Milkman: Chapter 3 Summary & Analysis

About a week later, middle sister is attending her evening French class, which contains a mix of Protestant and Catholic students. Although the class is for beginners, the teacher reads a complicated passage from a novel so that the students can hear what French sounds like when strung together. One of the students speaks up while the teacher is reading to say that the passage is too elevated. He does not understand why the author would wax poetically about the color of the sky, rather than simply saying the sky is blue. Generally, this is a sentiment that the rest of the class agrees with, including middle sister.

The teacher chuckles at her students and opens the window so everyone can observe the evening sky. Middle sister observes many different colors, which, if she were being honest with herself, she knew were there in the first place. However, she and the rest of the class have a mental bias toward stable concepts and discrete categorizations, and this prevents them from saying that the sky could be many colors.

Middle sister knows exactly what the sky looks like during a sunset because she and maybe-boyfriend watched one just a few days before. However, she does not like how the sunset makes her feel, nor does she like how maybe-boyfriend reacted to the one they saw together. Maybe-boyfriend seemed to appreciate and enjoy it, which once again makes middle sister question his masculinity.

While in French class, middle sister looks away from the sunset to avoid the complicated feelings that arise in her. When she looks away, she spots a white van, which looks like the one the milkman often drives. She tries to convince herself that the van cannot be his, though she is not fully successful. In reaction to seeing the van, she has a violent back spasm, which she describes as an “anti-orgasm.”

After French class, middle sister walks home, her head still buzzing as she thinks about sunsets. On the way home, she has to walk through a place she calls “the ten-minute area”—an eerie stretch of town that takes 10 minutes to walk through. The ten-minute area has a gothic look to it, in part because of the dilapidated churches that are contained therein. Until recently, there were three churches, but now there are only two because one of them recently exploded. The renouncers blamed the state defenders for the explosion, and the state defenders blamed the renouncers, but an independent investigation determined that neither party was responsible—in fact, it had been bombed by the Nazis during World War II.

One time, middle sister asked her mother why the ten-minute area is so disconcerting. Her mother responded that some places are just stuck the way they are, much like people. In particular, middle sister’s mother is thinking of her father, who was depressed for the majority of his life. Middle sister’s father suffered from depression—though that would not have been the official diagnosis at the time—which her mother felt was undeserved. As far as middle sister’s mother knew, her father did not experience anything tragic, and therefore she thought he had no right to be as depressed as he was. However, middle sister’s father’s depression—which saw him constantly looking for newspaper clippings of atrocities and other instances of sadness and violence—eventually landed him in a mental institution, which he frequented until his death.

Middle sister contemplates the nature of depression and happiness in her area. She thinks that her community refuses to entertain what she calls “shiny” people—those who stand out because of their optimistic outlook and healthy lifestyle. Due to the violent and upsetting history of Northern Ireland, middle sister fears that her community—including she herself—is stuck in a mindset of pessimism and anger. She can think of only a few people who are “shiny,” one of which is her French teacher. Maybe-boyfriend comes close to making the cut, but his hoarding tendencies hold him back, in middle sister’s estimation. Middle sister’s community does not like “shiny” people or exceptionally depressed people like her father. As such, the acceptable position is to feel and exhibit a general sense of malaise.

As middle sister walks by the collapsed church, she looks again at the sunset through the trees of a nearby graveyard. Again, she contemplates what it would mean if she accepted that the sky is not blue. Then, she lets her eyes drift to the rubble of the collapsed church, where she spots a decapitated cat’s head. 

The sight of the cat’s head doesn’t surprise middle sister. Cats are thought to be “subversive, witch-like, the left hand, bad luck, feminine.” The men and boys in middle sister’s community regularly kill and abuse cats, and though this is common knowledge, nobody really talks about it. Although middle sister has never hurt a cat, she dislikes them and tends to stay away from them. Meanwhile, dogs are considered noble, protective animals, and many families in the area have one.

Middle sister remembers how one day, a group of British soldiers rounded up every dog in the area they could find and slit their throats. Then, they piled the bodies up next to petrol bombs, which the Irish citizens planned to use in their next riot. Killing the dogs served two purposes for the British. First, it was a warning against further action and unrest. Second, it eliminated a group of animals that Irish people used to help warn them of the British presence.

The night the dogs were killed, the men of the community, excluding middle sister’s father, came together and began sorting out the pile of dog corpses. They gave the corpse of each dog to its family, so they could take it home and bury it. Throughout the process, families hoped and prayed that their dog was not part of the pile. Middle sister’s dog, Lassie, luckily ended up being okay, as they found her at home where she belonged. Lassie’s survival helped middle sister forget the terrible sight of the other dead dogs.

Back in the present, middle sister suddenly finds herself feeling emotional about the cat’s head—emotion that she has never felt about a dead cat before. She thinks again about her French teacher’s view of the world and wonders whether things could be better if she altered her behavior. Then, she uses two handkerchiefs to pick up the cat’s head. Her plan is to find a better resting place for it. As she picks it up, she wonders if anyone is watching her. She does not want this moment to result in further rumors about her peculiar behavior.

