Mary, Mary · Chapter
XXIX explained
Mary and her mother grow closer to Mrs.
What happens
Mary and her mother grow closer to Mrs. Cafferty's lodger, a young man who shares meals with them and becomes a regular companion. He expounds his radical views on policemen, soldiers, landlords, employers, and Ireland, while Mary and her mother listen with interest. The young man and Mary begin taking evening walks together, bonding over their shared ignorance and curiosity.
Themes in this chapter
Poverty and Survival
The young man's hunger and the Makebelieve family's sharing of their half-loaf highlight the struggle for basic sustenance.
Fantasy vs. Reality
The young man's romanticized view of Ireland as a distressed queen contrasts with the harsh realities of poverty and oppression.
Social Class and Aspiration
The young man's denunciation of landlords and employers reflects class resentment and a desire for a fairer society.
Freedom and Independence
The young man's hostility toward authority figures like policemen and soldiers expresses a yearning for national and personal freedom.
Characters to notice
- Mary Makebelieve
Listens to the young man's stories and opinions, walks with him in the evenings, and feels a growing intimacy.
- Mrs. Makebelieve
Takes on the role of guide and friend to the young man, sharing food and conversation.
- The Young Man
Mrs. Cafferty's lodger, a clerk with strong opinions on authority and Ireland, who becomes intimate with Mary and her mother.
- Mrs. Cafferty
Mentioned as the young man's landlady, a good woman with six children and a husband out of work.
Key passages
“He assured her that not only could he fight a policeman, but he could also tyrannise over the seed, breed, and generation of such a one, and, moreover, he could accomplish this without real exertion.”
He claimed he could easily defeat not just a policeman but his entire family line.
The young man boasts about his fighting ability and contempt for police.
“The three capital crimes upon which a man is liable to arrest are for being drunk, or disorderly, or for refusing to fight, and to these perils a young man is peculiarly susceptible”
A man can be arrested for being drunk, causing a disturbance, or refusing a fight, and young men are especially at risk.
The young man's cynical view of police arrest practices.
“Of Ireland he sometimes spoke with a fervour of passion which would be outrageous if addressed to a woman. Surely he saw her as a woman, queenly and distressed and very proud.”
He spoke of Ireland with such intense passion that it would seem excessive if directed at a woman, personifying the nation as a proud, distressed queen.
The young man's romantic nationalism and personification of Ireland.
“A community of ignorances may be as binding as a community of interests.”
Shared lack of knowledge can create as strong a bond as shared interests.
Narrator's observation on the connection between Mary and the young man.