40 pages • 1 hour read
Amongst Women
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Character Analysis
Moran
Moran is the central figure in Amongst Women. He is both an everyman, an average kind of hero, and a primary antagonist. Moran is a complex character whose characterization is developed through reckoning with Ireland’s past and rapidly changing present, as well as his interactions with his family.
Moran is a veteran of the Irish War for Independence, and he saw and inflicted violence on others. Rather than be celebrated for helping to secure his country’s freedom, Moran is a bitter veteran who feels he has been overlooked. He is disappointed with the way the Republic of Ireland has developed after the war, asking, “What did we get for it? A country, if you’d believe them. Some of our own johnnies in the top jobs instead of a few Englishmen. More than half of my own family work in England. What was it all for? The whole thing was a cod” (5). Moran doesn’t see Ireland as a home for prosperity and independence, and his attitude toward his country, community, and life grows bleaker with age.
Moran’s family is at the center of his life, in part because he can make his family in his own image. He wants his family to be a separate entity from the world around them, and he attempts to do this by exerting control over his children. They fear his temper, which shifts on a daily basis. Moran is generous with his love but is also generous with his anger. While his children respect him, they also fear him. As Moran sees it, “[a]nything I ever did was done for what I thought was in the best interests of those concerned. Sometimes what I did might have been misguided but it was always meant for the best” (126). According to Moran, his intentions to raise his children as tough people who respect his power outweigh the impact of his abusive behavior, and he is static in his inability to see the harm his behavior has caused. For example, a primary conflict is Moran’s son Luke’s absence. Moran refuses to take accountability for his part in driving Luke away from the home. To him, providing a home is enough to command his children’s devotion. While Moran tries to be a good father following his society’s patriarchal norms, he is the novel’s antagonist because he doesn’t see his children as autonomous individuals with their own lives and aspirations.
Moran is also characterized by his relationship with his farm. His self-sustainability is of paramount importance, and he insists that having his own land and not having to depend on anyone else is the proper way to live. Despite building a life that should bring him joy, Moran “[feels] a low cry of frustration against the inadequacy of life break silently within, and ripple out” (39). Subconsciously, Moran is not happy, but he doesn’t engage in self-reflection, especially because he is of a time in Ireland when responsibility to family and survival against poverty were the two most important facts of life. As Moran gets older and his farm begins to decay, both Moran and his farm are symbols of Ireland’s past that are no longer relevant in the present.
Rose
Rose is Moran’s second wife. She has returned to Ireland after years working as a nurse abroad in Scotland. Now older, Rose wants to marry so she can escape the drudgery of her family’s house, though she quickly finds herself trapped in another unideal domestic situation. She is a deep well of compassion and is instantly attracted to Moran’s good looks and rugged temperament. Despite gossip that she has heard about him in their small town, she takes a chance on him because she follows her own intuition. This proves that Rose is an individualist, a woman who is not easily influenced or deterred by what other people say. Rose is able to see the good in Moran, so even as she learns more about Moran’s violent anger, she still stands up for him and excuses his moods and mean tongue as unintentional. By the same token, her options are limited because divorce is illegal in their society. As a married woman, she has little recourse but to accept that “[h]er life was bound up completely with this man she so loved and whose darkness she feared” (60). Rose is a martyr character because she sacrifices her independence and happiness for Moran and his children’s stability.
Rose also helps Moran’s children grow. She gives the house a new sense of life by redecorating, cooking well, and emotionally supporting everyone in the household. She also takes over the domestic work from his daughters, freeing them to pursue their education and careers. She encourages Maggie to leave home and pursue a job in nursing in London and makes space for Sheila and Mona to study hard and leave home as well. Rose also takes care of Michael by nurturing his hobbies and interests. When Michael and Moran start fighting, she tries to intervene as the peacekeeper. Ultimately, Rose saves the family with her labor and love. The title Amongst Women is in part an ode to Rose’s devotion and self-sacrifice.
