“the lonesome sounds of Ireland”:
POST-COLONIAL IRISH IDENTITY IN EDNA O’BRIEN’S THE
COUNTRY GIRLS TRILOGY
MA Thesis in Literary Studies: Literature, Culture and Society Graduate School of Humanities
Universiteit van Amsterdam
Sophie van Dorst 11037962
Supervisor: Dr Rudolph Glitz 25 June 2020
Declaration of Academic Integrity
I hereby confirm that I have read the UvA Regulations on Plagiarism. This thesis is my own work and the sources that have contributed to the thesis are fully cited.
Abstract
The British colonisation of Ireland, with its cultural suppression and dominating government, has started off a divided and conflicted relationship with Irish identity. This divided relationship remained after the Irish Republic incorporated the Catholic values and traditions into its Constitution. This thesis analyses Edna O’Brien’s Country Girls Trilogy (1964-1986), following the lives of Caithleen Brady and Baba Brennan in their individual realisation of what the Irish identity entails. Moreover, this thesis argues that Caithleen and Baba’s individual realisations of the Irish identity, and what role the Catholic religion plays in this identity, reveal the divide between the rural and city interpretations of the post-colonial Irish identity. Furthermore, this thesis considers the consequences of cultural repression, the power of language, and the struggles of the split diasporic entity, using post-colonial theory to show that the colonial can be used analyse the post-colonial.
Contents
Introduction.……….………...4-9 Chapter 1: The Country Girls……….………10-23 Chapter 1.1: The Rural Town.………...……….…10-13 Chapter 1.2: Dublin………...………..13-17 Chapter 1.3: The Nation………..……17-23 Chapter 2: The Lonely Girl……….24-39 Chapter 2.1: Catholicism……….………...……24-30 Chapter 2.2: The Letters and Aftermath……….…………30-35 Chapter 2.3: Exile to England……….35-39 Chapter 3: Girls in Their Married Bliss and the Epilogue………...……...40-54 Chapter 3.1: Married Life……….………..40-45 Chapter 3.2: The Aftermath of the Separation……..………….……….…45-49 Chapter 3.3: The Epilogue………..………49-52 Chapter 3.4: Caithleen’s End………..………52-54 Conclusion………..……55-58 Works Cited………59-62
Introduction
James Joyce, William Butler Yeats, Seamus Heaney. These are names of well-known Irish writers who have riveted and captivated readers from all over the world. Since the 1960s and onwards, Edna O’Brien can be seen as part of this group of famous writers. Her novels are well-known for challenging how we look at Irish sexuality and femininity. O’Brien’s The Country Girls Trilogy (1964-1986) is a work that challenges the restrictive norms of Catholic Irish society. She openly speaks about abortion, abuse, religion, depression – topics that had continually been suppressed by the Irish government whose decisions were often guided by the Christian religion and values. When O’Brien published The Country Girls in 1964 and reflected on these controversial topics, the Irish censorship board banned the trilogy. The ban led to a slander of O’Brien’s work, whereas The Country Girls was included in book burnings to publicly destroy and criticise her work. In this day and age, the trilogy is characterised by how it challenges the beliefs and stereotypes of 1960s Ireland and rebels against the traditions of the Catholic Republic of Ireland. The trilogy follows the Irish Caithleen Brady and Baba Brennan in their lives from country girls in rural Ireland, to aspiring city girls in Dublin, and eventually married women in London. This thesis argues that Caithleen’s Catholic interpretation of the Irish identity, and Baba’s rejection of the Church and the traditional Irish identity, symbolises the divide between Catholic rural Ireland and modern city Ireland, illustrating that the cultural suppression of colonial Ireland and the traditional and limiting Catholic values of the Irish Republic have problematised, limited, and divided the Irish identity. This reading of The Country Girls Trilogy shows the negative consequences of the colonial rule and the governing of the traditional Irish Republic on the Irish identities of Caithleen and Baba. Moreover, this thesis illustrates how Ireland continues to deal with the colonial trauma of its ancestors, since the traditional government of the Irish Republic led to an oppressive atmosphere often made emigration necessary. In the trilogy, Caithleen and Baba recognize that
they need to move away from Ireland to escape the oppressive and limiting values of the Irish Catholic government.
The post-colonial theory of Bill Ashcroft, Helen Tiffin and Garreth Griffiths is used to analyse the influence of the colonial period on the post-colonial Irish identity. Here, the collected anthology The Post-Colonial Studies Reader (2006) and The Empire Writes Back (2002) are used to look at how the trilogy reflects on cultural suppression, the power of language, and the split diasporic entity. Academics such as Jamaica Kincaid, Salman Rushdie and Edward Said illustrate that Caithleen and Baba’s perception of the Irish identity intertwines with both the British colonial oppression and the post-colonial Irish government. Here, the trilogy illustrates that the cultural suppression of the colonial British government, and the Irish Republic’s limiting constitution, have problematised the Irish identity for Caithleen and Baba. The Country Girls Trilogy has recently resurfaced after it was published as a trilogy in 1986. The “Dublin: One City, One Book” initiative picked the trilogy in 2019, re-introducing it to the Irish reader. By discussing themes such as abortion and religion, the trilogy illustrates the rebellion against the Catholic values that have been central to Irish society since the proclamation of the Irish Republic. Furthermore, the trilogy also portrays the significance of emigration in Irish society and Irish identity. In the history books, Irish mass emigration is often “represented as, and often was, involuntary exile: a heartbreaking saga of families destroyed, children lost, and a country drained of its most precious resource – its people” (Cullingford 60). Here, the Great Famine and economic depressions of the 1950’s led to episodes of mass emigration. However, while emigration was often involuntary, many of the Irish had also willingly chosen to emigrate for better economic possibilities. The popularity of Irish emigration was present when the trilogy was published in the 20th century and is still
evident in 21st century Ireland, especially with the Irish youth. Here, a study by the National
considered emigration or had a close family member emigrate in the past 2 years. 1 in 10 has experienced both” (McAleer 13). When asked about the motivating factors to emigrate, “the vast majority of respondents stated that they would emigrate primarily because of the lack of employment opportunities at home or in the expectation that they would have better work prospects abroad” (McAleer 13). This research shows that emigration has remained a popular phenomenon, while the necessity to emigrate and leave the motherland continues to challenge the Irish identity. This confrontation with emigration in terms of the Irish identity is a prominent theme in The Country Girls Trilogy as well. Caithleen and Baba see it as necessary to emigrate to England and escape the limitations and restrictions of Ireland. For Caithleen, however, her emigration leads to a constant recollection and fragmentation of her memories of Ireland.
The long suppression of Irish culture during colonial rule has led to a divided perception of the Irish identity. The country folk, who had lived in the small towns of Ireland and often only had to deal with the British when their surroundings were anglicised, stood oppositional to the city folk who were more integrated with the British and their policies. At that point in time, the British would visit the rural towns of Ireland to anglicise the names of the streets and lakes. Well known Irish theatre-writers like Brian Friel wanted to illustrate the importance of language in Ireland. Here, Friel’s Translations (1980) portrays a small rural town called Baile Beag, which the British changed to Ballybeg. Friel shows how the English came to these little rural villages and changed the Irish names, dismissing Irish culture and language. Here, Friel’s play illustrates how colonial rule, and the suppression of the Irish language, has problematised the Irish identity.The Country Girls Trilogy similarly reflects on how language is used to dominate the other and, specifically, how language makes Caithleen and Baba question the Irish identity.
