Surviving the Oppression in the Time of the Troubles: Anna Burns’s Milkman

Abstract

Anna Burns’s Milkman (2018) recounts the story of an eighteen-year-old woman, named the middle sister, who struggles to survive the communal oppression and physical and psychological violence at the time of the Troubles in the Northern Ireland in the 1970s. The novel revolves around the middle sister’s tumultuous relationship with her family, boyfriend, and neighbours, and her attempts to avoid the stalking and sexual harassment of a Republican paramilitary, named Milkman. Accused of being different due to her habit of reading-while-walking, the middle sister is perceived as a threat to the community and stigmatised by the people. Demonstrating the operation of the communal oppression from the eyes of a young woman, Milkman also portrays in the background the violent atmosphere of the Troubles and its trauma experienced by the individuals. While the middle sister strives to protect herself from the neighbours’ gossips and calumny, she also tries to avoid Milkman’s threats and abuse. The middle sister, who struggles to survive in such an environment prevailed by oppression and abuse, also witnesses the general sense of paranoia and fear instilled in people’s minds due to the constant threat that the political conflicts and violence pose on the society. Therefore, this article aims to examine how the novel displays the working of violence and oppression in this tense and dreary atmosphere, and discuss how oppression is performed in every social layer, from a small neighbourhood to the whole country, both physically and psychologically.