The Last September


The Last September is a 1929 novel by the Anglo-Irish writer Elizabeth Bowen, concerning life in Danielstown, County Cork during the Irish War of Independence, at a country mansion. John Banville wrote a screenplay based on the novel; the film adaptation was released in 1999.

Plot

;Preface
Although The Last September was first published in 1929, a preface was written for this text decades later to be included in the second American edition of this novel. Concerned that readers unfamiliar with this particular chapter of Irish history would not fully comprehend the anxieties of these times, Bowen takes great pains to explain the particulars of both her writing process and the political reasons for the unsettled atmosphere felt throughout the text, palpable even in its most seemingly serene moments. Of all her books, Bowen notes, The Last September is "nearest to my heart, had a deep, unclouded, spontaneous source. Though not poetic, it brims up with what could be the stuff of poetry, the sensations of youth. It is a work of instinct rather than knowledge—to a degree, a 'recall' book, but there had been no such recall before." While Bowen's own beloved family home, Bowen's Court, remained untouched throughout "The Troubled Times" this preface explores the ramifications for witnesses of “Ambushes, arrests, captures and burning, reprisals and counter-reprisals” as "The British patrolled and hunted; the Irish planned, lay in wait, and struck.” "I was the child of the house from which Danielstown derives" Bowen concludes, "nevertheless, so often in my mind's eye did I see it burning that the terrible last event in The Last September is more real than anything I have lived through."
;Part One: The Arrival of Mr. & Mrs. Montmorency
The Last September opens in “a moment of happiness, of perfection” as Sir Richard and Lady Naylor welcome their long-awaited guests, Hugo and Francie Montmorency, to their country estate, Danielstown, in County Cork, Ireland. Despite—or, in some characters’ cases, in spite of—the tensions produced by what Bowen obliquely refers to as "The Troubled Times", the Montmorencys, the Naylors, as well as the Naylors' niece, Lois, and nephew, Laurence, attempt to live their lives in the aftermath of The Great War while coping with the occasionally conflicting dictates of their class's expectations and personal desires. Preoccupied with the concerns of social obligations which must be met even as they are enacted against a backdrop of uncertainty and national unrest, the residents of Danielstown occupy themselves with tennis parties, visits, and dances, often including the wives and officers of the British Army who have been assigned to this region. The people of Danielstown all share a particular interest in the shifting relationship between Lois and a young British officer, Gerald Lesworth, as Lois struggles to determine precisely who she is and what it is she wants out of life.
;Part Two: The Visit of Miss Norton
Lois's confusion regarding her future and the state of the bond she shares with Gerald is temporarily sidelined by the arrival of yet another visitor to Danielstown, a Miss Marda Norton whose connection to the Naylor family remains strong even in the face of perpetual inconvenience and Lady Naylor's long-standing polite aversion to the younger woman. Marda's presence is, however, as much of a blessing for Lois and Laurence as it is an annoyance for Lady Naylor and Hugo Montmorency—the latter having developed a one-sided fixation on the soon-to-be-married Marda.
While Lois and Marda's friendship deepens, readers are also made aware of escalating violence as the fragile status quo established between the British Army, the Black and Tans, and local Irish resistance is threatened by Gerald's capture of Peter Connor, the son of an Irish family friendly with the Naylors. Unbeknownst to the residents of Danielstown, Lois and Marda's acquaintance with Ireland's national turmoil is expanded firsthand as they are confronted by an unknown individual while on an afternoon stroll through the countryside of County Cork. Although permitted to depart with only a trifling wound to Marda's hand and Lois's promise that they will never speak of this encounter in the ruins of the old mill, this meeting and Marda's subsequent return to England signal a shift as the novel's characters’ attention return to the various topics occupying their thoughts before her arrival.
;Part Three: The Departure of Gerald
After Marda Norton's departure, Lois's attention is once again firmly fixed upon both Gerald and the activities organised by the British officers’ wives. But despite Lois's determination to finally come to a firm conclusion regarding her future, her relationship with Gerald is first delayed by Lady Naylor's machinations and then left forever unresolved by Gerald's death—which may have been at the hands of Peter Connor's friends. Not long after Gerald's death Laurence, Lois, and the Montmorencys leave Sir Richard and Lady Naylor, but the Naylors have little time to enjoy their solitude at Danielstown. The Naylor family estate and the other great houses are put to the torch the following February—likely by the same men who organised the attack on Gerald—their destruction reinforcing the fact the lifestyle once enjoyed by the landed Anglo-Irish gentry has been brought to an end.