However, while the British were able to anglicise the Irish language, they were unable to suppress the Catholic religion. For long, religion has played an important role in Irish society and the Irish identity, especially during colonial times. As Timothy J. White claims, the Irish never stopped rebelling against the wishes of the British regarding religion, as Timothy J. White claims:
The Irish who had long identified with the Catholic Church and practiced Catholicism resisted the British effort to create a national Church of Ireland that would correspond to the established Church in England. The Irish clung to their religious beliefs and practices not only because of their faith but also because it became a symbol of their identity and a means of political resistance to British imperial policy. Ultimately, Irish Catholicism emerged stronger and more connected to national identity because of British imperialism and the Irish effort to resist it. (White 2)
As White shows, Catholicism and its values continued to play an important role in the Irish Constitution and society. The refusal of the proposed National Church of Ireland made the Catholic Church a more prominent and essential symbol in the Irish national identity. In the trilogy, the influence of religion on identity is a prominent theme, since Caithleen and Baba have a different perception of what role religion plays in their Irish identity. Moreover, the discussions between Caithleen’s father and her new boyfriend Eugene Gaillard similarly reflect on the influence of the Catholic religion on the rural and the city Irish identity.
Since Edna O’Brien identifies herself as a feminist writer, The Country Girls Trilogy is often analysed in terms of feminist theory and female subjects. O’Brien herself wrote about her personal experience in Ireland in her memoir Mother Ireland (1976), and in the article “Irish Heroines Don’t Have To Be Good Anymore” (1986) she voiced her opinion about the changes she wished for female protagonists in Irish literature. This focus on the female character can accordingly be seen in texts that are referenced in this thesis. Here, examples are Julia C. Obert, who writes about “Mothers and others in Edna O’Brien’s The Country Girls Trilogy” (2012) and Ann Owens Weekes who writes about “Figuring the Mother in
Contemporary Irish Fiction” (2000). This thesis will not entirely dismiss these feminist readings, except that it will focus more on the fragments concerning the Irish identity and (post)colonial Ireland. This analysis will predominantly relate to the research that was done by Mariá Amor Barros-del Río, who wrote about “Translocational Irish Identities in Edna O’Brien’s memoir Country Girl” (2012). Barros-del Río initially differs from this analysis since she focusses on O’Brien’s memoir, while this thesis will focus on The Country Girls Trilogy. Similar to this thesis’ claim, she argues that there is a connection between the Irish sense of identity and the feelings of displacement in both oppressive Ireland and abroad. Moreover, Barros-del Río similarly claims that “the exiled is trapped between the longing for the beautiful Irish landscapes and the fear for its oppressive atmosphere” (Barros-del Río, “Translocational Irish identities” 1504), as is claimed in chapter two and three of this thesis. Furthermore, this thesis also corresponds to Heather Ingman’s article “Edna O’Brien Stretching the Nation’s Boundaries” (2002), where she similarly shows that the Irish identity is troubled because of the limitations and suppression of colonial and post-colonial Ireland. Ingman’s article differs from this thesis since she continues with a reading of O’Brien’s other works, using Julia Kristeva’s and Judith Butler’s feminist theory, while this thesis specifically focusses on post-colonial theory and the Country Girls Trilogy.
Chapter one of this thesis analyses the first novel of the trilogy, The Country Girls. This chapter argues that Baba and Caithleen’s Irish identities are both shaped differently by religion. While Caithleen sees the Catholic religion as part of her Irish identity, Baba rebels against the rules and values of the Church. Furthermore, the chapter shows how Caithleen and Baba initially have different expectations by moving to Dublin, while also both wishing to change their identities from country girls to city girls. Moreover, the British suppression of Irish culture during the colonial period has led to a conflicted Irish identity, as is apparent with Caithleen and her constant questioning of this identity. Lastly, the chapter illustrates that the use of the
nationalist figure of Mother Ireland and the Catholic Irish Constitution limited Caithleen and Baba to the home. The limitations of Ireland eventually lead to the girls questioning their Irish identities.
Chapter two analyses the second novel of the trilogy, The Lonely Girl. This chapter argues that Caithleen’s relationship with Eugene Gaillard illustrates the difference between the rural and city interpretation of the Irish identity. Here, Eugene’s refined education and Caithleen’s rural Catholic upbringing problematise their relationship, as Eugene feels like he is permitted to constantly criticizes her language, habits and religion. Moreover, Eugene’s dismissal of Caithleen’s language corresponds to power of language in colonial time, when language was used to dominate the colonised. Lastly, Caithleen and Baba’s move to London illustrates that both women prefer the economic possibilities of England over the motherland. However, for Caithleen, this emigration leads to fragmentation of her memories of Ireland, dismissing the trauma of her past.
Chapter three analyses Girls in Their Married Bliss and the final epilogue. This chapter argues that Caithleen’s perception of marriage and the family are based on the Catholic religion, while also showing that her traumatic past has led to a romanticised perception of relationships. Eugene’s frequent critique of her Irish identity and country girl habits has led to a failed marriage and Caithleen’s problematic Irish identity. Furthermore, the chapter illustrates how Baba blames Caithleen’s hardships on the Catholic Church and the problematic Irish morals. Moreover, the chapter shows how Caithleen and Baba differ in their wish to reminisce about Ireland: Baba wants to forget Ireland and move on, while Caithleen idealises her memories of the past. Here, Caithleen’s character shows the dualism of a diasporic entity, living with the memories of two countries at the same time.
Chapter 1: The Country Girls Chapter 1.1: The Rural Town
The Country Girls Trilogy tells the story of Caithleen Brady and follows her life from a country girl to a modern metropolitan woman in London. The trilogy is often considered as a bildungsroman since we read about Caithleen as she grows up and goes through her rites of passages. This first chapter illustrates the factors of Caithleen’s youth that influence her Irish identity. Here, the death of her mother and the difficult relationship with her father play a significant part. Furthermore, this chapter shows that Caithleen’s Catholic upbringing and time at the convent shape her views on religion. Moreover, the Constitution and figure of Mother Ireland emphasise the Irish woman in the home and, indirectly, lead to Caithleen questioning her Irish identity. This limited and distorted Irish identity is apparent with Baba and Caithleen, who both try to escape the narrowmindedness of their rural village by moving to Dublin. Relocating to the city is also their way to change from a country girl to a city girl.
