pe e
I
Execu ione 'sBoo s:
Fic iono
John
I
The opposi e sho e un eils i sel ,
B igh in de ail as a pain ing,
Alone, bu equal o he mo ning.
"
The Poin
"
no unusual o a poe o u n o ic ion a somepoin in his ca ee ,
inding in he scope a o ded byna a i e an oppo uni y oex end
con ex ualise he mo e a empo al ocus o he poe y. Typically, he
p oduce one o wo no els cha ac e ized by easy elegance o
language a he han by o mal in en i eness:
Ch is ian omances, Ka anagh's
Ta y
Geo ge Ba ke 's
The
Dead
A
Gi l in Win e
and These ic ions a e
ine i ably o e shadowed by hei w i e s' poe ic achie emen s o he
ex en ha i
is
nea ly impossible o ead he p ose wi hou e e ing i
somepoin oou knowledge o he poems. The p ose w i ings a ea
oncean al e na i e o anda glosson hepoe y. Whe e he poems deal
in ellipses and in he emblema ic o symbolic ans o ma ion which
sna ches he ly ic momen ou o ime, he ic ionsse e as documen s
o eco d and ecall, and acknowledge empo ali y and his o y.
While John Mon ague's poe y has ended owa ds he longe
hy hms o he sequence, his a ou ed o ms as p ose w i e ha e been
hesho s o yand heno ella a he han hemo eexpansi e la i udes
o he no el. Nine ea ly s o ies we e ga he ed in
Dea h
o
a
Chie ain and
O he S o ies
ollowed o e wo decades la e by
The Los
(1987); he e ha e also been occasional uncollec ed sho
s o ies.' S a ing om he p emise ha he wo bodies o w i ing a e
in e connec ed, i is he in en ion he e o look a Mon ague's ic ion in
,
he ligh o his poems.
Mon ague's poems gene ally eschew na a i e,e en when, asin
The
G ea
hey a e p esen ed as a g oup wi h a p e a o y no e
,
Dea h Chie ain
and
S o ies (London: and Kee, 1964); TheLos
Me cie P ess, 1987);
An
Gael,
(New Yo k, Summe
"
A
P izeGi ing
"
, The I ish Times,
26
Augus 1988,
'.
The
G ea
Cloak (Dublin: The Dolmen P ess, 1978).
IRISH
UNIVERSITY
REVIEW
ou lining he
"
Plo
"
o hee en s owhich hey e e and which
hei o ganiza ion. The book emains an assembly o indi idual
as does
and
When na a i e is
I
in o he poe y, i is associa ed wi h c uel y and dys unc ion.
In
Wild Dog Rose
"
, i s collec ed in
Tides
3
and la e included as
he inal sec ion o The Field,', he old woman who is i s
has a s o y o ell; i cons i u es he cen al sec ion o he poem:
And he e
whe e he shines in he hedge
she ells me a s o y so e ible
ha
I
y o push i away,
my bones mel ing.
17).
I is a s o y o an a emp ed ape. The squalid encoun e is edeemed
only by he p esence o he i s bea en blossoms holding ou
symbolic oken o necessa y esilience in he ace o iolence.
P oseis he no mal mediumo ic ional na a i e, bu Mon ague
,
on a ew occasions essayed he p ose poem, mos ema kably
"
Coming E en s
"
(T, p.
26).
This has as i s subjec a la e six een h
-
cen u y pain ing by he Flemish pain e Ge a d Da id which depic s
"
The Judgemen o Cambyses
"
, wi h a cha ac e named
being skinned ali e in he p esence o Cambyses. The scene is ich
his o ical and na a i eassocia ions, allo which Mon agueje isons in
his ende ing o he pic u e. His desc ip ion becomes as sel
-
consciously de achedas an ana omy lesson:
"
a man being layed
"
.
Fou c a smen a econce ned wi h he igu eon he able: oneis
opening hele a m,ano he li ingaway he igh nipple, a hi d
incising he igh a m while he las (his kni e caugh be ween his
.
ee h) is unwinding he esul s o his labou so as o display he
ich ne wo k o eins unde he skin o he le leg.
The anonymi y o he e en hesi a es be ween he uni e sal and he
,
pa icula ; he ex i sel is non
-
commi al as o i ssigni icance:
The whole scene may be in ended as an allego y o human
su e ing bu wha he line o pe spec i e leads us oadmi eis he
b owncal skin o hep incipal execu ione 's boo s.
(T,
p.
26)
3.
Tides
(Dublin: The Dolmen P ess,
1970).
Subsequen e e ences o his edi ion
ex abb e ia ed o
T.
4.
