Mr. Z's Irony

M. Carl Holman uses irony throughout the poem "Mr. Z". Throughout the course of the poem, Mr. Z tries to deny his heritage. In the first line of the poem, Holman mentions Mr. Z's heritage by stating, "his mother's skin was a sign of error" (Holman, 1).  Line 1 is the only line throughout the course of the poem that refers to his heritage. Throughout the rest of the poem, it talks about his Mr. Z spends his life acting as a non-African American person. In lines 9 through 13, it talks about Mr. Z's manners and his unbiased views of life. I think that he dedicated his life to having unbiased views because his entire life he has been judged by others. I also believe that acting as a non-African American is his way of denying his heritage. The main source of irony comes in at the end of the poem. In lines 25 and 26, Holman states "ringing crude changes on a clumsy phrase: 'One of the most distinguished members of his race'" (Holman, 25-26). It is ironic because he spent his entire life denying his heritage, but in the end, his race and his heritage ended up distinguishing him in the end.