Edgeworth, Maria - Duane Edwards (essay date 1972)
Duane Edwards (essay date 1972)
SOURCE: "The Narrator of Castle Rackrent" in The South Atlantic Quarterly, Vol. 71, No. 1, Winter, 1972, pp. 124-29.
[In the following essay, Edwards examines the role of the first-person narrator of Castle Rackrent.
Since Castle Rackrent was published in 1800, nearly all the critics have agreed that Thady Quirk, the narrator, is aptly described as "faithful Thady," an unintelligent or naïve servant with a "misplaced sense of family honour." Consistent with this is Ernest A. Baker's reference to Thady's "muddleheadedness and repugnance" and George Watson's assertion that "this absurdly loyal family retainer" has a simplicity which makes him a butt. Many other critics have reinforced this view.
Thus James Newcomer's "The Disingenuous Thady Quirk" comes as a surprise. In his article Mr. Newcomer contends that Thady is "artful rather than artless," that he is always the realist,...
[The entire page is 1951 words long]
Join eNotes
Over 3,500 study guides, question and answer forums, literature criticism, reference content, and much more!
Navigate