Characters

Major characters

  • Sir Richard Naylor is the family patriarch and the master of Danielstown, Sir Richard is very much aware of the immediacy of the Troubles even though he rarely voices these concerns out loud. Instead, Bowen's readers are the persons most often made privy to his uncertainty regarding the immediacy of the escalating conflict taking place on and around his family's land.
  • Myra, Lady Naylor is a decisive woman who refuses to acknowledge even the possibility of changing standards in the post-war era, Lady Naylor's mind and views are entrenched in the views held by the most conservative members of her socio-economic class—especially in regard to judging the marital prospects of her friends, relations, and acquaintances.
  • Lois Farquar is the only child of Sir Richard's sister Laura, eighteen-year-old Lois is extremely indecisive as she continually ponders her identity as a young woman in the post-war era and her relationship with Gerald Lesworth. As she attempts to find answers to these questions Lois also serves as the readers’ primary witness to the events unfolding within the text.
  • Laurence is Lois's cousin is visiting with his Aunt Myra and Uncle Richard in County Cork. A reluctant participant in his Aunt Myra's social affairs and a bit of a misanthrope, Laurence makes it quite clear that he would prefer to be anywhere but Danielstown, but also lacks the funds that would make his preference feasible.
  • Hugo Montmorency is a friend of the Naylors who has finally returned to Danielstown. It has been twelve years since his last visit. Formerly in love with Laura Naylor Farquar, Hugo is not entirely certain how to view Lois Farquar, Laura's daughter.
  • Frances Montmorency is a quiet woman who is very much aware of the deep undercurrents throughout the Danielstown household. Although she is often viewed as an invalid by family and friends, there is nothing wrong with Francie's mind and Bowen makes it very clear that Francie's position as an eternal spectator permits her to see more than her companions know.
  • Gerald Lesworth is a British subaltern from Surrey, Gerald is attracted to Lois but not entirely confident about the direction their relationship seems to be taking. The quintessential example of British manhood, Gerald is often uncomfortable with the Anglo-Irish view of the British Empire.
  • Marda Norton is a friend and visitor of the Naylor family who is loved by Lois, admired by Hugo, and cordially despised by Lady Naylor. Marda is not-quite-secretly engaged to Leslie Lawe, a stockbroker, and this revelation is rather surprising news for all the residents of Danielstown.

    Minor characters

  • Livvy Thompson is Lois's friend, a young lady who delights in taking charge, fiancée of
  • David Armstrong is a soldier attached to the British regiment
  • Laura Naylor Farquar is the sister of Richard, mother of Lois, and former sweetheart of Hugo Montmorency, Laura died when Lois was very young. Nevertheless, she is often in the thoughts of both Lois and Hugo.
  • Mrs. Vermont is an English social butterfly whose primary interest is socialising, wife of
  • Captain Vermont is a British officer
  • The Hartigans is a neighbouring Anglo-Irish family possessing five unmarried daughters
  • Daventry is a shell shocked British soldier who is nevertheless attached to the Intelligence division
  • Smith is a British soldier, but such a minor character he is not even permitted a first name
  • Viola is Lois's friend, penpal, and occasional confidant
  • Mrs. Fogarty is one of the novel's few Irish Roman Catholics in favour of maintaining close ties with Britain.
  • The Connors are a Roman Catholic Irish family who is nominally friendly with the Naylors
  • Peter Connor is the Connor son captured by Gerald and his men. Although Peter is never actually physically present within the scenes of the novel, he and his political associates have a tremendous effect upon the residents of Danielstown as well as Danielstown itself.

    Themes

Sterility

The sterility theme permeates the novel in characters and environment. The absence of children is conspicuous as if "children seem in every sense of the word to be inconceivable" with the exception of Hercules, who is the youngest in his family and the only boy with four girls. The Naylors and the Montmorencys do not have children. The Hartigan girls are spinsters, "There are certainly a great many unmarried women." Lois has a feeling of being barren when she is looked at, "a glance from Mr. Montmorency or Laurence would make her encounter sterile.” She seems to have feelings for both Hugo Montmorency and Gerald Lesworth. But later in the novel, she stops her affectionate feelings towards Hugo and cannot determine what she should feel about Gerald. Marda Norton remembers a story that causes her to "go dry inside to think of it now.” This human sterility extends to or emerges from the place itself i.e. Ireland: "Talking of being virginal, do you ever notice this country? Doesn’t sex seem irrelevant?” Sir Richard knows that his plantation is almost crushed and he does not want any further damage to happen to it by bringing the soldiers to look if there are buried guns in his plantation: “And why would we want to know? You’ll have the place full of soldiers, trampling the young trees. There’s been enough damage in the plantation with the people coming to sightsee…"