The
Rough
Field
(Dublin: The Dolmen P ess,
1972).
Subsequen e e ences o
edi ion
in
he ex abb e ia ed o
THE
FICTION
ejec ing he his o ical and na a i e aspec s o Da id's pain ing,
makes i
a
momen o iolence and s ippingba e, in he
ex eme sense. The execu ione s and onlooke s a e dis inguished
he ic ims by hei clo hes,
"
iche mine
"
and
"
b owncal
-
skin
"
,
I
by hei se eni y o exp ession:
"
mild admi a ion
"
. And, as we
he pain ing h ough Mon ague's commen a y, wea ealigned
l
wi h hoseexecu ione s and onlooke s;we oo a e in i ed
"
o admi e
"
ou a en ion is inally di ec ed no o he in icacies o lesh and he
o su e ing bu o hecal
-
skin boo s, a e ac s omano he
,
mo e commonplace skinning, now ans o med by he skill o a
I
,
c a sman.
I
he e isa companionpiece o
"
ComingE en s
"
in
Tides,
i is
"
Li e
which imagina i elyexplo es he su aces o a woman's body as
poses o d awing s uden s. An opposi ion is se up in he poem
l
be ween he g o esque sensual o men edasce icism and
celeb a o y accep anceo he body's o e ings. A he end, he
"
simply human
"
is d awn in o an a ul neu ali y:
On ca idge pape
an a myo pencils
deploy silen ly o
lu e he in o hei
i
I
ne o lines while
om abo e he
chilled, c amped
body blossoms
a la e lowe :
he i ed smile.
I
In
"
Coming E en s
"
he p og ess o en y in o he
"
ich ne wo k o
eins
"
isdi e ed owa ds he ma ginal con igui y o he execu ione 's
boo s; he possibili y o lus ul ea o a woman's bodyin
"
Li e Class
"
esol es i sel in a ne o lines.
The images o pain and iolence which ind hei way in o
Mon ague's poe y h ough modes associa ed wi h na a i e
-
s o y
-
elling, he useo p ose
-
o e a key o heepig aphs o
his
collec ion
Dea h
o
a Chie ain.
I s o iginal epig aph was o ha e been a passage
om Joyce's
Po ai o he A is
as
a
Young
Man:
REVIEW
7
I ea him. I ea his ed immed ho nyeyes.
I is wi h him I mus s uggle all h ough he
nigh ill day comes, ill he o I lie dead,
g ipping him by hesinewy h oa .
.
.
Till
wha ? Till he yield o me? No.
I
mean him no
This was d opped in a ou o some lines om John Hewi 's
in ima e wo ld o imagina ion and amily:
and he which also e e o a s uggle, his ime in he
,
I w es led wi h my a he in myd eam,
and in ha d eam emembe ed who we we e,
and why weshould no s uggle, he and I
.
.
.
The s o ies in
Dea h
o
a
Chie ain
a e implici wi h s uggle
con lic . E en when no ha m is mean , e en when he e
ememb ance o why he e should be no s uggle, he wo ld o
s o ies is agmen a y and i en.
In
his hey con as wi h
p edominan mo emen o Mon ague's poe y, which is
,
owa ds ecogni ion and in eg a ion; hese may be achie ed in
-
"
E e y hing ou casual mo ning o low
onedi ec ion
"
(
"
The siege o Mullinga
"
,
ACL,
p.
60)
-
o in so ow,
as in he a i ma ion no hing dies, ha e en bi e
ailu e memo y g ows
"
in Win e
"
,
ASD,
p.
19).
The
endency owa ds my hopeia in he poe y,in which he de ails o
li e
ake on symbolic o emblema ic signi icance unde some go e ning
idea, inds i s coun e balance in he s o ies. In
"
The Siege
o
Mullinga
"
Mon ague seemed o dance ligh ly on he g a e o an old
in alida ed my h
-
"
Pu i an I eland's dead and my h o
and
-
while o e inga newonein i s s ead. Bu
in Occasion o Sin
"
,as o y which is oughly con empo a y wi h
.
ha poem, a young F ench womaniscon on ed by
"
Pu i anI eland
"
no qui e dead andgoneye .
"
TheC y
"
ellshow asuccess ul jou nalis
,
e u ns on a isi o his na i e Uls e and en e s in o he inbuil
small
-
own ensions o he place be o e being ebu ed as an ou side ,
,
while ano he s o y,
"
The New Enamel Bucke
"
, also explo es he
di isions in Uls e socie y and he iolence ha . a he ime o
i s
5.
See Mon ague's commen s in
"
Wo k You P og ess
"
,
I ish Uni e si y Re iew,
12,
(Sp ing p.
