The Untilled Field (1903) is a nonlinear collection of short stories mostly set in rural Ireland at the turn of the century. Echoing a disparaging view that George Moore took in Parnell and His Island (1887), The Untilled Field also sharpens his critique of Roman Catholicism in Evelyn Innes (1898) and Sister Teresa (1901). The book is conditionally nationalist and fervently anticlerical.
Only one of the stories is entitled “The Exile,” but all concern the causes and effects in Ireland of mass migration to the United States. The book argues that Ireland, for various reasons, is no country for young men and women. Poverty and religion have made the “joy of life” impossible there.
The Untilled Field was written to promote the Irish Literary Revival, which George Moore helped begin as a playwright. One of its notable impacts may have been to inspire Dubliners (1914), the collection of short stories James Joyce began writing soon after The Untilled Field appeared.
The longest story in The Untilled Field is “The Wild Goose,” which also contains an original score in the style of Irish traditional music. A scan of the musical notation accompanies the story on GMi. A recording is in the works.
Stories
1903-04-20 — The Untilled Field — In the Clay
1903-04-20 — The Untilled Field — Some Parishioners
1903-04-20 — The Untilled Field — The Exile
1903-04-20 — The Untilled Field — Home Sickness
1903-04-20 — The Untilled Field — A Letter to Rome
1903-04-20 — The Untilled Field — Julia Cahill’s Curse
1903-04-20 — The Untilled Field — A Play-House in the Waste
1903-04-20 — The Untilled Field — The Wedding Gown
1903-04-20 — The Untilled Field — The Clerk’s Quest
1903-04-20 — The Untilled Field — Alms-Giving
1903-04-20 — The Untilled Field — So On He Fares
1903-04-20 — The Untilled Field — The Wild Goose
1903-04-20 — The Untilled Field — The Way Back
The Untilled Field (AI)
The Untilled Field (AI) is a PDF of the first edition that may be uploaded to AI applications such as Notebook LM for guided analysis and interpretation.
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