The Country Girls introduces the reader to the rural Irish village where Caithleen Brady grows up. Her life as an Irish girl is mostly situated at their dilapidated farm. Caithleen’s mother and Hickey, the help, take care of the farm, while her father is mostly absent from their life. The violent Mr Brady uses the meagre income from the farm to support his alcohol addiction. Moreover, he only appears at the farm to acquire money and refuses to pay the bills, leaving Caithleen’s mother with the hardships of raising a child and taking care of the farm. Unfortunately, Mrs Brady drowns during a boat-trip with a possible suitor, Tom O’Brien, who could have been her way out of the marriage with Mr Brady. The experience traumatises Caithleen since she does not have a good relationship with her father. After the loss of her mother, the parents of her friend Bridget ‘Baba’ Brennan take her in. The relationship between the rebellious Baba and conflicted Caithleen is a central part of the story since the girls continue to follow each other to Dublin and London and keep in contact as they get older.
The first few chapters of The Country Girls introduce Caithleen to the hard world around her. Here, the relationship between Caithleen and her father is important, since her upbringing shapes her as a character, and influences her decisions and aspirations. Mr Brady is a traditional man who has a strong connection to Ireland and the Catholic religion. His beliefs play a big part in the formation of Caithleen’s identity. Mr Brady wants Caithleen to be the ideal Catholic Irish girl that focusses on the family and the home. However, since the rural Irish villagers frequently had to deal with the coloniser anglicising their surroundings, they were often more fixated on Irish identity and how the colonial past damaged it. This fixation can, for instance, be seen in one of the first chapters, when Mrs Brady’s friend Jack wonders about the hidden identities of many of the people around them:
“You know many Irish people are royalty and unaware of it. There are kings and queens walking down the roads of Ireland, riding bicycles, imbibing tea, plowing the humble earth, totally unaware of their great heredity. Your mother, now, has the ways and the walk of a queen.”
I sighed. Jack’s infatuation with the English language bored me. (E. O’Brien, The Country Girls Trilogy 17)
Jack illustrates the need for recognising one’s true identity, but also frustration with the often-simplified identity of the Irish as farmers or country folk. By connecting the rural to the royal, Jack gives a different status to these common agricultural activities, as if they could all be a royal. As the fragment shows, the Irish stereotype was often that many of the Irish were “plowing the humble earth”, living in these small villages while “walking down the roads of Ireland”. Caithleen immediately relates Jack’s need for recognising “great heredity” to an infatuation with the English language. In Caithleen’s mind, being royal or of great heredity does not seem very probable, as she immediately attaches this idea of royalty to the English language. For her, royalty is often English, and thus the English language is probably a part of being royal. The fragment additionally shows the divide between young and old. Whereas Jack is concerned with the past and the Irish identity, Caithleen appears uninterested about this
supposed secret status. She sees it more as an irrelevant infatuation with the past. The divide what the Irish identity entails is, as Hawk Chang claims, based on the colonial history of Ireland and the antitheses it created in Irish society: “For centuries, people in Ireland have been beset by antitheses such as British/Irish, Protestant/Catholic and colonialism/de-colonization due to Ireland’s special relations with England. As a consequence, a tenacious Irish identity distinct from non-Irish identity has been formulated” (Chang 69). As Chang shows, the Irish identity is heavily influenced by colonialism, since British imperial culture was perceived as the standard in Ireland for centuries. By wondering about Irish royalty, Jack acknowledges that the Irish identity has to be questioned. The search for the Irish identity becomes more important for Caithleen and Baba when they get older and their move to Dublin liberates them from the restrictive rural town. This change of location makes it possible for the girls to question the Irish identity and reflect on what it means to be Irish.
The first way that Caithleen and Baba escape their lives in the small country town is by going to a Catholic convent school. The girls’ parents perceive education at this convent as a suitable opportunity as they have raised their children with the values and rules of the Catholic Church. While Caithleen wins a scholarship to go to the convent, Baba’s wealthier parents pay for their daughter’s tuition. At the convent, the girls have to deal with strict rules and punishments from the nuns. They are taught how to worship and what they can and cannot do as ‘good’ Christians. If the girls disagree with the nun’s guidance, they are disciplined by beatings with a strap. For three years, Caithleen and Baba stay and study at the convent. However, when the girls get the option to go outside for their Christmas break, Caithleen realises that “[i]t was nice to feel the cold air. The convent was a prison” (E. O’Brien, The Country Girls Trilogy 109). This comment is the first time that Caithleen voices her unhappiness with life at the Catholic institution. Before this revelation, Caithleen had been polite to the nuns and tried to please them continuously. However, when Baba points out her
behaviour, Caithleen realises that she might have dismissed the demeaning actions of the nuns: “‘It’s not so bad for you, winning statues and playing up to nuns. You give me the sick anyhow, jumping up to open and close the damn door for nuns as if they had cerebral palsy and couldn’t do it themselves.’ It was true, I did play up to the nuns, and I hated her for noticing it” (E. O’Brien, The Country Girls Trilogy 127). For Caithleen, who has been counting on the rebellious Baba for most of her life, Baba’s comment decides that she has to follow the decision to leave the convent. By writing an offensive rhyme for a priest, the girls get expelled from the convent. Caithleen and Baba’s escape from the convent makes them passionate about leaving their dominating hometown behind. Consequently, even though the experience in the convent is quite short, it does show the nature of the connection that the girls have with religion. Here, while the religious nuns and their rules make Baba sick, Caithleen sees her experience in the convent as somewhat helpful. In the end, their experience in the convent shapes their views on religion and what role it plays in the Irish identity.
Thus, this section illustrates that Caithleen’s traumatic past moulds her Irish identity. Moreover, the section shows that religion shapes the identities of Caithleen and Baba. Here, Caithleen perceives the Catholic religion as part of her Irish identity, showing respect for the values of the nuns and wishing to appease them. Baba, however, immediately rejects the Catholic religion and shows her distaste for its significance in the Irish identity.
Chapter 1.2: Dublin
Caithleen and Baba’s move to Dublin illustrates the first step in their individual understandings of the Irish identity. After the girls get expelled from the convent, Caithleen is excited to leave her country life and move to the big city. Baba initiates their move, claiming that Caithleen should join her. For Caithleen, her old village reminds her of the death of her mother and her drunken father. Returning to her old home after the long stay at the convent shows her that she
will have the same life as her mother if she decides to stay. Reminded of this life, moving to the big city appears to be no difficult decision. When Caithleen and Baba leave, Caithleen describes her village unapologetically: “I was not sorry to be leaving the old village. It was dead and tired and old and crumbling and falling down. The shops needed paint and there seemed to be fewer geraniums in the upstairs windows than there had been when I was a child” (E. O’Brien, The Country Girls Trilogy 153). The village is described as “old” and left behind, emphasising the “crumbling” remainders of departed inhabitants and abandoned buildings. Her words illustrate a place with no opportunities and future, and Caithleen is not apologetic for leaving the village and her father. For her, moving to Dublin seems like her way out of having to taking care of the farm with her father – a way out of the life that her mother tried to escape.