49.
6.
Mon ague had been wo king on Hewi 's poe y a he ime
o
a
Chie ain
being p epa ed o he p ess, con ibu ing an essay on Hewi o
Poe y
in
Sp ing
1964.
THE
FICTION
was s ill la gely And in he da kly comic i le s o y,
o a Chie ain
"
, he bi e ailu e o Coo e's a emp o ind
connec ion be ween heea ly I ish umulus builde sand
los ci iliza ions behind he Cen al Ame ican py amids does no
b eed any edemp i e memo y; ins ead, he dies wi h poin less digni y
an e sa z megali hic omb.
The opening s o y o he collec ion displays con lic g aphically in
heigh ened a mosphe e o a boa ding
-
school se ing. I desc ibes
howa newlya i ed ma ine Deanisb ough downbyaspon aneous
o he boys unde his cha ge. As in se e al o he s o ies, he
ocuso he na a i e is unce ain; i es s ully nei he wi h heDean's
o iew no wi h ha o hepupils,bu shi s omoneside o he
I
o he . In he cu iously de ached elling, only he con on a ion is
heigh ened; i enac s in na a i e o m wha is ound mo e acu ely in
E en s
"
. The inal s age o he ebellion agains he Dean is
by his singling ou one pa icula boy as he objec o his
I
con emp uous au ho i y; he o he s eac , and
I
I
hedange ousaloo ness which had been his powe wasnowswep
away om him;hewas nolonge a p ies o a pe soninau ho i y,
bu me ely someone who had humbled and hu ano he pas
endu ing.
The boys' ebellion is a once an adolescen disco e y o hei own
abili y o wi hs and and subdue an unwa an ed imposi ion, and an
exposu e o he shallow ounda ions o he es ain s ope a ing on
hem. The inal momen o he s o y has he boys sca e ing ou side
"
wi h wild and joy ul c ies
"
, bu he sense is one o dispe sal, no
cohesion. Fo hem he episode hasal eady becomea pa o he pas ; i
does no su i e as a cons i uen o hei u u e.
Dispe saland disin eg a ion unde lie he s o ies. Thenine eensix ies
seemed o p omisea loosening o he old es ain s, and in
"
A
Change
o Managemen
"
Mon ague ehea ses his a ou i e heme o a new
I eland coming in o he ascendan , shedding he old pie ies. Such
elease is gained only h ough esigna ion. As new s uc u es a e
,
es ablished, he ee spi i o C onin,a w i e who migh
-
jus migh
-
c oss o e om po en iali y o achie emen , qui s his job in he
public se ice, and is spun o om he cen alized cohesion o
economic p og ess; bu o people like he p o agonis
he e was no eal escape le , no e en he e: he mos hey could
hope o ind was someone unde whose di ec ion hey migh gi e
hei bes . Besides, was i such a c iminal hing o wish o lead an
o dina y li e?

IRISH REVIEW
A
childhood yea ning o anscend he o dina iness o
a m li e isa he basiso
"
TheOklahoma Kid
"
,asadly
o an expedi ion o he local own see a cowboy ilm.
young na a o , h ee o ou en husias s hi e
a
l
excu sion; he e ening is a iasco, and he g ea expec a ions
end wi h he child and his companions making hei
unde he sco n ul eyes o he ownsmen. is, a ,oneo
success ul s o ies in he collec ion. Bu Mon ague
I
some hing o he o i , by addinga pos sc ip . igh he
he e, and any hing u he will only spoil i
"
, says he
I
o ell how se en een yea s la e
"
li e a codicil
"
mid
-
way h ough a jou ney down he cen e o he
g own man suddenly ecognised himsel as
"
he Oklahoma
Coun yTy one
"
.
l
Thisdelayed ecogni ion leads o a ce ain dispe sal o he
hes o y,mo ingi om ic ion oanecdo e by i s
I
I is an unusual u n o a sho s o y, bu no o a poem,
simila u n is o en used, al hough o di e en e ec . In
I
poe y, he equen ly desc ibes a emembe ed inciden om he
and hen,in he inals anzao lines, shi sab up ly oa la e ime,
I
l
"
The Wa e Ca ie
"
and
"
Like Round My Childhood
"
,
"
TheCoun yFiddle
"
,'
"
The Cage
"
and
"
A
,
Tongue
"
In hese, he u nopens up hepoem's signi icance;i
an e icien way o achie ing he ans o ma ion o he pa icula ,
allowingi sau a oca yo e o a imeou sidei s own.Mon agueuses
ha echnique o
"
ca y o e
"
o some hing app oaching he same
pu pose in his no ella
The
Los No ebook.
