A Mother

by

James Joyce

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Miss Healy Character Analysis

Miss Healy is one of Kathleen Kearney’s friends from the Irish Nationalist movement and one of the artistes, the contralto, at the Saturday night concert. Miss Healy flirts with Mr Hendrick before the concert, supposedly for the social mobility that either getting a positive review or a suitor would give her, before getting caught in the middle of the conflict between Mrs Kearney, Mr Holohan, and Mr Fitzpatrick. Although she sides with the Committee members in the conflict between the Society and Mrs Kearney, she pretends to agree with Mrs Kearney to save face until the whole crowd turns against her.
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Miss Healy Character Timeline in A Mother

The timeline below shows where the character Miss Healy appears in A Mother. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
A Mother
Class, Ambition, and Corruption Theme Icon
...to be about Kathleen since they both keep looking at her while she speaks to Miss Healy , the contralto for the concert who is also their friend. (full context)
Irish Nationalism, Colonization, and Failure Theme Icon
Paralysis and Decay Theme Icon
...her thin body. Someone says that she is the soprano, Madam Glynn, and Kathleen asks Miss Healy “where did they dig her up” since she has never heard of her. In response,... (full context)
Class, Ambition, and Corruption Theme Icon
Irish Nationalism, Colonization, and Failure Theme Icon
Paralysis and Decay Theme Icon
...a reporter from the Freeman (a Nationalist newspaper) and Mr O’Madden Burke are talking with Miss Healy and the baritone. The reporter, Mr Hendrick, says that he can’t wait around for the... (full context)
Class, Ambition, and Corruption Theme Icon
Irish Nationalism, Colonization, and Failure Theme Icon
Paralysis and Decay Theme Icon
Mr Holohan rushes out, and in the tense silence, Miss Healy asks the baritone if he has seen Pat Campbell, a famous actress who is in... (full context)
Class, Ambition, and Corruption Theme Icon
Gender and Power Theme Icon
...is the only thing to do. She tries to appeal to the second tenor and Miss Healy , and they both agree with her—although Miss Healy really is not on her side... (full context)
Class, Ambition, and Corruption Theme Icon
...argues with Kathleen and Mr Kearney, waiting for the secretaries to talk to her again, Mrs Healy agrees to play the accompaniments for the second half of the concert. When the baritone... (full context)