NEW CARIBBEAN STUDIES IMAGINING MOTHERHOOD IN CONTEMPORARY IRISH AND CARIBBEAN LITERATURE ABIGAIL L. PALKO New Caribbean Studies Series Editors Kofi Campbell Laurier Brantford Brantford , Ontario, Canada Shalini Puri Pittsburgh , Pennsylvania, USA New Caribbean Studies series seeks to contribute to Caribbean self- understanding, to intervene in the terms of global engagement with the region, and to extend Caribbean Studies' role in reinventing various dis- ciplines and their methodologies well beyond the Caribbean. The series especially solicits humanities-informed and interdisciplinary scholarship from across the region's language traditions. More information about this series at http://www.springer.com/series/14752 Abigail   L.   P alko Imagining Motherhood in Contemporary Irish and Caribbean Literature Abigail   L.   Palko University of Notre Dame Notre Dame, Indiana , USA New Caribbean Studies ISBN 978-1-137-60270-1 ISBN 978-1-137-60074-5 (eBook) DOI 10.1057/978-1-137-60074-5 Library of Congress Control Number: 2016942678 © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2 016 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are solely and exclusively licensed by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifi cally the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfi lms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specifi c statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the pub- lisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. Cover illustration: “Virtual Omphalos” (detail of installation at Sao Paulo Biennial, 1996) by Joscelyn Gardner Printed on acid-free paper This Palgrave Macmillan imprint is published by Springer Nature The registered company is Nature America Inc. New York For Barbara and Nora, who made me a daughter and a mother. And for John, who made it all possible. A CKNOWLEDGMENTS To begin at the beginning, I will forever be grateful to my parents, John and Barbara, who, before my earliest memory, nurtured the love of read- ing that sustained me throughout the process of writing this book—even after they learned the necessity of rationing my library books when I was ten years old. I’m especially grateful to my father, whose example demys- tifi ed graduate school for me (thanks in large part to pairs of M&M’s sealed in plastic); because of him, I never thought academia was some- thing beyond my reach. In the years that I have worked on I magining Motherhood in Contemporary Irish and Caribbean Literature , I have benefi ted from the generosity and support of a number of colleagues. The seeds of this proj- ect sprouted from my dissertation, and it is with gratitude that I thank my committee members: Joseph Buttigieg, who encouraged me to read across boundaries and freely, and Alison Rice, whose unfailing generos- ity of time began at a meeting in a Paris café across the street from the Luxemburg Gardens and a book-buying spree in Gilbert-Joseph. And my director, Maud Ellmann, who by serving as my ideal reader, has in subtle but invaluable ways infl uenced my scholarly development. When I write, her voice is in my ear, reminding me not to rely on the quote to make my argument for me, but rather to trust my own prose. I thank her for her encouragement, which reminds me of the value of my project. The larger project has been incalculably shaped by the inspiration of Cristina Traina and Catherine Hilkert, who introduced me to feminist theology and responded to my work with such enthusiasm, and Andrea O’Reilly, who has unceasingly advocated for the value of motherhood studies; their vii viii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS guidance was crucial in the development of the theoretical framework of my study. Working interdisciplinarily opens exciting paths for exploration for a scholar, but she also runs the risk of never quite fi tting into a particu- lar department. I have had the great fortune to have found my home in several academic communities: in the Gender Studies Program, Pamela Wojcik’s enduring interest in my project, Barbara Green’s encouragement, and Mary Celeste Kearney’s ebullient championing of my work have bol- stered my confi dence in this project. I enjoyed an early affi rmation of the project’s value from the responses of Guy Beiner, Beth Wightman, Katie Gough, Kevin Whelan, and Declan Kiberd. I am grateful to the community of the Keough-Naughton Institute for Irish Studies, led by Christopher Fox. I have also been welcomed into the Department of Africana Studies, and truly appreciate the fellowship offered by my col- leagues. Stacy Davis, Denise DellaRosa, Christine Caron Gebhardt, Janet Kourany, April Lidinsky, Kate Marshall, Maria McKenna, Deb Rotman, Sonalini Sapra, Yasmin Solomonescu, Mary Thompson, Jamie Wagman, and Sophie White have all offered encouragement, commiseration, and comfort at key moments in the process of writing this book, and I thank them all. Throughout the writing of my dissertation, Sîan White and Lauren Rich read draft after draft after draft: they made sense of incoherent sentences and were adamant that I could—and would—do this. In the process, they became true friends, and it is a privilege and a pleasure to thank them here. A trio of Sara(h)s have offered particular encouragement in the late stages of writing: Sara Maurer’s encouraging observation that soon we’d be at a book launch for me provided a much needed boost at that moment. Sarah McKibben’s unfl agging pep talks banished all doubts from my mind. And Sarah Townsend graciously and perceptively read Chaps. 1 and 2 for me; her commentary was invaluable in the revision process. I thank Joscelyn Gardner for her enthusiastic response when I asked if I could use a slide of her multimedia installation “Virtual Omphalos” as my cover image. Her creation of a uterine universe that enfolds the viewer within its embrace, with its allusions to Amerindian creation myths, provides the perfect visual introduction to my study. I owe a small intel- lectual debt to the interviewer who asked me where the lesbian mother was in my study, a query that ultimately prompted the second half of this book; for this fortuitous question, I am grateful. I also thank the audi- ence members at the various ACIS and NWSA conferences who offered ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ix such astute feedback on this work in progress, as well as the anonymous reviewer for this manuscript, whose critique greatly strengthened it. At Palgrave Macmillan, I thank Brigitte Shull, for her enthusiastic response to my project, and the series editors, Kofi Omoniyi Sylvanus Campbell and Shalini Puri, for their shepherding of my project. At the University of Notre Dame, I have benefi ted from the support of the Institute for Scholarship in the Liberal Arts. I am particularly grateful to the students too many to name who have passed through my classrooms over the years, allowing me to share my love of words—of reading and of writing—with them. I thank them for listening to the voices I have introduced to them. It is in these moments that the novels and theories have been most alive for me. I owe Matthew Greene a shout-o ut for introducing me to Macklemore’s work. And I was once a student: I thank S. Catherine Knobbs, who fi rst suggested to me that I could (and should!) go down this path—and who I know has been watching every step and cheering with the angels. It would be hypocritical of me to neglect to thank the people who provided care for Nora while I wrote this book: I owe a particular debt of gratitude to you all for making it possible for me to work on this during daylight hours. And to other very special women—Jennie, Beth, Patty, and Sarah—who provided care for me during the years of writing: To my mother-in-law, Pat, as well: thank you for welcoming me into your family and your heart—and for reading my dissertation! And to conclude—not with the end, but with another beginning—are the thanks that I will spend the rest of my life offering. First, my husband, John: Indiana has somehow been home for more years than we perhaps care to count. Thank you for believing in me more fi rmly than I myself do, for joining me on the journey, and for reminding me to laugh and play. And the best, most gorgeous piece of primary research I did: our daughter, Eleanor Grace, whose (at times, forceful) requests to “Read a book!” have punctuated every chapter and reminded me daily why I love what I do.