When the girls arrive in the city, Caithleen describes how it is different from their rural town: “We got in to Dublin just before six. It was still bright, and we carried our bags across the platform, stopping for a minute to let others pass by. We had never seen so many people in our lives” (E. O’Brien, The Country Girls Trilogy 156). Caithleen and Baba are not used to the bright lights of the city and the countless people surrounding them. Dublin is not abandoned and neglected but developed and full of life. Still, the girls do have different underlying reasons for moving to Dublin. Here, Elizabeth Weston states that Caithleen’s reasons for leaving are mostly induced by romantic impulse: “Dublin represents the possibility of escape from the oppressiveness of her childhood and of satisfying her romantic impulse to feel swept up into something larger than herself. To leave for Dublin with Baba is to enter into ‘that phase of our lives as the giddy country girls brazening the big city’” (Weston 93). For Caithleen, moving away is a personal and life-changing decision that makes it possible to escape the oppression of her past. Baba perceives their move to Dublin as an exciting change that will give her a life full of glamour and excitement, saying to Caithleen: “We want to live. Drink gin. Squeeze into the front of big cars and drive up outside big hotels. We want to go places” (E. O’Brien, The
Country Girls Trilogy 183). Baba’s words illustrate her attraction to the economic possibilities and glamorous life she hopes to have. However, as Kersti Tarien Powell claims, for both of the girls the move to Dublin shows their desperate wish “to try to disassociate themselves from their ‘country’ background” (Powell 92). This background is, however, hard to escape, since the city folk immediately reinforce their identity as country girls. For instance, when Caithleen and Baba arrive in Dublin and meet their landlady, Joanna. Joanne immediately ridicules their identity: “‘Mein Gott Almighty, save us! Country girls have big huge appetite,’ she said, raising her hands in the air” (E. O’Brien, The Country Girls Trilogy 159). Here, both Baba and Caithleen are instantly characterised by their life outside of the city and reminded of the identity they wish to escape. By claiming that Baba and Caithleen have huge appetites, Joanna immediately differentiates the girls from the city folk. Her comment reinforces the girls’ need to fit the sophisticated identity of the city and denounce their current Irish identities.
After the girls have arrived in Dublin, the novel starts to make a connection between literature and Irish identity. Here it is, for instance, shown that Caithleen is extremely fond of James Joyce and his well-known Dubliners (1914). Her adoration for the novel is shown when Caithleen and Baba are in a room with rich men from Dublin. As Caithleen is speaking to one of her suitors, she immediately mentions Dubliners. Baba is annoyed with Caithleen always mentioning the novel, saying: “Will you, for Chrissake, stop asking fellas if they’ve read James Joyce’s Dubliners? They’re not interested. They’re out for a night. Eat and drink all you can and leave James Joyce to blow his own trumpet” (E. O’Brien, The Country Girls Trilogy 190). Even though Baba is frustrated with Caithleen’s fixation on Joyce, one could see the connection between Joyce and The Country Girls. Joyce is a prominent part of the Irish identity, known for his celebrated contributions to the Irish literary tradition and reflections on the Irish identity. For Caithleen, Joyce’s Dubliners reflects a life in the city that offers opportunities and fascinating stories. The novel illustrates the experiences of different Irish characters who live
in Dublin and have different expectations of their life and future. For example, Dubliners tells the story of a child that has to deal with death, girls who have to get married, or a man that has to reflect on the Irish revolution. Similar to The Country Girls, emigration was an important topic that is mentioned a few times in Dubliners. For example, in the chapter called “Eveline”. Here, Eveline has the opportunity to leave her abusive Irish father behind and move to the United States with her lover Frank. Frank offers to take her away from her father and save her from a future in Ireland. However, in the end, Eveline is unable to leave her motherland and her father behind. “Eveline” compares to The Country Girls, since Caithleen and Eveline both hope that men save them from a future in Ireland with their abusive fathers and are considering the benefits of leaving the motherland. Moreover, “A Little Cloud” compares the lives of the Irish that stay in Ireland and the ones that leave and build their fortune abroad. The short story compares the lives of Little Chandler and Ignatius Gallaher, who unexpectedly meet in Dublin. Little Chandler stayed in Dublin and started a family, while Ignatius moved to Londonwhere he prospered. “A Little Cloud” illustrates the jealousy and regrets of not emigrating, and the economic possibilities one could have if they left Ireland. Similar to Ignatius Gallaher, Joyce and O’Brien left Ireland. Joyce moved to Europe, where he wrote about Ireland and criticised the customs and traditions he left behind. Similarly, O’Brien “went into Joycean exile in England” (Cahalan 56), where she completed The Country Girls Trilogy and continued to criticise Ireland and the negative consequences of the Catholic religion. Both writers felt the need to move away from Ireland, even though they kept writing about Ireland and Irish culture. Lastly, Baba’s comment in the fragment, saying that the men are not interested in Joyce, expresses a disinterest with Irish culture and heritage. The comment shows that, while Caithleen questions her Irishness and cultural heritage, Baba is annoyed about being reminded of her Irishness and having to discover it. The latter wants to enjoy the company of the rich
men that talk about the glitz and glamour of the city, preferring not to acknowledge the difficult themes that James Joyce addresses in Dubliners.
Thus, Baba and Caithleen both wish to leave their country girl identities behind, while they do have personal reasons to move to the city. Here, Baba craves to have a glamorous life in the city, focussing on the economic possibilities Dublin will offer her. She is uninterested in uncovering her Irish identity, wanting to ignore the discussions Caithleen desires to have about Joyce. In contrast, Caithleen is interested in her Irish heritage and culture, wanting to discuss James Joyce. Here, she hopes to ignite discussions about the challenging themes that Joyce addresses in Dubliners. Consequently, this section shows that Caithleen and Baba initially show a different interest in the Irish identity.
Chapter 1.3: The Nation
Caithleen’s relationship with Mr Gentlemen is important for her recognition of the Irish identity. When she is only 14 years old, Caithleen becomes infatuated with the much older man whom she has known since she was a little girl. The married French Mr Gentleman is a mysterious figure in Caithleen’s rural town. He worked as a solicitor in Dublin and returned to the rural town once in a while. Moreover, Mr Gentleman is not his actual name, since the villagers decided to call him that: “Mr. Gentleman was a beautiful man who lived in the white house on the hill … He was French, and his real name was Mr. de Maurier, but no one could pronounce it properly, and anyhow, he was such a distinguished man with his gray hair and his satin waistcoats that the local people christened him Mr. Gentleman” (E. O’Brien, The Country Girls Trilogy, 15-16). The young Caithleen is fascinated with Mr Gentleman, who reflects glamour from the big city. Eventually, after Caithleen often tries to meet with him, the older man secretly courts her. Problematically, the connection between him and Caithleen is based on youth and trauma, as she has spent her adolescent years dealing with the trauma of losing
her mother. After Caithleen and Baba move to Dublin, the relationship becomes more serious. For the older man, her move to the big city means that she can have a relationship, even though he still chooses to hide it from others. Caithleen’s relationship with Mr Gentleman brings up the memories of her life in the rural village, the one that she wishes to escape. This reminiscing of her old life can, for example, be perceived when they meet during their time in Dublin, and he calls out her name. Mr Gentleman’s voice connects Caithleen to her Irishness: “He looked at me for a long time. That look of his which was half sexual, half mystic; and then he said my name very gently. (‘Caithleen.’) I could hear the bulrushes sighing when he said my name that way, and I could hear the curlew, too, and all the lonesome sounds of Ireland” (E. O’Brien, The Country Girls Trilogy 208). The sounds that Mr Gentleman makes, and how he calls out her traditional Irish name, remind Caithleen of the Irish nature and culture of her past. By referring to the “lonesome sounds of Ireland,” Caithleen also remembers the loneliness of her hometown that she wanted to escape from, especially after her mother had died. Her Irish name reflects the sounds of Ireland, the “bulrushes” and the “curlew”, and seems to offer her comfort, even though the old rural town has left her with traumatic memories.
