an admirable martyr, rather than a person to be avoided or pitied.
The phrase "even helped him to be the fashion" drips with irony, showcasing James's critical perspective on society's interest in other people’s tragedies. It's an observation about how New York society, rather than holding individuals accountable for their actions, often romanticizes personal tragedies. The deaths of his family members and Dr. Sloper’s noble “scars” of grief are seen as points of intrigue or admiration.
While they’re high in the Alps, Catherine finds herself immersed in situational irony, fearing not the barren landscape, but her own father's motivations. The visual imagery James employs casts an unsettling atmosphere:
The place was ugly and lonely, but the place could do her no harm. There was a kind of still intensity about her father which made him dangerous, but Catherine hardly went so far as to say to herself that it might be part of his plan to fasten his hand—the neat, fine, supple hand of a distinguished physician—in her throat.
The detailed description of Dr. Sloper's hand in this passage as "neat, fine, supple" accentuates the irony that James is employing, which plays on the idea that a doctor’s hand could be reimagined as a weapon. Here, a physician's hands—symbols of care—become instruments of imagined violence. The imagery thus highlights the refined qualities of Dr. Sloper's hand while simultaneously turning his body into a potential instrument of harm. This situational irony underscores the profound emotional distance and strain between father and daughter. The "still intensity" of his demeanor paints Dr. Sloper as a lurking threat, creating a heightened sense of unease and tension for Catherine and for the reader.
Juxtaposing this menacing situation with the “ugly and lonely” backdrop mirrors Catherine's internal fears. The rich visual imagery of the scene in the rest of the passage paints an alarming tableau of this frightening moment. A backdrop as grand and serene as the Alps is made to seem “ugly and lonely” in this context. The beauty and splendor of the landscape should have been a source of comfort and wonder, yet for Catherine the Alps have become threatening and unpleasant.
The juxtaposition creates a deeply unsettling atmosphere, allowing the reader to feel Catherine's extreme unease and tension. The irony is palpable. In a place where one should feel awed by nature, Catherine's predominant fear is actually of her own father. This situational irony, emphasizing the contrast between what is expected (the serenity of nature) and what is experienced (Catherine’s fear of a loved one), underscores the psychological strain she’s under.
When discussing a questionable choice by Dr. Sloper, James incorporates situational irony through an allusion to an infamous insane asylum of late-1800s New York. This both provides local color for the audience and indirectly emphasizes the Doctor’s weighty professional reputation:
About a year after this, the accident that the Doctor had spoken of occurred; he took a violent cold. Driving out to Bloomingdale one April day to see a patient of unsound mind, who was confined in a private asylum for the insane, and whose family greatly desired a medical opinion from an eminent source, he was caught in a spring shower [...]
By referencing "Bloomingdale," James is alluding to a notorious private hospital, Bloomingdale Insane Asylum, which opened its doors in 1821. This location has nothing to do with the department store Bloomingdales, but it does remain an important New York landmark. The former facility is actually now the site of one of the buildings of Columbia University.
Bloomingdale Asylum—as it was in the Gilded Age—would have been used to confine or imprison people believed to be dangerously mentally ill. The mere fact that Dr. Sloper is visiting such a place underscores his professional distinction and “eminent” reputation. Conditions in the asylum were famously terrible. Very little legislation existed to protect people diagnosed with mental illnesses in this period, and the treatment of "patients" in private hospitals could be horrifyingly bad. The violence and lack of sanitation within Bloomingdale was the subject of a popular undercover report in the New York Tribune by the journalist Julius Chambers in 1871, titled “Among the Maniacs.” When writing Washington Square—which was published in 1880—James would have been familiar with this infamous article, as would his contemporary readers.
There are two situationally ironic twists in this passage. The first is in Dr. Sloper's relationship with the facility itself: it is, much like the Doctor himself, an institution that seems to do good while really only operating for its own self-interest and profit. The second lies in the “distinguished physician” falling ill and dying because of this very visit. Having escaped unscathed from his dangerous appointment, he quickly expires. Hence, by detailing Dr. Sloper's visit to provide an "eminent" medical opinion, James establishes the doctor's professional prominence, gives the reader another insight into his character, and provides Dr. Sloper with some final, ironic justice in his final moments.
