45 pages • 1-hour read
The Last September
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Symbols & Motifs
Irish Country Houses (“Big Houses”)
The country houses, mansions, and estates of the landed upper class in Ireland were called “Big Houses” by locals. They represented Anglo Irish political power, starting in the 16th century, when the British Crown gifted the Anglo Irish Protestant class huge tracts of land and positions of political and economic power. Big Houses demonstrated power, so during the Irish War of Independence, they became targets for the Irish Republican Army (IRA). Over 275 were destroyed by burning, explosives, or other means during the Irish War of Independence.
As in life, the Big Houses of The Last September are symbols of Anglo Irish power and, by extension, English imperial rule. The characters desperately cling to their homes as they cling to their power, but they also fear attracting the ire of the IRA to their own homes as they hear of their peers’ homes being burned down. The father of Lois’s friend Livvy has warned her that cavorting with English soldiers could make them a target and lead to the loss of their home, and Danielstown, the Naylors’ home, is often described in terms that foreshadow its demise. The house is often described as being surrounded by red flowers or red sunsets, heralding the fires at the end of the novel. Despite the Naylors’ bluster about how Francie’s worry about danger is ridiculous, the novel ends with the burning of Danielstown and the other two Big Houses of the area.
The English Army
In The Last September, the English army—and each of its soldiers—represents English imperial control in Ireland. They are meant to be enforcers of imperial ideals as well as of law and order, but their position in the country is complicated. They see themselves as protecting the Anglo Irish, but many see the army as a nuisance. Sir Richard claims that Ireland “‘is altogether too full of soldiers with nothing to do but dance and poke old women out of their beds to look for guns. It’s unsettling the people, naturally. The fact is, the Army’s got into the habit of fighting and doesn’t know what else to do with itself” (30). His words touch on the true feelings of many Irish locals: that the army is poking its nose in where it is not wanted. Despite gaining their power from the English empire, the Anglo Irish resent the army.
The English army as a symbol in The Last September also reveals the dichotomy of how English power manifested. The English empire painted itself as a great civilizer and benevolent parent, and figures like the army men of The Last September reflect this ideal. One of the most emphatic things Lois says of Gerald is that he not only loved her but he also “believed in the British Empire” (299). Gerald and many of his comrades truly believed in the empire and the need to protect it, and they acted accordingly, behaving with the decorum one might expect. On the other hand, however, the Black and Tans represent the darker side of the English empire. Former World War I soldiers enlisted to the Irish Constabulary to suppress IRA activities, the Black and Tans also help protect the Anglo Irish and English imperial power. However, they do not put on the genteel façade that the army used around upper-class civilians. Livvy and Lois avoid them on the road, wishing to avoid their sarcastic treatment of anyone, even the Anglo Irish they are meant to protect. Similarly, Mr. Daventry illustrates the nefarious qualities lingering even among the so-called “civilized” army men. Lois clearly recognizes something dark in him at the dance, and he tries to force his affections on the D.A.’s daughter, who is arguably the most “Irish” character in terms of appearance, speech, and religion (she is the only character noted to be Catholic). He also experiences shell shock after his experiences in Ireland, including being forced to turn old women and new mothers out of their beds to search for IRA weapons. The army is just as nefarious as the Black and Tans, but they continue to pretend they are a benevolent, civilizing force.
The Meaning of Love
A common motif in The Last September is love; more specifically, many of the characters experience conflicts between their own and others’ definitions of love. Lois herself struggles to determine what her definition of love is, and she is surrounded by the conflicting views of others. The novel at first seems to represent the Montmorencys as an ideal of love, with Hugo’s tender care of Francie after all of her health problems. Marda Norton’s arrival, however, reveals how tenuous that love is. Most everyone recognizes – covertly – that Hugo has feelings for Marda, and he himself believes himself in love with her. Reflecting on that love, he feels as if “a sense of himself rushed up, filling the valley” (176). His “love,” however, is one-sided, and Marda actively tries to repel him. It becomes clear that Hugo’s version of love is one of ownership and wanting what he cannot have; like his love for Marda, his love for Lois’s mother, Laura, was unrequited.
Gerald’s definition of love is much simpler: “He did not conceive of love as a nervous interchange but as something absolute, out of the scope of thought, beyond himself, matter for a confident outward rather than anxious inward looking” (53). Gerald simply knows he is in love, and he chooses not to question it or to attempt to define it. Lois, however, is obsessed with figuring out how she feels and wishing she felt something more definite. She wishes for “some incalculable shifting of perspectives that would bring [Gerald] wholly into focus, mind and spirit” (71). She also, however, listens closely to women’s conversations about love and learns that for many women, love “was the mainspring of woman’s grievances. Illnesses all arose from it […] by money it was confined, propped and moulded” (83). At the dance, she finally recognizes a feeling of safety with Gerald that she identifies as love, but she becomes confused when her aunt accuses her of not knowing what love is. In the end, even if her aunt had not interfered, she loses her opportunity when Gerald dies. Lois withdraws, abandoning her quest to feel real love and simply doing what is expected after her stay at Danielstown.
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