A Mother

by

James Joyce

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Mr Holohan Character Analysis

Mr Holohan is an inexperienced, rather ineffectual event planner and the assistant secretary of the Eire Abu Society who attempts to plan and advertise a series of four concerts celebrating Ireland’s culture. At the beginning of the story, Mr Holohan is fairly passive and easily manipulated. After Mrs Kearney provides him with food and wine, he enlists her to help him plan the concerts and invites her daughter, Kathleen, a fairly famous young pianist, to play the accompaniments for the performers. He signs a contract with Mrs Kearney for eight guineas, but when the concerts go poorly the first two nights and the Committee cancels the third, he becomes cagey about when—and whether—Kathleen will get her money. On the fourth night, after Mrs Kearney mocks him to his face, Mr Holohan accuses her of being unladylike, humiliating her in front of all the performers. Angry, he replaces Kathleen with Miss Healy, and he wins general approval for finally standing up to Mrs Kearney.

Mr Holohan Quotes in A Mother

The A Mother quotes below are all either spoken by Mr Holohan or refer to Mr Holohan. 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:
Class, Ambition, and Corruption Theme Icon
).
A Mother Quotes

Therefore she was not surprised when one day Mr Holohan came to her and proposed that her daughter should be the accompanist at a series of four grand concerts which his Society was going to give in the Antient Concert Rooms. She brought him into the drawing-room, made him sit down and brought out the decanter and the silver biscuit barrel. She entered heart and soul into the details of the enterprise, advised and dissuaded; and finally a contract was drawn up by which Kathleen was to receive eight guineas for her services as accompanist at the four grand concerts.

Related Characters: Mrs Kearney, Mrs Kearney, Mr Holohan, Kathleen
Related Symbols: Eight Guineas
Page Number: 136
Explanation and Analysis:

When she had an opportunity she called Mr Holohan aside and asked him to tell her what it meant. Mr Holohan did not know what it meant. He said that the Committee had made a mistake in arranging for four concerts: four was too many.

“And the artistes!” said Mrs Kearney. “Of course they are doing their best, but really they are no good.”

Related Characters: Mrs Kearney (speaker), Mr Holohan
Related Symbols: Artistes
Page Number: 137
Explanation and Analysis:

Mr Holohan became very red and excited. He spoke volubly, but Mrs Kearney said curtly at intervals:

“She won't go on. She must get her eight guineas.”

Mr Holohan pointed desperately towards the hall where the audience was clapping and stamping. He appealed to Mr Kearney and to Kathleen. But Mr Kearney continued to stroke his beard and Kathleen looked down moving the point of her new shoe: it was not her fault. Mrs Kearney repeated:

“She won't go on without her money.”

Related Characters: Mrs Kearney (speaker), Mr Holohan, Kathleen, Mr Kearney
Related Symbols: Eight Guineas, Brown
Page Number: 144
Explanation and Analysis:

Mrs Kearney said that the Committee had treated her scandalously. She had spared neither trouble nor expense and this was how she was repaid.

They thought they had only a girl to deal with and that, therefore, they could ride roughshod over her. But she would show them their mistake. They wouldn't have dared to have treated her like that if she had been a man. But she would see that her daughter got her rights: she wouldn't be fooled.

Related Characters: Mrs Kearney, Mr Holohan, Kathleen, Mr Fitzpatrick
Related Literary Devices:
Page Number: 146
Explanation and Analysis:

Her face was inundated with an angry colour and she looked as if she would attack someone with her hands.

“I’m asking for my rights,” she said.

“You might have some sense of decency,” said Mr Holohan.

“Might I, indeed? ... And when I ask when my daughter is going to be paid I can’t get a civil answer.”

She tossed her head and assumed a haughty voice:

“You must speak to the secretary. It's not my business. I’m a great fellow fol-the-diddle-I-do.”

“I thought you were a lady,” said Mr Holohan, walking away from her abruptly.

After that Mrs Kearney's conduct was condemned on all hands: everyone approved of what the Committee had done.

Related Characters: Mrs Kearney (speaker), Mr Holohan (speaker), Kathleen, Mr Fitzpatrick
Page Number: 147
Explanation and Analysis:
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Mr Holohan Quotes in A Mother

The A Mother quotes below are all either spoken by Mr Holohan or refer to Mr Holohan. 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:
Class, Ambition, and Corruption Theme Icon
).
A Mother Quotes

Therefore she was not surprised when one day Mr Holohan came to her and proposed that her daughter should be the accompanist at a series of four grand concerts which his Society was going to give in the Antient Concert Rooms. She brought him into the drawing-room, made him sit down and brought out the decanter and the silver biscuit barrel. She entered heart and soul into the details of the enterprise, advised and dissuaded; and finally a contract was drawn up by which Kathleen was to receive eight guineas for her services as accompanist at the four grand concerts.

Related Characters: Mrs Kearney, Mrs Kearney, Mr Holohan, Kathleen
Related Symbols: Eight Guineas
Page Number: 136
Explanation and Analysis:

When she had an opportunity she called Mr Holohan aside and asked him to tell her what it meant. Mr Holohan did not know what it meant. He said that the Committee had made a mistake in arranging for four concerts: four was too many.

“And the artistes!” said Mrs Kearney. “Of course they are doing their best, but really they are no good.”

Related Characters: Mrs Kearney (speaker), Mr Holohan
Related Symbols: Artistes
Page Number: 137
Explanation and Analysis:

Mr Holohan became very red and excited. He spoke volubly, but Mrs Kearney said curtly at intervals:

“She won't go on. She must get her eight guineas.”

Mr Holohan pointed desperately towards the hall where the audience was clapping and stamping. He appealed to Mr Kearney and to Kathleen. But Mr Kearney continued to stroke his beard and Kathleen looked down moving the point of her new shoe: it was not her fault. Mrs Kearney repeated:

“She won't go on without her money.”

Related Characters: Mrs Kearney (speaker), Mr Holohan, Kathleen, Mr Kearney
Related Symbols: Eight Guineas, Brown
Page Number: 144
Explanation and Analysis:

Mrs Kearney said that the Committee had treated her scandalously. She had spared neither trouble nor expense and this was how she was repaid.

They thought they had only a girl to deal with and that, therefore, they could ride roughshod over her. But she would show them their mistake. They wouldn't have dared to have treated her like that if she had been a man. But she would see that her daughter got her rights: she wouldn't be fooled.

Related Characters: Mrs Kearney, Mr Holohan, Kathleen, Mr Fitzpatrick
Related Literary Devices:
Page Number: 146
Explanation and Analysis:

Her face was inundated with an angry colour and she looked as if she would attack someone with her hands.

“I’m asking for my rights,” she said.

“You might have some sense of decency,” said Mr Holohan.

“Might I, indeed? ... And when I ask when my daughter is going to be paid I can’t get a civil answer.”

She tossed her head and assumed a haughty voice:

“You must speak to the secretary. It's not my business. I’m a great fellow fol-the-diddle-I-do.”

“I thought you were a lady,” said Mr Holohan, walking away from her abruptly.

After that Mrs Kearney's conduct was condemned on all hands: everyone approved of what the Committee had done.

Related Characters: Mrs Kearney (speaker), Mr Holohan (speaker), Kathleen, Mr Fitzpatrick
Page Number: 147
Explanation and Analysis: