Opposite Irony

I directly linked this poem to "Barbie Doll". It aligns the gender issue directly to the race issue. They both use the same progression and irony to relate the backwardness of the stories. The "Mr. Z" of the poem was informed at a very young age that his color, the way he looked and the culture that went along with it, were unacceptable. Mr. Z spends a large amount of the poem trying to become someone he is not. Here is where the irony takes a different and unexpected turn.

Upon his deathbed, Mr. Z., was referred to as the "one of the most distinguished members of his race". After all of his 'accomplishments' and adjustments to the white lifestyle, Mr. Z. was still viewed as just one of a multitude of black faces that cannot viewed as more than anything except their color. Here the irony is the exact opposite of "Barbie Doll"'s irony, but somehow, the effect is still the same.