Moreover, Mr Gentleman is part of her memories of the past that she has left behind by moving to Dublin with Baba. Elizabeth Weston claims that relationships like the one with Mr Gentleman are part of the trauma of losing her mother, saying: “Caithleen’s story is melancholic in that she does not—or cannot—fully examine her childhood trauma or break her attachment to her mother, leading to a lifelong pattern of remaining locked in her childhood pain” (Weston 92). Throughout the trilogy, Caithleen continues to feel this desire to escape her childhood trauma. Here, the trauma of losing her mother at an early age influences Caithleen’s move to Dublin, and eventually leaving her Irish family behind and moving to England altogether. As Caithleen says at the beginning of the novel, the intimate connection that she had with her mother is important to her. She describes it lovingly, saying: “I went over and put
my arms around her neck and kissed her. She was the best mama in the world. I told her so, and she held me very close for a minute as if she would never let me go. I was everything in the world to her, everything” (E. O’Brien, The Country Girls Trilogy 7). When Caithleen loses the relationship with her mother, whose unhappiness she wishes to avoid in her own life, it becomes easier to separate herself from her hometown. Caithleen still idealises the nature and surroundings of the rural town she shared with her mother but wants to escape the life that left her family imprisoned. Mrs Brady is a stereotypical example of a dependent woman in 1960s Ireland, as Heather Ingman claims in her article about Edna O’Brien:
In the novel, mirroring real life, Mrs Brady’s powerlessness stems not only from a reluctance on the part of the authorities to enquire too closely into what was happening in families but also from her economic dependence on her husband, a dependence which is the inevitable result of her country’s construction of gender roles forbidding women a presence outside the home. (Ingman 255)
The powerlessness that Ingman describes, and the economic independence Caithleen’s mother is looking for by leaving her husband, reflects the traditional gender roles the Irish Republic preferred. Caithleen’s mother was part of a large group of women who were living in rural Irish towns. Many of them were economically dependent and forced to adhere to the Irish gender roles of the Irish Republic. These traditional gender roles were especially noticeable after Ireland became independent from England and was able to write its own Constitution. Ingman describes the role of women in the new Constitution:
The Constitution underlined, in Article 41.2, women’s domestic identity as bearers of children and keepers of the home. In this role, women were expected to ensure the stability of the state, the preservation of the family and the upholding of Catholic values. During the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s when Edna O’Brien was growing up and embarking on her career as a writer, the situation of women in Ireland remained largely unchanged. They were confined to the home, restricted in their professional lives, and forbidden access to contraception, abortion and divorce. (Ingman 254)
What Ingman describes here applies to The Country Girls as well, since confinement and restriction in the home are part of the reason that Caithleen’s mother wants to leave her husband. Mrs Brady wants to find a better place for her and her daughter, where she is not confined to the house and unable to make her own decisions. Remembering her mother’s inability to escape makes Caithleen continuously struggle with the limitations of post-colonial Ireland. She tries to find her own identity in an Ireland that was suppressed and confined by the English colonisers, and now emphasised its traditional values more than ever before.
The suppression and confinement of the Irish Republic lead to characters that have a disfigured Irish identity. This identity initially was shaped by Irish folklore, the Irish language, Irish literature and drama – and these were all put aside during colonial times. Colonised Ireland focussed on British culture, and Irish culture was dismissed. The suppression of Irish culture especially noticeable in Dublin since it was the main British settlement in Ireland. Names such as Victoria Street, Wellington Road, and Waterloo Road still prioritise the British culture over the Irish one. Another example of British culture was the red mailbox, a copy of the red British variant. After Ireland became independent, all of the red mailboxes in Ireland were painted green. These two examples illustrate how Irish culture was denied and replaced, but also emphasise the importance of culture as a device in the colonial period. Nicholas B. Dirks speaks about how “[c]ulture can be seen both as a historically constituted domain of significant concepts and practices and as a regime in which power achieves its ultimate apotheosis” (Dirks 59). In relation to Ireland, Dirks portrays how the British used the suppression of culture as the ultimate way to achieve power over the Irish. He states that the coloniser is known to use culture and tradition to create opposition and achieve power, saying: “… they displaced many of the disruptions and excesses of rule into institutions and cultures that were labeled as tradition. Colonialism came to be seen as ascendant and necessary precisely through the construction of the colonial world, with its naturalized oppositions
between us and them, science and barbarity, modern and traditional” (Dirks 60). After colonial rule ended, Ireland had to get used to the possibility of making their own decisions in terms of culture and tradition, as the English had repressed theirs for centuries. The Irish decided to emphasise traditional culture in its government, focussing on the Catholic values and principles. For characters such as Mrs Brady and Caithleen, the rules in the new Constitution were seen as restrictive, since it made the decisions for women with only the traditional Catholic ideals in mind.