As middle sister stands up with the cat’s head wrapped in her handkerchiefs, she turns around and almost runs directly into the milkman. The milkman asks middle sister if she is coming from her Greek and Roman class, though it is as much a statement as it is a question. Middle sister mentally notes that the milkman is incorrect about what class she is taking, though she does not say so out loud.

Then, the milkman begins asking middle sister questions—which, again, sound more like statements—about maybe-boyfriend. He seems to know everything about their relationship: where they go drinking, that they have sex. He even knows about their habit of watching sunsets. When the milkman mentions the sunsets, he says it disapprovingly, as though he thinks watching sunsets is not an activity for a man. Additionally, the milkman reveals that there is a rumor going around the neighborhood that maybe-boyfriend brought home a supercharger with a British flag on it.

Wanting to defend maybe-boyfriend, middle sister lies and says someone else at his workplace got the part of the car with the British flag on it. In doing so, she also calls maybe-boyfriend simply: “boyfriend,” in hopes of dissuading the milkman from pursuing her further. Immediately, middle sister regrets her decision. She does not know if anyone at maybe-boyfriend’s workplace is Protestant. Either way, she has chosen to lie.

The milkman begins speaking to middle sister about car bombs, and she does not understand why. At first, she thinks he is simply talking about second sister’s dead husband who died in a car bomb, though she is unsure why he would bring that up. Eventually, she realizes that the milkman is issuing a veiled threat, implying that he could kill maybe-boyfriend with a car bomb if he wanted to. Middle sister knows that the public would read maybe-boyfriend’s death as politically motivated, even though maybe-boyfriend is as disengaged from politics as one could possibly be given the circumstances. In reality, maybe-boyfriend’s death would be about sexual jealousy, though no one except the milkman and middle sister would ever know that.

Middle sister takes a minute to reflect on what she actually knows about the milkman. She has always taken for granted that he was a renouncer, but she wonders if that is actually the case. She knows of instances where people have claimed to be renouncers and built up big reputations for themselves because of their claimed identity, when in reality they have had little to do with paramilitary activities.

One such person is Somebody McSomebody, who is from a family of renouncers. Somebody McSomebody first approached middle sister when they were 17 and expressed his romantic interest. When she rejected him, he began identifying himself using the first person plural (“we”) and issued strange threats about how middle sister would come to regret turning him down.

Leaving aside Somebody McSomebody for the time being, middle sister reflects on how renouncers are treated by the area at large. Generally speaking, renouncers are the people who hold the power in Irish Catholic communities, and—if one is a good Irish Catholic—one is expected to look up to and admire them. In reality, most people in middle sister’s community are conflicted on how they feel about the renouncers, but they would never say so out loud.

Women, in particular, tend to flock to the renouncers because it is thought that they will make good husbands (or flings) and provide them with power in the community. Middle sister refers to these women as “paramilitary groupies.” At heart, she believes they are careerists and opportunists, who are only looking out for themselves. For this reason, middle sister is particularly offended that her mother thinks she is one of these women.

Middle sister thinks back to her conversation with her mother regarding the milkman. Her mother talked to her about how having an affair with a renouncer is an empty, soulless, life that is bound to lead to heartbreak and violence. Although her mother does not want middle sister around renouncer men at all, she admitted that she would be slightly more accepting of it if middle sister were to marry one. Even so, middle sister’s mother warned her that her husband would likely end up dead or imprisoned. Meanwhile, middle sister is frustrated because she is not involved with a renouncer man and her own mother is part of the group propagating the rumor that the opposite is true.

During one of middle sister’s trips to a local club—she does not specify when—a number of paramilitary groupies approached her while she was in the bathroom. The groupies treated her as if she was one of them and told her how beautiful she was, comparing her to famous actresses. Middle sister does not believe a word they say, though she recognizes it as their attempt to bring her into their group.

The paramilitary groupies unsettle middle sister. They seem attracted to violence and chaos in a manner she cannot fathom. Middle sister always assumed—in part, because of her mother—that these women tolerated the violence, but now she sees they in fact like it. She can also tell that the women understand and embody something about sexuality that she cannot yet grasp. When it comes to sexual matters, middle sister is still relatively inexperienced. Maybe-boyfriend is the only person she has had sex with.

On a separate occasion, while out at the same club, Somebody McSomebody approached middle sister after hearing the rumors that she was interested in the milkman. On that night, Somebody McSomebody pretends to be a high-ranking renouncer himself, though middle sister does not believe a word he said. He attempts to appeal to middle sister’s renouncer connections. Two of her brothers, one of whom died, had also been known renouncers, though middle sister was the last one in her family to find out.

Once again, middle sister rejects Somebody McSomebody. She does not find Somebody McSomebody attractive and has no interest in renouncers. She does feel bad for him because several of his family members are renouncers and have died for the cause. However, just because she feels bad for him, does not mean she wants to date him. After middle sister rejects Somebody McSomebody, he starts issuing explicit threats toward her, though he does not act on them.