Moran’s Daughters: Maggie, Sheila, Mona
Moran’s daughters, Maggie, Sheila, and Mona, are important characters in Amongst Women. These three sisters are devoted to their family and loyal to their father, though they each long to pursue their own lives and interests. This results in all three leaving their small town and pursuing careers and relationships in Dublin and London. With this, they are round characters who represent both changing gender norms and the pervasive nature of patriarchal control.
As children, they live under the shadow of Moran’s influence and temper, but in his old age, he is afraid of them and their determination to help him survive his illness. Their relationship with their father is based on a lifetime of being unable to think without his opinion in mind. When they leave for jobs in Dublin and London, they are relieved to be free but are worried about leaving their father. As such, they visit him often because they are accustomed to having him as a large part of their lives. When they marry, they crave their father’s approval of their husbands. This attachment is indicative of his controlling nature. The idea of a life without him is difficult for them to comprehend, so as he dies, they try to find ways to keep him alive. Moran feels oppressed by his daughters’ attentions, which highlights a dramatic shift in their power dynamics.
Maggie, Sheila, and Mona are individual women, but their feminine roles in the family often meld their identities into one, reflecting the nature of patriarchy to reduce women to subordinate roles. They all pitch in to help Michael when he runs away and try to convince Luke to reconcile with their father. They help each other deal with their father’s unpredictable temper and judgment. At the same time, in disappearing into the role of “Moran’s daughter,” all three women are glimpsed almost exclusively through their relationship with their father. Mona is the only daughter to not marry and, as a result, is the bridge between Moran and the modernizing world. Sheila has a different relationship with him and worries that he will destroy her children’s confidence as he once did hers. She is less involved with him than her sisters are because “[h]er old resentment of Moran was quick to show whenever he began to assert himself. She could not bear to hear him shout at any of her children” (169). Sheila, therefore, represents a new generation of parenting, as she has learned from her father’s mistakes and shows her children more compassion and encouragement. As the eldest daughter, Maggie is the first girl to leave the home and is often put in the middle of family conflict. Her move to London makes her father jealous of her proximity to his absent son, Luke. Ultimately, all three of Moran’s daughters have their own lives and layers, but they are a united force in caring for Moran and the rest of the family.
Moran’s Sons: Luke and Michael
Moran’s sons, Luke and Michael, are foils for Sheila, Maggie, and Mona. While the girls are socialized to be loyal caregivers to their father, Luke and Michael are socialized to break free of their patriarch’s control as they reach manhood. Luke is the eldest child and the first to bear the brunt of Moran’s violent temper. He runs away to London at a young age and never visits Moran in his home again, and Moran spends decades hurt, confused, and angry over his absence. Ultimately, the rest of the family agrees that Luke holds a grudge for too long, especially since the rest of them dealt with the same Moran and found ways to forgive him or accept him for his flaws. Luke’s radical independence puts him at odds with his family but also gives him happiness. His departure and refusal to reconnect with Moran are indicative of the trauma that a parent can inflict on their child without fully knowing it. Luke doesn’t attend his father’s wake or funeral, which is a symbolic gesture of their permanently ruptured relationship. His disconnection likewise represents breaking from the traditional patriarchal family structure; while most of his personal life remains unrevealed, he does not grow into the same sort of man as Moran.
As the youngest child, Michael grows up more protected from Moran. His older sisters and stepmother intervene to make sure he has a happy childhood. His hobbies are nurtured and encouraged, and he doesn’t have any problems with Moran until he begins his coming-of-age. Their conflict stems from a struggle over power. Moran wants to decide Michael’s curfew, activities, and future, but Michael is coming into his own as a young man and resents his father’s control. While Moran’s daughters accept it, Michael fights against it, highlighting the freedoms granted to men under patriarchy that women cannot access. For Michael, conflict is a natural part of becoming his own man. Like Luke, he runs away, but he makes amends with Moran because, with time, he lets go of his resentment. Michael visits his father often and continues to help in the fields. He is characterized as a kind and excited young man, which differentiates him from Luke. Michael’s characterization as an amiable person is largely thanks to the protection he received from Rose and his sisters, which Luke did not receive as the oldest child. While the two boys are similar, their differences here emphasize the impact that supportive family figures can make.
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