1. The chapter begins with a reference to John Kane. What is Roseanne s attitude to him in this chapter?

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1 Page numbers refer to the 2008 Faber and Faber edition. Chapter One 1. What positive qualities does the narrator Roseanne remember about her father in this chapter? 2. How does Roseanne remember her mother in this chapter? How is it different from her memories of her father? 3. Roseanne can be seen as both a character in the novel, and also a narrator. What is her present situation at the beginning of the novel? Chapter Two 1. Why is the narrator Dr Grene so preoccupied with the fact that This building is in a terrible condition? (p.14) 2. What does Dr Grene s narrative tell us about the character, Mrs McNulty, the narrator we know as Roseanne from Chapter One? 3. Look at the section from pp Here the narrative switches to Roseanne s voice, even though it is not the start of a new chapter. Briefly summarise the content of this section. 4. How would you describe the early relationship of Roseanne with her father as we see it in this section? 5. We now know that the novel has two narrators, Dr Grene and Roseanne. How does each see the other? Find two examples from each narrator. Chapter Three 1. What do we learn about the relationship between Roseanne and Dr Grene in their conversation in this chapter? For each point, make a specific textual reference as evidence. For example: Roseanne is aware of needing to dodge his questions. No, I said, a foul and utter lie being the best answer. (p.26) 2. Can you find any hints in this chapter that Roseanne s story contains some dark secrets which the rest of the novel may, or may not, reveal to us as the reading moves forward? Chapter Four 1. The chapter begins with a reference to John Kane. What is Roseanne s attitude to him in this chapter? 2. Panic in me now blacker than old tea (p. 35). Can the reader find one reason for Roseanne s panic at this particular moment, or is more than one possible cause hinted at in the chapter?

2 Chapter Five 1. How does the character Dr Grene feel about his professional role? Try to find three different points with supporting references. 2. What is revealed in the narrative about his feelings regarding his marriage? 3. How does the narrator Roseanne continue the story she has begun in earlier chapters? What is added to the chronology (the time sequence) of the events in her past? 4. The use of two narrators in this novel means that as readers we can find patterns, or hear echoes in their narratives, particularly when they are set close to each other. What patterns and links can you find between the narrative of Dr Grene (pp.44-49) and Roseanne s narrative which follows (pp.49-60)? Chapter Six 1. Look at the number of times the words, my father appear in this chapter, sometimes at the beginning of sentences. What do we find out in this chapter about Roseanne s father, his background, his attitudes, his behaviours? Chapter Seven 1. The first paragraph shows us that Dr Grene has looked in his wife s diary. What functions do diaries serve in people s lives, and why is it interesting to think about reading someone else s diary? 2. Explore the irony in Dr Grene s reference on p.70 to the edition of Barthus on Pathologies of Secrecy. 3. Find two more examples where the theme of secrecy and/or silence is shown in this chapter, supporting each example with a brief quotation. Chapter Eight 1. In this chapter we as readers have to get involved in Roseanne s past, present and future, and her relationship with Dr Grene is part of that. What methods of storytelling does Barry use to bring into focus dimensions of past, present and future in this chapter? Chapter Nine 1. What kind of character do we see Fr Gaunt as (according to Roseanne s narrative about him) in this chapter?

3 Chapter Ten 1. The narrator Roseanne seems to speak directly to the reader when she says, I don t remember if I mentioned his beard (p.97). As you look through this chapter, try to find a few more moments when the narrator seems to be speaking to the reader. What effects on the reader does this narrative device have? Chapter Eleven 1. How is Dr Grene s account of their conversation (pp ) different from Roseanne s account (pp )? 2. This chapter concludes Part One. Reflecting on your reading to this point, how is your way of reading the novel affected by the fact that there are two narrators, rather than one? Try to make three separate points, with brief textual references to support each point. Part Two Chapter Twelve 1. When you have re-read this chapter, compare it, as the beginning of Part Two, with the beginning of Part One. Make a list of similarities and differences. Chapter Thirteen 1. The narrator Roseanne writes on page 141, I sat down today to write of Tom and the sea. The main event narrated is that she nearly drowned, he rescued her, and that is how they first met. What else is the chapter about? Chapter Fourteen 1. What aspects of Roseanne s earlier stories in the novel are recapitulated in Dr Grene s section between pages 149 and 153? 2. How do past and present come together in Dr Grene s section? 3. What more do we learn of Roseanne s story in her section on pp ? 4. Is Roseanne conveyed as a reliable or unreliable narrator? Ask half the class to make a list of examples from Chapters that support the idea that she is a reliable narrator. The other half of the class should find examples to show her unreliability as a narrator

4 Chapter Fifteen 1. Read pp What is added to our knowledge of John Kane? 2. How effective are these pages as a description of how communities work? 3. In Roseanne s narrative between pages 169 and 176, try to find some clues to the reader about what might be going to come later in her story. 4. How does Dr Grene s narrative between pages 176 and 184 add to our knowledge and understanding of him as a character and narrator? 5. By using two narrators, the author can set up effects and meanings by juxtapositions of the sections of the narratives. How do the juxtapositions in the three sections operate to create layers of meaning and effects? Look at patterns of symbols and imagery as well as the content of the narrators stories. Chapter Sixteen 1. On page 187, Roseanne addresses the reader and says, Dear reader, I ask for your protection, because I am afraid now. Why should the memory of her meeting with John Lavelle evoke so much fear in her? (pp ) 2. Why did absolute panic p.196 break out a day earlier in Roscommon? 3. What is the effect of juxtaposing Dr Grene s memory of the panic with the fact that he went to her room that morning quite light-hearted. (p.197) Why do you think she might have this effect upon him? 4. How does Roseanne feel about Dr Grene in this chapter? Chapter Seventeen 1. In this chapter, Roseanne narrates the events, as she remembers them, of a day beginning on Saturday (p.204) and ending the following day. Try to chart the chronology of the events that are narrated and the characters that are involved. 2. What does this chapter suggest about the type of community that Roseanne inhabited at this point in her life? Consider the perspectives of gender, religion and politics. Part Three Chapter Eighteen 1. Roseanne remembers a conversation between herself and Fr Gaunt (pp ) What form does the conversation take and what effect does it have on Roseanne? 2. Describe Fr Gaunt as he comes across to the reader in Roseanne s narrative (pp ). 3. Describe Fr Gaunt as he comes across to the reader in Dr Grene s narrative (pp )

5 4. Both Roseanne and Dr Grene are more sympathetic to Fr Gaunt than he deserves. Do you agree? Chapter Nineteen 1. What does the author show us about Roseanne s present and her past in this chapter? 2. How are we reminded of Roseanne s current situation as an old lady living in an institution in this chapter? How does it affect how we respond to her stories? Chapter Twenty 1. This chapter has four separate narratives, and within them, many short sections. Why do you think the author uses this technique at this point in the novel? Comment on the effects this has on the forward movement of the book towards its end. Chapter Twenty-One 1. Divide a page of your notebook into three, and make three headings, People, Places and Documents. Read the chapter, filling in each of the three columns as you read. 2. How effective do you find the author s use of letters? 3. In this chapter, the reader is provided with a surprise about the relationship between Roseanne and Dr Grene. How do you respond to this surprise aspect of the novel s plot? Chapter Twenty-Two 1. Re-read this chapter as an ending to the novel. What kinds of thoughts, feelings, and questions, does it evoke in you? 2. Now your reading of the novel is complete, what gaps in the story remain, what questions remain unanswered for the reader?