Irk- (transitive verb)
Definition: to bother or annoy (someone) ; to make weary, irritated, or bored
Source: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/irk
Found in: “Quicksand” By, Nella Larsen. (Pg. 374)
Passage: “Most people achieve a sort of protective immunity, a kind of callousness, toward them. If they didn’t, they couldn’t endure. I think there’s less of these evils here than in most places, but because we’re trying to do such a big thing, to aim so high, the ugly things show more, they irk some of us more. Service is like clean white linen, even the tiniest speck shows.”
After reading this definition I now understand that Dr. Anderson was trying to say that because Helga was trying to make everything so perfect, everything little thing started to bother her even more.
It was funny to see that work in the novel — I thought it was just a Portuguese thing.