Back in the present, middle sister is still standing next to the milkman, holding the decapitated cat’s head in her hands. Distracted in thought and fear, middle sister suddenly gets a shiver down her spine when she feels the fang of the cat’s head poke through the handkerchief and stab her. After that unsettling moment, another immediately follows, as the milkman offers to give middle sister rides to wherever she needs to go. Although he phrases his words as if he is suggesting something rather than demanding it, the entire situation reeks of menace. Middle sister knows his “offer” means no more walking, no more running, and—most of all—no more maybe-boyfriend.

Moments after the milkman makes his offer, four men suddenly emerge from the surrounding area. At first, middle sister does not know who they are. She worries that they are state defenders who have come for the milkman and will assume that she and the milkman are together. However, she quickly realizes that they are all associates of the milkman, as they all walk off in the same direction. The milkman joins them without saying a word.

After the milkman leaves, middle sister continues her walk home, eager to find a safe and peaceful place for the cat’s head. Just as she finally leaves the ten minute area, she hears a car approaching, which she fears belongs to the milkman. As it turns out, middle sister was partially correct. In the car is real milkman, the town’s actual milkman, who is friends with her mother and whom she knows quite well.

Real milkman asks middle sister if she is okay. Middle sister is not sure what to say. She doesn’t think she should tell real milkman about her trouble with the renouncers. Instead, she blurts out that she is going to bury the cat’s head. Middle sister’s strange response does not perturb real milkman. In fact, he offers to take it off her and bury it himself if it would make her feel better. Middle sister gives him the head after he promises that has a nice spot to bury it and will not simply dispose of it the first chance he gets.

Real milkman also offers middle sister a ride home, which she accepts. On the way home, real milkman says middle sister’s mother is over at Somebody McSomebody’s house because another one of his brothers just died. This time, it was a three-year-old, who fell out of a window when no one was watching him. Real milkman says the community is trying to spin the story in a hopeful manner, albeit with a political bent, by claiming the child thought he was Superman. In reality, though, real milkman suspects the child simply died because his mother was lying in bed, depressed, and not watching him.

Then, real milkman switches the subject to wee sisters. He asks middle sister how they are doing in school. He has noticed that they are incredibly intelligent, though he worries that middle sister’s mother is not doing enough to foster their talents. Middle sister responds that she is not sure. Mentally, she thinks about how she does not feel responsible for her wee sisters’ education because she is not their parent.

Real milkman’s inquires also causes middle sister to remember a time when she and her elder sisters caught wee sisters looking at British newspapers. When she and her sisters asked wee sisters what they were doing, they responded that they were trying to understand the other side’s perspective. Their response was anathema to everything middle sister had ever been taught or assumed. Middle sister and her elder sisters turned off the lights and closed the shutters so no one could see what wee sisters were doing. They urged wee sisters never to read anything like that again. Middle sister wonders whether the renouncers would do anything to wee sisters if they ever found out about what transpired.

In the present, real milkman tells middle sister that someone else should take responsibility for wee sisters’ education. Middle sister wonders whether he is referring to her. Then, real milkman abruptly changes the subject. He asks middle sister if she would be open to speaking with someone about her encounters with the milkman. Although he does not explicitly reference the milkman, middle sister knows what he means. Sensing middle sister’s discomfort, real milkman apologizes, before suggesting that she might want to talk to the local feminist group about what has been happening.

Middle sister finds real milkman’s suggestion outrageous, although she does not say so. She knows he is simply trying to help, but the local feminist group are considered pariahs in the community, and middle sister is trying her best to stay under the radar. Real milkman’s suggestion causes middle sister to think about how the local feminist group came to be. It started with one Irish Catholic woman posting a flier in her window, encouraging women of all backgrounds to come over and discuss feminism.

Although the flier caused a stir in the local community, it was considered largely harmless at first. All it resulted in was seven women getting together to discuss feminist ideas, which did not bother anyone in the community. However, problems arose when an eighth member, a Protestant woman, joined the group. As soon as the renouncers caught wind of the Protestant woman, they barged in on one of the group’s meetings.

Because the other women in the group knew the renouncers would likely show up, they warned the Protestant woman to stay away because they did not want her to get into trouble. Still, the renouncers tore apart the shed where the meeting was held, hoping to find something. Then, they warned the women not to allow the Protestant woman to return. In response, the women angrily told the renouncers that they planned to invite the Protestant woman in the future, which caused a local uproar. Eventually, it was agreed upon that the Protestant woman would not come to any future meetings.

Additionally, the feminists became disliked in the community when they started protesting during curfews. Women throughout the community regularly protested curfews because they knew no paramilitary groups would bother them for doing so. If they did, it would look horrible on their part. However, the traditional women of the community became concerned when the feminists started protesting at the same time because they did not want their separate causes to get confused.

Middle sister does not reveal her thoughts about the feminists to real milkman. As usual, she does not like sharing her opinions, and they have almost arrived at her house anyway. Before she gets out of his vehicle, real milkman once again promises to bury the cat head for her. Distractedly, middle sister exits the vehicle without thanking real milkman and heads inside.