The Pornographer (Masterplots II: British and Commonwealth Fiction Series)
At a glance:
- Author: John McGahern
- First Published: 1979
- Type of Work: Satiric morality
- Time of Work: The 1970’s
- Setting: Dublin, provincial Ireland, and London
- Principal Characters: “I”, Josephlne, Maloney, Mary O’Doherty
- Genres: Long fiction, Satire
- Subjects: Freedom, 1970’s, Philosophy or philosophers, Sex or sexuality, Social issues, Moral conditions, London, Ethics, Ireland or Irish people, Pornography
- Locales: London, England, Dublin, Ireland
The Novel
In The Pornographer, John McGahern tells the story of one man’s encounter with the duplicitous moral nature of the world. This man, the novel’s narrator and eponym, is at once cynical and naive: He desires that his emotional life possess an uncomplicated simplicity and directness which every aspect of his emotional experience teaches him is impossible. Much of the novel’s skill is devoted to a cumulative and rather merciless detailing of the combination of blindness and insight which makes up the narrator’s moral position. The more his insights fuel his...
[The entire page is 2114 words long]
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