Tragically Ironic

In Raymond Carver's Popular Mechanics, irony is used in one of the most tragic ways.  The story starts with a man packing his things, when a woman who appears to be his wife walks in.  It becomes very obvious from their dialogue that they are lovers who are splitting up, and it has become very bitter between the two.  But as the husband is packing, a picture of the couple child is seen by the wife.  After they both go downstairs  the husband states that he is going to take his child with him.  The father attempts to take the child while the mother is holding it, and a near wrestling match ensues with the baby in hand.  The solution was: "But he would not let go.  He felt the baby slipping out of his hands and he pulled back very hard.  In this manner, the issue was decided," (Carver).  It is ironic that while this couple was splitting up, the only thing they both really cared about was their child.  Yet they were not able to love the child more than they hated each other, and the poor baby paid the ultimate price.  In this way, both members of this couple seem to ultimately destroy the most important thing in the world to them.  This could be symbolic about how sometimes a bitter divorce can hurt many people outside the marriage.