The Drunkard (Masterplots II: Short Story Series, Revised Edition)
At a glance:
- Author: Frank O'Connor
- First Published: 1948
- Type of Plot: Social realism
- Time of Work: The first quarter of the twentieth century
- Setting: Cork, Ireland
- Principal Characters: Mick Delaney, Larry Delaney, Mrs. Delaney
- Genres: Social realism, Short fiction
- Subjects: Children, Alcoholism or alcoholics, Substance abuse, Fables
- Locales: Cork, Ireland
The Story
A first-person narrative by the adult Larry Delaney, “The Drunkard” opens with his recollection of a critical episode in his childhood. The crisis began with the death of his father's friend and confidant, Mr. Dooley. Larry's father, Mick Delaney, took Mr. Dooley's death very hard, not only because Mr. Dooley was about the same age as he but also because he lost in Mr. Dooley his best source of inside information, of “the news behind the news.” To express the depth of his mourning, Mick Delaney decides to attend the funeral, a decision that causes Larry and...
[The entire page is 1143 words long]
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