Nothing Happens in Carmincross: Analysis of Major Characters

Author: Benedict Kiely

First published: 1985

Genre: Novel

Locale: Ireland and Northern Ireland

Plot: Adventure

Time: The 1970's

Mervyn Kavanagh, sometimes referred to as Merlin, a balding and middle-aged storyteller and professor of history. He has returned to Ireland from a stint of teaching at a Southern college in the United States to attend the wedding of his favorite niece in Carmincross, a town in Northern Ireland. When he arrives in Ireland, he immediately becomes aware of the internal war in Northern Ireland through reports on the radio and in the newspapers. His response is to recall old legends and ballads and to contrast their heroic ideals with the sordid and violent present. He finds little heroism in the ambushes and bombings carried on by both sides in the terrorism and counterterrorism of Northern Ireland. When he sets off on his journey to Carmincross, he is accompanied by an old friend, Deborah. Their journey is compared a number of times to that of the legendary Irish lovers, Diarmuid and Grainne, who fled from Fionn MacCool. Mervyn is fleeing from the wife he left in America, and Deborah is fleeing from her husband, Mandrake. Their idyll is broken by the terrible events in Carmincross, where a revolutionary group plants bombs that lead to the death of the bride-to-be, Stephanie; Mervyn's mother; and a friend, Cecil Morrow. After the slaughter, Mervyn retreats to Dublin, where a sister of the dead bride-to-be marries the intended groom. Mervyn is no longer optimistic about the future of Ireland, although he does perceive some reconciliations in the marriage of his other niece and in his return to his wife in New York. He perceives that the troubles of Ireland are no nearer a solution, but that they can be put aside or transcended by individual acts of love and kindness.

Deborah, a warm and witty Irish woman in her mid-thirties who is disappointed in her marriage. She is an old friend of Mervyn and takes the opportunity to go on a trip with him to Carmincross. They are lovers but not passionately involved. She feels that four years is long enough for any relationship and fiercely defends her freedom. After the events at Carmincross, she argues with Mervyn and throws his book of Irish stories and legends into the fire. She claims that they have brought bad luck to everyone and are responsible for the disasters at the border and at Carmincross. She is injured soon after driving a car away from Mervyn. Later, in the hospital, she is reunited with her husband, Mandrake.

Mr. Burns, a suave and cordial Irish hotel manager. He is a boyhood friend of Mervyn and deplores the violence that rages in the country.

Cecil Morrow, a policeman in Carmincross and a boyhood friend of Mervyn. He is a tall and imposing figure, but he wishes to be a policeman without a gun, a man who serves the community. He saves Mervyn's mother from the bombs (though she eventually dies from injuries), but he is shot soon afterward by a revolutionary who is fleeing the scene on a motorcycle.

Timothy, called Mandrake, Deborah's husband. He is a shy and unexciting but loyal and dependable man who cares for Deborah in the hospital.

Jeriamiah Cilsenenan, a cynical Dublin civil servant. He angrily debunks all claims to heroism and idealism in the Irish civil war he sees before him. His response, however, is just as extreme as that of the rebels. Where they see heroism, he can see nothing but grisly humor and mockery.