The ecollec ion o ane en
hi y yea s be o e is old i s as a s o y, bu hen ailed
by
a e ma h. The alue o he s o y es s no in i sel bu in i s o ma i e
impac on he na a o .
The inal s o y in
Dea h o
a
Chie ain,
"
A
Ball o Fi e
"
, also
an icipa es
The
Los No ebook
in some espec s. B ough
o
an
awa eness o he li e and dea h o a neighbou , he a is Michael
Go man inds himsel dis u bed by he undi ec ed ene gy o he
mon hsin heman's li e. He i s sees he man on No embe ,
day on which he lea es a pain ing un inished, no seeing any i end
-
poin o he low o colou on o hiscan as. Onlya e
and wi hd awn neighbou has been ound dead his
basemen la doesGo man ace in o he pain ing again.
Chosen
Ligh
(London: Macgibbon and Kee, 1967).
Subsequen
e e ences
edi ion
in
he ex abb e ia ed o
THE FICTION
He placed i on he easel; i s li ing spaces s a ed back a him, a
chaos o un ul ilmen .Then he eached o a b ush and began o
wo k.
Ac oss he da kexpanseo he can as, a line began ode elop.
A i s ail,likeand elec ic wi e, i g ews onge , mo e de ined.
I became a dancing, independen line, ull o wei d ene gy, and
so ly adia ing ligh . I an igh ac oss he can as un il,
comple ingandculmina ing hepic u e, i inished in a smo he ed
I
explosion o colou , like a ball o i e.
(p.
174).
I
mo emen owa ds a is ic comple ion is, howe e , a s a egy o
jus as much as is he o ced concen a ion on he cal skin
boo s in
"
Coming E en s
"
;Go man isseeking o assuage he eelings
by his encoun e s wi h his neighbou .
The i le o
Los No ebook
e e s o a jou nal, since los , which
I
w i en du ing he summe o 1950 while he na a o was a
isi o o Flo ence; he no ella ep esen s i sel as a
ecollec ion o ha los season. The na a o looks back knowingly o
momen when he began o pu on knowledge. Mo e han he
no ebook has been los , i is sugges ed: inhibi ion and
igno ance ha e beenshed in hecou se o a passage om innocence o
expe ience.
The no ebook is wice los in he s o y. Sho ly a e he young man
e u ns o his amily home in Uls e he jou nal goes missing o a ew
days, o be ead bysomeone unknown. I again disappea sdu ing he
ensuing h ee decades, lea ing he e en s o be e old in he o m o
ic ion, wi h e ospec ion subs i u ed o in ospec ion. The accoun
we a e gi en is unde s ood o be a once a e
-
explo a ion o ha
.
summe and a econs uc ion ha o e lays he aw elling o he
o iginal.The accoun ends p o ec i ely wi h indica ions as o how he
los no ebook, and by ans e ence
The Los No ebook,
should and
should no be ead.
I
The idea o i being ead by he w ong pe son, by someone
i
unsympa he ic o he ex eme eelings displayed in he
commen a y and he d awings, he sc awls o wo young people
so in ol ed wi h each o he , some imes in ange , some imes in
pleasu e, illed me wi h age and dismay.
.
.
.
he idea ha someone should look a ou join e o s wi h
censo ious eyes was almos a sac ilege. Lo e o lus , loa hing o
iendship, i was ou s,
a
h us ing om ou so di e ing wo lds
owa ds eedom, owa dsease. Wha happened be weenuswasa
s umbling owa ds some hing wi hou which wo equal beings
canno su i e,some hingcalled hones y.
IRISH UNIVERSITY REVIEW
These embedded ins uc ionson how o ead sugges ha hones y
ha d
-
won p i ilege, no o be unde s ood by ou side s. Theaccoun
su ounded by sel
-
awa eness, gained h ough he shedding o
awkwa d adolescen sel
-
consciousness. Now, whe e he
had been ingenuous, he no ella is a ul.
The inciden a he end, when he no ebook is aken and i s
in imacies looked o e by some inde e mina e o he , is
a
ewo king
o
an ac ion o be ound in Mon ague's poe y. I occu s mos
a
heendo
"
AllLegenda y Obs acles
"
, when he old lady clea sa
on he ain window o look ou a he lo e s on he pla o m as he:,
Mo e in o he we da kness
Kissing, s ill unable o speak.
(ACL,
p. 16)
The indi idual expe ience o lo e o sexuali y o su e ing is gi en
o ce by he p esence o an excluded onlooke . The bu gomeis e s
bo h
"
ComingE en s
"
and
"
The Massac e
w
,* hegiggling ho el
-
maids
in
"
T acks
"
(T, o ame hee en s andemo ions,gi ing
hem de achmen and dis ance.
