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James Patrick Dunne (Willie’s Father)
Gretta Lawlor is the love of Willie Dunne’s life. She and her father, Mr. Lawlor, live in a slum tenement under Christ Church Cathedral in Dublin. When she first meets Willie, Gretta is only 13 years old. Despite her younger age, Gretta is more mature and pragmatic than Willie is. She disapproves of his choice to go away to war, and she bluntly refuses to marry him until the war is over. Nevertheless, Gretta does return Willie’s affection, and she wants to be his wife. While Willie fights on the Western Front, Gretta works long, exhausting hours as a seamstress. In 1916, she receives a letter from an anonymous soldier informing her that Willie has slept with a sex worker in Amiens. Gretta is heartbroken by the news of Willie’s unfaithfulness. She marries someone else and has a child with her new husband. However, Gretta bears no ill will against Willie. When she sees him again in 1917, she expresses regret that they couldn’t have a future together, and she wishes Willie well.
Gretta Lawlor Quotes in A Long Long Way
The A Long Long Way quotes below are all either spoken by Gretta Lawlor or refer to Gretta Lawlor. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Chapter 22 Quotes
He closed his eyes and Gretta’s face slowly filtered in. All the ache and murder of the last years just for a moment ceased—ceased to write itself in the history of his addled blood. He hung suspended, beautifully aloft, somewhere, he knew not where, with Gretta’s face, her breast, her arms about him. He was surprised by the soft silence, as if his brain had been a noisy place lately.
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During his recovery at an English military hospital, Willie asks his nurse to hold him. The embrace makes Willie think of Gretta, whom he still loves. As the image of Gretta’s face enters Willie’s mind, Willie imagines being held by Gretta instead of a nurse. He feels that he’s hanging “suspended, beautifully aloft, somewhere” with Gretta’s “arms about him.” Even though Willie has lost his future with Gretta, he still feels connected to her, and this connection brings Willie peace and comfort. Furthermore, as Willie’s enduring love enables him to feel close to Gretta, this bond seems to heal Willie. Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissimos. Qui et ut.
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Gretta Lawlor Character Timeline in A Long Long Way
The timeline below shows where the character Gretta Lawlor appears in A Long Long Way. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 1
...tenement where Mr. Lawlor lives—a room shared by four families—he sees Mr. Lawlor’s 13-year-old daughter, Gretta, for the first time. Instantly, Willie finds Gretta beautiful and thinks of her as “his...
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...despite Mr. Lawlor’s protests. Willie uses his visits as an excuse to spend time with Gretta while Mr. Lawlor is away. Willie is in love with her, but he keeps his...
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...and Willie decides to join. He can’t articulate why he wants to go. He tells Gretta that he needs to protect innocent people from the Germans, that he wants to please...
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Chapter 4
...He guesses that Dublin has not changed much in his absence. He’s also upset that Gretta hasn’t written to him, even though he has sent her several letters. Before he left...
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Chapter 5
...drink beer with other private soldiers until they’re drunk. All the while, Willie thinks about Gretta and how much he wishes she would write to him. He also feels the image...
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In January 1916, Willie writes a letter to Gretta from Belgium. He describes his experience in the war in lighthearted terms without mentioning the...
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Chapter 6
The next morning, Willie walks Gretta to work. He asks her to send him more letters, and Gretta promises to try....
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Chapter 7
...they depart for the war. Willie and Jesse Kirwan are together in the same transport. Gretta is in the crowd, and she and Willie wave to each other excitedly when they...
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Chapter 11
...and loyal to the Royal Dublin Fusiliers. Additionally, Willie sends a postcard of Ypres to Gretta, thanking her for her “kind and interesting” postcard of the now-ruined Sackville Street.
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Chapter 12
...be compassionate, but Willie feels weary, empty, and thin inside. He simply wants to marry Gretta, bicker with his sisters, and work with Dempsey as a builder. When Father Buckley asks...
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Chapter 14
...life and the living could return home. In his terror, Willie starts praying aloud to Gretta. Joe Kielty hears him and promises that they’ll be alright. O’Hara also encourages Willie, and...
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Chapter 16
...he reads his sisters’ writing over and over again. He still doesn’t receive anything from Gretta.
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Chapter 19
Willie goes to see Gretta in the tenement under Christ Church Cathedral. He feels hopeful that she’ll agree to marry...
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Willie confesses to Gretta that, in truth, he didn’t know his own mind. Then he leaves, remembering Gretta’s smile...
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Chapter 21
Willie wonders who sent the anonymous letter to Gretta. He’s angry about the letter—the sender destroyed his future. He knows it can’t be Pete...
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...who has been shot in the side. O’Hara confesses that he wrote the letter to Gretta, although he immediately regretted sending it. He explains that he wrote the letter after telling...
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Chapter 22
...refuses initially because it’s not allowed, but she acquiesces. In the embrace, Willie thinks of Gretta and imagines her as an old woman. He wishes he could have grown old beside...
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