Genre
Historical fiction
Setting and Context
Set in 1979 on the west coast of Ireland, a small, meagerly inhabited island.
Narrator and Point of View
Third-person narrative
Tone and Mood
Informative, reflective, and overwhelming
Protagonist and Antagonist
The central character is Lloyd and the antagonist is Masson.
Major Conflict
There is a conflict between the Frenchman, Masson, and Lloyd. All of the characters have different interests on the small island. Masson wants to preserve the local culture, and he dislikes the presence of Lloyd because he is an English imperialist who is likely to distort the local language with his paintings. Lloyd also resents the presence of Masson because he did not expect to meet any other visitor to repel his painting ambition.
Climax
The climax comes when a young widow called Mairéad interacts with Lloyd and Masson on different occasions to satisfy her curiously. For instance, Mairéad sleeps with Masson and later allows Lloyd to paint her naked. Mairéad's acceptance of foreigners depicts new dawn that the visitors to the island look forward to, acceptance.
Foreshadowing
Lloyd and Masson's disagreements foreshadowed the trouble and murders that were frequent on the small island. The reader discovers that different groups on the island do not seem to accept others' opinions, which often creates commotion resulting in trouble and unnecessary killings.
Understatement
Mairéad underestimates the significance of Lloyd when he first arrives on the small island. Later she realizes that he could do a perfect painting of her naked body. Mairéad also realized that Lloyd helped her son eliminate the burden of cultural expectations.
Allusions
N/A
Imagery
The scene in which Lloyd paints the naked body of Mairéad depicts the sense of sight. Mairéad stands naked before Lloyd and the imagery is significant because it shows the island inhabitants' slow acceptance of foreigners. Despite Lloyd being ill-mannered, he can get along well with people who care to understand him.
Paradox
The main paradox is that the Protestants and Catholic loyalists murder each other despite worshipping the same God who condemns killing.
Parallelism
N/A
Metonymy and Synecdoche
The burden of cultural expectation is used as a metonymy for slavery.
Personification
Art is personified as having the ability to bring joy and intrigue emotions.
