How does this example of irony help develop the character of Mr. Shiftlet?

After abandoning Lucynell, Mr. Shiftlet asks God to “wash the slime from this earth,” condemning the world’s corruption. The irony is that he has just acted cruelly and selfishly himself, yet speaks as though the wrongdoing belongs to other people. This shows his hypocrisy and his failure to recognize himself as part of the “slime.”

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