Paddy clarke ha ha ha

Paddy Clarke is a ten-year-old boy growing up in Barrytown, Dublin in 1968. He lives in a small Catholic community with his family. He reads with a child’s voraciousness and collects facts and bits of information wherever he can. He has a kind of innocence that only small children can posses. The following quote is an example of this. “Heaven was supposed to be a great place but nobody knew much about it. There were mansions – ‘one each?’ – ‘Yes’ ‘Do you have to live by yourself?’ Father Moloney didn’t answer quickly enough. ‘Can your ma not live with you?’ She can of course.’” But towards the end of the book he becomes more mature, most of his innocence is lost, by the very end he is almost cynical. “When my da left or even my ma I was going to go out

“The only bit I missed was the talking not having anyone to talk to. I liked talking. I didn’t try to get any of them to talk to me. They all followed Kevin.”

“Kevin was waiting. He’d told some other fella’s. They were waiting I didn’t care. I wasn’t scared. He’d beaten me every other time. They were different; I hadn’t wanted to win. Now I didn’t care. He hurt me I’d hurt him. It didn’t matter who won.” After the fight his ‘friends’ isolate him. “I had a limp and a was hungry. I had Kevin’s blood on my trousers. I was on my own.” When Paddy walks away from the fight he is pelted with stones from the spectators. This to him is a sure sign he has no friends. Kevin is evidently the ‘ring leader’ and when Paddy and him were best friends Paddy had some of Kevin’s power over the others. But when they fell out Paddy is left isolated. In a way you get the impression that isolation is what Paddy really wants but isn’t sure once he gets it.

Some topics in this essay:
Kevin’s Paddy’s, Kevin” Paddy’s, Christmas Eve, Ha Ha’, Hennesy Paddy’s, Barrytown Dublin, Grand National’, Father Moloney, Paddy Kevin’s, Patrick Clarke, ha ha, paddy clarke, paddy clarke ha, clarke ha ha, ha ha ha, clarke ha, boys aren’t, grand national’, -how hand, doesn’t understand, didn’t care, ha ha ha’, friends paddy, ‘the grand national’, ‘the grand,