The figure of Mother Ireland has had an immense impact on Irish identity and culture. Mother Ireland represented the rebellion of the Irish toward the suppression of Irish culture and was used to express the need to change from the country that it had been during British rule. As Maria Amor Barros-del Rio claims, the figure of Mother Ireland was initially a feminine icon:
Among others, the patriarchal ideological construction of the Free State of Ireland has been pointed to as a determining factor. The feminine icons of Mother Church and Mother Ireland (or Erin) had been gaining ground since the nineteenth century for nationalistic purposes, and from the first decades of the twentieth century, women were ‘actively interpellated as national subjects through identification with territory, soil, land and landscape’ (Gray 1999, 205). (Barros-del Rio, “Translocational Irish Identities” 1498)
As this citation claims, the figure of Mother Ireland was eventually used for nationalist purposes. The figure emphasised the Church and adoration for Ireland and the Irish identity. Mother Ireland resurfaced after the colonial period when the Irish population wanted to rediscover their suppressed and ignored Irish identity. However, the nationalistic icon eventually limited the female population as national subjects who had to mirror the importance of the family. In relation to female characters in The Country Girls, Julia C. Obert connects the figure of Mother Ireland to Mrs Brady, claiming:
Indeed, O’Brien takes these domestic demands to their ‘logical’ end point in The Country Girls: when Caithleen’s mother leaves the home one afternoon with Tom O’Brien, a potential suitor, she is later found drowned. The Mother Ireland myth, O’Brien suggests, turns lived maternity into a kind of imprisonment, with death as the punishment for attempted jail-break. (Obert 285)
As Obert states here, for the mother of Caithleen, the figure led to a feeling of imprisonment since it pressured her to be an unflawed matriarch. However, for many of the Irish, the figure of Mother Ireland was a positive and nationalist symbol, emphasising the Church and adoration for Ireland and the Irish identity. This adoration was especially noticeable after the declaration of the Irish Republic. Around that time, well-known Irish nationalists like William Butler Yeats and Lady Gregory joined the so-called Irish Revival. This Revival wanted to rediscover the Irish identity by emphasising the Irish traditions and language in literature and theatre. As claimed by Chang, these revivalists tried “hard to channel nationalism into the construction of artistic perfection and to kindle Irish people’s awareness of Irish-ness as opposed to the encroaching British imperial culture” (Chang 69). Ingman acknowledges the return of nationalism to Ireland in connection to Mother Ireland:
Fixed construct of gender have been central to Irish nationalism. On a symbolic level, going back to eighteenth-century Gaelic poetry, Ireland was constructed as a woman victimised by the colonising English male. She was Hibernia, Mother Ireland, the Poor Old Woman, the Shan Van Vocht, Cathleen ni Houlihan, the Dark Rosaleen – images taken up a century later by Anglo-Irish poets. (Ingman 253)
The figure of Mother Ireland was, thus, used in many different plays and stories. Here, writers and poets used different concepts that all reflected the same figure. Mother Ireland was also shaped like a “woman victimised by the colonizing English male” (Ingman 253), connecting colonial rule to the helplessness of women. The figure is important for the analysis of The Country Girls Trilogy since it is part of the Irish literary tradition and reflects on Irish independence. Furthermore, the figure is also part of the life of Edna O’Brien, who called her memoir Mother Ireland. In the memoir, she writes about her love for Ireland and describes the
experiences that eventually led to her exile. After explaining all of the hardships she had to go through in Ireland, O’Brien explains the connection she still has to her motherland:
It is true that a country encapsulates our childhood and those lanes, byres, fields, flowers, insects, suns, moons and stars are forever re-occurring and tantalising me with a possibility of a golden key which would lead beyond birth to the roots of one’s lineage. Irish? In truth I would not want to be anything else. It is a state of mind as well as an actual country. It is being at odds with other nationalities, having quite different philosophy about pleasure, about punishment, about life, and about death. At least it does not leave one pusillanimous. (E. O’Brien, Mother Ireland 144)
This citation from Mother Ireland illustrates this endless love for the motherland and the Irish identity, as O’Brien claims that her Irishness continued to be part of her after her exile. Being Irish is explained as a “state of mind” (E. O’Brien, Mother Ireland 144) wherein identity is connected to this constant struggle and discussion about traditions, religion, and beliefs. The constant struggle with the Irish identity is similarly seen with Caithleen, who in the trilogy continuously reflects on her Irish heritage and past.
Consequently, this chapter showed that the Catholic religion plays an essential role in Caithleen and Baba’s Irish identities. Even though both girls were raised with the values of the Catholic Church, they both perceive religion differently in the Irish identity. Here, while Baba rebels against the rules of the convent and nuns, Caithleen often approves of the Irish Catholic values and traditions. Furthermore, the Republic of Ireland, Constitution, and the Figure of Mother Ireland restricted women to the home, and this is what Caithleen and Baba want to escape from. By moving to Dublin, the girls hope to leave their country girl identities behind.
Chapter 2: The Lonely Girl Chapter 2.1 Catholicism
This second chapter analyses how Caithleen and Baba’s move to Dublin continues to change and challenge their views on relationships and marriage. By having an affair with the married Eugene Gaillard, Caithleen challenges her countries’ Catholic ideals. Moreover, the discussion that Eugene has with Mr Brady about their affair illustrates the difference between the rural and city perceptions of the Irish identity. Caithleen’s Irish identity is also constantly challenged by Eugene since he criticises her language, habits, and religion. This critique leads to Caithleen doubting her Irish identity and trying to fit Eugene’s ideal. The chapter additionally illustrates how Caithleen and Baba’s move to England is their way of acquiring better economic opportunities, while they also desire to escape the limitation of Ireland. Lastly, this chapter shows how, for Caithleen, the move to England leads to fragmentation of her memories of Ireland.
The second novel of the trilogy starts with a lonely Caithleen who has been left behind by Mr Gentleman. She lives in an apartment with Baba while she discovers life in the city as an independent woman. By going to Dublin, Caithleen tried to leave the country life and a possible future with her father behind. However, Caithleen’s new relationship with the older and married film director Eugene Gaillard eventually reinstates Mr Brady in her life. At first, their relationship is a secret, since Eugene is still married to his wife. His American wife Laura and his child live in the United States, far away from Ireland, while Eugene lives in a big home outside of Dublin, The fact that Eugene is still married and has a child makes the relationship problematic to the old-fashioned individuals around them. For Christians like Mr Brady, a relationship outside of marriage is unacceptable. By continuing to date the married film director, Caithleen challenges the traditional Catholic rules and traditions.
Eugene and Caithleen have distinct perceptions of the Irish identity, since Eugene had a completely different upbringing. He lived in Dublin for most of his life, where he was raised solely by his mother. Most importantly, Eugene is brought up without religion. He is critical of the Church and claims that Catholics are “the most opinionated people on earth – their self-mania, he said, frightened him” (E. O’Brien, The Country Girls Trilogy 256). Eugene’s views about religion are quite different from Caithleen’s. For her, religion is part of her upbringing and plays an essential part in the life and future she sees for herself. In their relationship, Eugene tolerates Caithleen’s beliefs, often only critically commenting on the Catholic Church. He refuses to participate in Caithleen’s traditions, as can be seen when Caithleen decides to go to Mass. Here, while Eugene stays in front of the church “sitting on the low mossy wall opposite the chapel gate” (E. O’Brien, The Country Girls Trilogy 416), Caithleen goes to the service alone. After she exits the church, Eugene immediately remarks that: “… when you’re in there, you become a convent girl again” (E. O’Brien, The Country Girls Trilogy 417). Caithleen immediately answers his teasing remark, saying that: “‘I wouldn’t get married,’ I said rashly, ‘unless I got married in a church’” (E. O’Brien, The Country Girls Trilogy 419). Caithleen emphasises that, in her marriage, she will remain loyal to her Catholic beliefs, even though her future husband disagrees.
At first, Caithleen’s views on religion are similar to her father’s, even though his are more traditional and dogmatic. His Catholic beliefs are the reasons why he involves himself in Caithleen’s relationship with Eugene. The Catholic faith has been a constant in Irish society, even during British rule. After the Republic of Ireland was proclaimed, the new government decided to make the Catholic religion part of its Constitution. The values in this new Constitution intertwined with Catholic beliefs, where Article 41.2 underlined “women’s domestic identity as bearers of children and keepers of the home. In this role, women were expected to ensure the stability of the state, the preservation of the family and the upholding of
Catholic values” (Ingman 254). Mr Brady raised Caithleen with these values and saw them as fundamental in the decisions his daughter would need to make as an adult.
