Mary Lavin Summary

Like many other twentieth-century writers who think of their work as developing organically rather than in response to artificially imposed distinctions of genre, Mary Lavin has produced fiction that ... Read more

Critical Essay by V. S. Pritchett [Mary Lavin writes] most of the time about people who appear to be living, at first, in a state of inertia, in the lethargy of country life: then we notice that they ... Read more

Critical Essay by Richard F. Peterson In the three collections of stories published in the 1940s [Tales From Bective Bridge, The Long Ago and Other Stories, The Becker Wives and Other Stories], Mary L... Read more

In the following essay, Burnham examines Lavin's stories published in The Dublin Magazine, including “Miss Holland,” “A Fable,” “Brigid,” and “A... Read more

In the following essay, Neary asserts that “The Becker Wives” provides valuable inside into the “Irish quest for identity.” “What ish my nation?” is a questio... Read more

In the following essay, Peterson elucidates the influence of Katherine Mansfield's short stories on Lavin's short fiction. Katherine Mansfield wrote in her journal that honesty “i... Read more

In the following essay, Dunleavy traces the origins and development of Lavin's story “Happiness.” Mysterious and fascinating to those who study the craft of fiction, the creative ... Read more

In the following essay, Scott considers Lavin's fascination with the human mind, particularly the female mind, as evinced in her short fiction. In general treatments of Irish fiction and in art... Read more

In the following excerpt, Dunleavy traces Lavin's literary development and evaluates her contributions to the Irish short story. By the end of World War II, the Irish short story had become an ... Read more

[In the obituary below, the critic comments on Lavin's literary career.] Mary Lavin, who depicted the narrow subtleties of Irish small town life in short stories and novels, has died. She was 8... Read more

[In the following excerpt, Shumaker focuses on the protagonists from Lavin's stories "A Nun's Mother" and "Sarah" and argues that the "martyrdoms... Read more

[In the following review of A Family Likeness, Brown comments on Lavin's themes and style.] There is something rather un-Irish about Mary Lavin's prose: it doesn't sing or soar or... Read more

[In the following review, Peterson remarks on the themes of Lavin's stories and praises them as "remarkably insightful and intimate."] With the publication of A Family Likeness an... Read more