At Weddings and Wakes (Masterplots II: Women’s Literature Series)
At a glance:
- Author: Alice McDermott
- First Published: 1992
- Type of Work: Novel
- Type of Plot: Social realism
- Time of Work: The 1960’s
- Setting: Brooklyn and Long Island, New York
- Principal Characters: Robert, Margaret, Lucy Towne Dailey, Bob Dailey, Momma Towne, May Towne, Agnes Towne, Veronica Towne, David Towne, Fred
- Genres: Long fiction, Psychological fiction, Social realism
- Subjects: 1960’s, Family or family life, New York, North America or North Americans, Northeast, U.S., United States or Americans, Mothers, Parents and children, New York City, Sisters, Death or dying, Tragedy, Catholics or Catholic Church, Separation, Weddings
- Locales: Brooklyn, NY, Long Island, NY
Form and Content
At Weddings and Wakes is composed of chapters arranged in memory rather than according to chronology. The first chapter is a breathtaking set piece that establishes tone and mood as well as pace and structure for the whole novel. The chapter is an account of a visit home made by Lucy and her three children. This is one of two weekly visits made by Lucy in the summer. At other times Lucy visits once a week, unless called upon by Momma Towne for a special reason. The trip home is a lengthy one from a suburb in Long Island to Brooklyn and an arduous one...
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