As Mariá Amor Barros-del Rio claims, while for many of the Irish citizens the Catholic beliefs coincided with their love for Ireland, this conservative nationalism did restrict the female population:
… The Country Girls Trilogy was developed within the framework of strong Catholic and conservative nationalism, reinforced by a protectionist economic policy that from an ideological point of view exerted strong pressures on the female population, and in particular on mothers as the pillars and safeguards of Irish traditions. (Barros-del Río, “Thematic Transgressions and Formal Innovations” 21)
Barros-del Río highlights the importance of Irish traditions in the lives of Irish women. Additionally, she illustrates how O’Brien trilogy reflects on this part of the Irish identity. The characters of Caithleen and Baba exemplify conflicted women who try to find their way around these traditions. Here, Baba differs from Caithleen since she is continuously challenging the Catholic ideal and is “scornful of the Church’s hypocritical position on contraception and its emphasis on motherhood as the essence of womanhood, specifically Irish motherhood” (Byron 475). Caithleen finds it difficult to challenge the Irish ideals she was raised by and that her father praises. It is, however, because of these Irish ideals that Caithleen and Baba become confined in what they expect of their future. As Derek Hand states, O’Brien’s trilogy illustrates that “[t]he real problem for Kate and Baba is not just that their world only offers limited roles for women but also that their access to a range of images of rebellion and possibility is also limited” (Hand 241). The girl’s limited way of rebelling against the traditional Irish identity eventually plays an essential role in their decision to move to England.
Caithleen’s relationship with Eugene Gaillard is the first way that she rebels against the traditional Irish identity and beliefs. Unfortunately, while Caithleen continually tries to please him, he is critical of her identity, wanting to change it. Her language and rural habits are essential in this transformation. When they start dating, Eugene states that he will call Caithleen
by a more proper name, immediately dismissing the most prominent signifier of her Irish identity, saying: “We met three evenings a week after that. In between he wrote me postcards, and as time went on he wrote letters. He called me Kate, as he said that Caithleen was too ‘Kilkartan’ for his liking – whatever that meant” (E. O’Brien, The Country Girls Trilogy 258). By Anglicising her name, Eugene erases the Irish language from her identity. To him, the name Kate seems less Irish, less country girl, and more modern. Elizabeth Weston addresses the change of Caithleen’s name, saying that: “…[it] destabilizes Kate’s sense of cultural as well as personal identity. Being shamed for her rural Irish origins and having her identity managed for her reenacts the powerlessness of childhood; her personal difficulties and the constraints of her cultural context cannot be viewed as separate from one another” (Weston 97). Weston shows that Caithleen’s Irish name is part of her personal and cultural identity. By changing her name, Eugene dominates her identity. The new name makes Caithleen question her identity as an Irish woman, wondering if it is shameful to have a common Irish name.
Moreover, Eugene refuses to take Caithleen into society because of her country girl habits. Because he was raised in higher circles, Eugene perceives Caithleen’s manners as unrefined. Her manners embarrass him and make him hesitant to bring Caithleen along on business trips to London. The couple’s conversations often feature Eugene’s dismissal of her unsophisticated ways, whereas he, for example, once questions her way of eating an orange:
“You swallow them (orange pits),” he repeated, raising his eyes to the cracked ceiling. “How am I ever going to take you into society?”
“I’ll be very polite,” I said, sure that he would invite me to London, but he didn’t. (E. O’Brien, The Country Girls Trilogy 300)
As shown in this citation, for Eugene, something as small as swallowing orange pits illustrates an unrefined woman. In the rest of the novel, Eugene continues to criticise the habits that remind him of Caithleen’s rural past. Here, his dismissal of her unrefined ways drives a wedge between Caithleen and her Irish identity, since he makes her insecure and ashamed about her
Irishness. By confessing that he is hesitant to take Caithleen into society, Eugene acknowledges that he hides her and the relationship from others. Later in the novel, he also confesses his dissatisfaction with her proficiency of the English language, saying to his friends: “‘I’m teaching Kate how to speak English before I take her into society,’ and ‘Run upstairs on your peasant legs’” (E. O’Brien, The Country Girls Trilogy 425). By claiming that Caithleen’s language makes her a “peasant”, Eugene diminishes and Others her in the process. When analysing these fragments, one could claim that Eugene’s actions show the refusal of her Irish identity since her habits, language, and name are deeply rooted in her Irish identity.
For the analysis of the Irish identity, it is essential to consider the connection between language and the colonial, especially since language is a fundamental part of culture that shapes identity. Bill Ashcroft et al. state that language plays a significant role in colonial oppression, saying: “One of the main features of imperial oppression is control over language. The imperial education system installs a ‘standard’ version of the metropolitan language as the norm and marginalizes all ‘variants’ as impurities” (Ashcroft et al., The Empire Writes Back 7). The difference between the norm of English that Eugene speaks and the variant that Caithleen speaks shows this marginalisation. Eugene’s English is the standard, while Caithleen’s English is the impure variant. When looking at Ireland in particular, Margaret Hallissy claims that language has been a constant subject for discussion: “Language in Ireland, like land ownership, is a contentious issue, pitting the language of the natives against that of the conquerors, and exacerbating tensions between the two groups. In an effort to maintain their cultural identity, the Irish long resisted the suppression of their language” (Hallissy 2-3). As Hallissy shows, language is part of the Irish identity, and with the British suppressing the Gaelic language during their rule, there remained tension between the Irish and British.
In post-colonial literature, writers often reflect on language and having to speak the language of the coloniser. For instance, Jamaica Kincaid, who reflects on language in her novel
about colonial rule in Antigua. The island of Antigua was once a colony of the British, used as a dockyard for the West Indies Corporation. In A Small Place, Kincaid emphasises the consequences of the colonial period:
For isn’t it odd that the only language I have in which to speak of this crime is the language of the criminal who committed the crime? And what can that really mean? For the language of the criminal can contain only the goodness of the criminal’s deed. The language of the criminal can explain and express the deed only from the criminal’s point of view. (Kincaid 31-32)
As Kincaid claims, being obligated to speak the language of the coloniser is significant in post-colonial trauma since it is the language of the coloniser who committed crimes against the colonised. The obligation to speak the language of the coloniser is therefore problematic for one’s culture and identity. In Ireland specifically, the Irish were unable to speak their Gaelic language for centuries. This inability has led to a traumatised Irish identity, showing the power that language has. In The Lonely Girls, Eugene shows this power as well, as he feels superior over Caithleen when he is Othering her because of her language. Here, he frequently tells Caithleen that her English proficiency is not on his level and that it is below the standard. David Cairns and Shaun Richard state that the coloniser often demands subordination through language, creating a divide between the language variants of the coloniser and colonised, saying: “The process of describing the colonized [in Ireland] and inscribing them in the discourse as second-order citizens in comparison with the colonizers the colonized attempted to convince the colonized themselves of their irremovable deficiencies and the consequent naturalness and permanence of their subordination” (Cairns & Richards 134). By claiming that that Caithleen’s name and English variant make her a second-order citizen, Eugene is dominating Caithleen’s identity. His domination through language compares to colonial rule, when language became “the medium through which a hierarchal structure of power is perpetuated” (Ashcroft et al., The Empire Writes Back 7). In the relationship between Eugene
and Caithleen, language brings power to Eugene, and by critiquing her language, he shapes and discredits her Irish identity.
