Social Violence in Molly Keane's

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to examine Molly Keane's novel 'The Rising Tide', approaching it as more than simple farce or satire. Beginning with a brief description of the cultural and historical background of the Anglo-Irish, I analyze Keane's descriptions of specific "Big Houses" and how they act on the thoughts and behaviors of the main characters who live within these estates. I continue to examine how each character is portrayed as a powerless or paralyzed victim within Anglo-Irish culture, something that develops sympathy for the protagonists. I also attempt to illustrate the narrator's role in shaping through her tone and diction the insular lives of the characters and the trivial events of the story into a historical record of Anglo-Irish domestic life. I conclude that the social dynamics of the Anglo-Irish and the cultures of the family estates in 'The Rising Tide' marginalize each of the main characters socially, culturally, or financially. Looking at the text this way leads to a more serious and dramatic interpretation of Molly Keane's novel. I also conclude that the narrator is essential in portraying the events of the novel as sober and tragic through her tone, diction, and, phrasing. Ultimately, Molly Keane and, perhaps, many other Anglo-Irish authors used satire and wit to allow the reader to observe the deeply rooted and often disturbing psychological state of the early twentieth-century Anglo-Irish.