In
The
Los No ebook
he ini ia o y e o icism o he
expe ience which cons i u es he is ans o med in o
an
e o icism o ecall in he
sjuze .
The na a o oo, by i ue
inexo able empo ali y and econs i u i e memo y, has become
an
obse e o hosee en s h ough which, asa pa icipan ,
he
had
eed in o adul hood. The Flo ence jou nal had been a
p oduc ion; in addi ion o he jo ings and poems by he young
he e we e he gi l's line d awings and commen s. These o e ed
ano he pe spec i e and we e, Mon ague sugges s, pe haps he mo e
hones pa o he documen . As ew i en by he na a o , he
iewpoin is occluded by his need o y again, shaping he
e en sand emo ions in he ligh o an acqui ed wisdom. In he p ocess
she is ma ginalized, i no qui e w i en ou . Bu maybe she does no
need a secondgo; he e is he implica ion ha she had been able oge
igh he i s ime. Fo he he a ai was an episode a he han
an
epoch, a bes a emission in he cou se o
"
a kind o despoiling.
an
endless disappoin men
"
(p.
95).
He, on he o he hand, is absol ed
om any guil in his de ilemen , o i had been ini ia ed be o e hey
me ; i has i s o iginsin he amily,andpa icula ly in he unhappy
c
o he b o he . The e, whe eshe had looked o ullin imacy,she had
been ejec ed andsupplan ed. Thesexual and a is icene gy o he li e
isgene a ed by he ailu e o ha lo e.
8.
A
Slow
Dance
(Dublin:
The
P ess,
1975)
p.
41
7
THE
FICTION
A
pe sis en sub
-
ex in
The Los No ebook
is he uneasy
be ween he I ishman, cowed by his sense o he pas ,
I
he ene ge ic p esen o Ame ica as embodied in Wandy; i is an
encoun e which akesplacein Flo ence,ase ing which epi omizes he
I
weal h o con inen al Eu ope. This ic ionalaccoun can bese
he epo o ial elling o a con empo a y and pa allel
In an a icle o
The Bell,
"
Fellow T a elling wi h
Ame ica
"
, Mon ague desc ibed his pa icipa ion in a semina on
I
Ame ican a Salzbu g in
1950,
o ganized by Ame ican
academics o delega es d awn om a a ie y o Eu opean coun ies.
The exci emen he oppo uni y i a o ds is empe ed by an
ambi alence ega ding he hegemony which he U.S. exe s o e
Eu ope. Mon ague ep esen s himsel as being inadequa ely equipped
I
odeal wi h he si ua ion. (I hink he modes ly included himsel as an
"
a e age
"
s uden .)
I
The a e age I ish s uden , as p oduced by ou uni e si ies, is a
behind in luency o languages, humili y be o e achie emen , o
jus plain
sa oi i e.
He is gauche, eage pe haps, bu mo e
I
a ogan and p ecious han his coun e pa s ab oad. His aul s
l
a e e lec ed in he cul u al a mosphe e o a coun y: he e is no
ac i e sense o Eu opean cul u e, bu a kind o sel
-
conscious,
isola ed b a ado wi h he a is in he in idious posi ion o
spi i ual di ec o o he
I isa si ua ion ela ed o ha on which Mon ague d aws o
The Los
No ebook;
he a is ic ichness o Eu ope becomes an a ena in which
he I ish and he Ame ican, cul u al ou side s bo h and alien o ha
ichness, can mee and eac . In he unse led and unse ling wo ld o
hei passion, he wo a e su ounded by he mu e ixi ies o pain ing
and sculp u e. The names umble h ough he ex : Bo icelli,
Michaelangelo, Ti ian, Della Robbia
.
.
.
some wen y o mo e,
e e ences ac ingasaso o ixa i e on expe ience.Thea
-
wo ksha e
a his o y, and i becomes he young man's s a agem olea nand elay
i o his companion. She, on he o he hand, is mo e a ac ed o he
pain ings o Mond ian, oo com empo a y o ha e a his o y, oo
insc u able o ell a s o y.
The gi l has al eady unde gone an emo ional and e o ic wounding,
and is he less ulne able o he wo. The culmina ing momen o hei
ela ionshipis hisanalpene a ion o he body,bu his is immedia ely
ollowed
by
Wandy's accoun o he pas . Thee ec o wha she has o
say is o exclude he man. E en in ha culmina ing momen he has
The
Bell.
(June
p.
25.