This section argues that, while Caithleen’s new relationship with Eugene Gaillard makes her question her religion and beliefs, it also portrays that their different views and upbringing are a challenge for her Irish identity. Here, Eugene wishes to mould Caithleen into his ideal woman by criticising her language, habits, and religion. Furthermore, by constantly disapproving of her Irish identity, Eugene makes Caithleen confused and conflicted about who she is and how she has to act. Lastly, Eugene also demands subordination by denying to publicly show their relationship until she fits his ideal, continually moulding her Irish identity to fit his preference.
2.2 The Letters and Aftermath
An anonymous letter from a critical spectator eventually informs Mr Brady about Caithleen and Eugene’s affair, leading to trouble in their relationship. The affair is problematic for Mr Brady since Eugene is not the ideal Irish Catholic man he had in mind for his daughter. He perceives their relationship as sinful, seeing as his daughter is sleeping with a married man outside of marriage. The first letter that Caithleen receives, and dismisses, orders her to stop seeing Eugene:
Are you aware that this man is evil and has lived with numerous women and then walked out on them. If you cease to disregard this information I shall have to secure your parents’ address and inform them.
A friend (E. O’Brien, The Country Girls Trilogy 312) Caithleen is not discouraged by the first letter but is shown that there are people in her environment that are under the impression that they should warn her, and that they have the right to do so. Even though Caithleen is shaken by the anonymous letter, seeing as someone knows about their affair, she ignores it. But, the harassment continues and, eventually,
Caithleen’s father receives a letter as well. His letter acknowledges Eugene’s lack of religion, wife and child, and therefore his infidelity:
Dear Mr Brady,
It is high time you knew about your daughter and the company she keeps. For over two months she’s having to do with a married man, who is not living with his wife. He is well known in this city as a dangerous type. No one knows where he gets his money and he has no religion. He shipped his wife to America, and the house is a blind to get young girls out there and dope them. Your daughter goes there alone. I hope I am not too late in warning you, as I would not like to see a nice Catholic Irish girl ruined by a dirty foreigner.
A friend (E. O’Brien, The Country Girls Trilogy 314) The letter illustrates frustration and hostility over Eugene’s lifestyle, claiming that her affair with a “dirty foreigner” will ruin a “nice Catholic Irish girl”. Mr Brady disregards the relationship as well since it dismisses the Catholic religion and its standards. He wants his daughter to marry an Irish Catholic man that lives up to Catholic standards, and Eugene is the opposite of this standard – he is married, has a child, and is not a Catholic. Mr Brady uses the anonymous letter to take Caithleen back to her hometown against her will. When he has picked her up in Dublin, and she questions her father’s reasons to take her home, he tells her not to worry, claiming that “you’ll meet a nice boy yet, one of your own kind” (E. O’Brien, The Country Girls Trilogy 321). Caithleen realises that she refuses to leave Eugene and will not marry according to her father’s standards, saying: “I did not tell him this but I now knew that I would never marry one of my own kind” (E. O’Brien, The Country Girls Trilogy 321). By rejecting her father’s wish to marry his ideal Irish man, she challenges the Irish identity that is wished of her.
The “one of your own kind” (E. O’Brien, The Country Girls Trilogy 321) is a striking saying of Mr Brady. It is problematic, since one could wonder what it means to be part of this kind. Mr Brady has a preference for his kind, the Irish Catholic, and acknowledges that there is another kind that is unaccepted. He is Othering people that do not fit his ideal, and thereby
questions the Irish identity. It is a way of categorising people in his country, more fit to the colonial times than the modern times that Mr Brady is living in. By taking Caithleen home, Mr Brady hopes to get her to connect to her kind and her heritage. However, as George O’Brien claims about the rural home, Caithleen’s past experiences could suggest “a rupture between land and people which makes the rural environment a habitat where nature seems incompatible with nurture, thereby complicating the traditional cultural and ideological status of the land as site and source of Irish authenticity” (G. O’Brien, The Irish Novel 1). Caithleen does not see her rural town as a place of nurture since her father mostly ignored and dismissed her because of his alcohol addiction. Her mother is her prime example of someone who suffered from the abuse of her father, and who wanted to escape the rural environment of Caithleen’s past. This neglect and trauma from Caithleen’s past do not make her rural hometown an ideal place of heritage that still attracts her. The rural town also reminds Caithleen of the life that she will have if she stays with her father. This possible future makes Caithleen realise that she will not adhere to her father’s ideals, saying: “I was determined to go back to Eugene, Eternal Damnation or not… I was going away again, going away forever. (E. O’Brien, The Country Girls Trilogy 324). By saying that she will welcome “Eternal Damnation”, Caithleen shows that she knowingly challenges the Catholic values, since marrying a divorced man, who already has a family, would suggest that divorce and relationships outside of marriage should be accepted. Caithleen knows that her father will never accept her relationship with Eugene and that she has lost her ability to live in the conservative rural town of her youth. It is after these realisations that Caithleen decides to secretly leave the place of her past.
After she has returned to Dublin, her father shows up at Eugene’s house with two friends from Caithleen’s hometown. The three men plan to take Caithleen back to the isolated town by dragging her away from Eugene, by force if they have to. While she hides under the bed, the men have a conversation with Eugene. This whole conversation is significant because
it shows the Othering that we have seen in the last paragraph. Additionally, the discussion also highlights the trauma of colonialism and the consequences of it on the Irish identity. As is shown in other fragments from the trilogy, religion seems to be the main topic of the conversation:
“Are you a Catholic?” the Ferret asked, in a policeman’s voice. “I’m not a Catholic,” Eugene answered.
“D’you go to Mass?” my father asked. “But, my dear man-” Eugene began.
“There’s no ‘my dear man.’ Cut it out. Do you go to Mass or don’t you? D’you eat meat on Fridays?”
“God help Ireland,” Eugene said, and I imagined him throwing his hands up in his costumary gesture of impatience.
“None of that blasphemy,” cousin Andy shouted, making a noise as he struck his fist into his palm. (E. O’Brien, The Country Girls Trilogy 377-378)
Eugene criticises the men’s adoration for the Catholic religion and the rituals connected to it, astounded by their aggressive attitude. Eugene’s rejection of the Irish values angers cousin Andy, as he sees Eugene’s attitude as a dismissal of the rural perception of the Irish identity. Eugene’s refusal of the Irish Catholic heritage also frightens Jack Holland, who was once a friend of Caithleen’s mother. Jack agrees with Mr Brady and Andy’s fears, saying: “‘The tragic history of our fair land,’ Jack Holland exclaimed. ‘Alien power sapped our will to resist’” (E. O’Brien, The Country Girls Trilogy 379). Here, Jack Holland relates Irish history to the foreigner making the decisions, and the Irish’s inability to resist these decisions. By putting these two groups oppositional of each other, O’Brien portrays the clash between the religious country folk and modern city people. Margaret Hallissy acknowledges how Irish writing frequently illustrates the differences between the city and the countryside, saying:
The countryside, particularly the remote areas in the west, is perceived as less contaminated by contact with the modern world, more traditional in values. The city is seen as the locus of worldly values, but also of accomplishment of all sorts: educational, economic, artistic. City folk see themselves as sophisticated, worldly-wise,
