Book Review: Milkman by Anna Burns

Milkman, an intriguing novel by Irish novelist Anna Burns tells the tale of a young woman in an embattled, unnamed city who faces constant discriminatory behaviour from the people around her for the way she chooses to live her life. Set against the Northern Ireland conflict, the novel reveals the characteristic spirit of the late 60s to 90s, where everyone and everything was under surveillance. Throughout the novel, the 18-year-old narrator does not name any character. They are either named after what they do or based on how they relate to her, like the real milkman, maybe-boyfriend, third brother-in-law, wee sisters, and so on. 

"There was the fact that you created a political statement everywhere you went, and with everything you did, even if you didn't want to."

As much as she tries to stay away from the 'Troubles' by hiding herself behind books, she is all the more drawn towards it against her will. 

She is judged for the books she read (Why were you reading Ivanhoe?), policed for the places she visit, the people she goes out with and for all her convictions. 

"This was certain girls not being tolerated if it was deemed they did not defer to males, did not acknowledge the superiority of males, might even go so far as almost to contradict males, basically, the female wayward, a species insolent and far too sure of herself." 

In her world, men mark women as their property, are misogynistic and thrive on patriarchal norms. Her desire to remain silent and unnoticed is trampled when a senior paramilitary figure, called the Milkman, a "renouncer of the state," begins following her every move. Soon enough, she is portrayed in her community as having an affair with him when the truth is far from it. She believes that being noticed comes with its share of danger and so she remains silent about what goes on in her life. However, the reader eventually notices how choosing inaction lands the narrator in more trouble. 

Milkman deals with affairs every reader can connect with, across time, geography, gender and political beliefs. It is vocal about the most prevalent issues like gaslighting, forced marriage, fragile masculinity, blatant sexism, and more. As the story progresses, despite her everyday battles, we see how the narrator herself turns out to be biased in her views of the role of men in society.

 

"In his working life....he had started getting called chef on the sites as part of a joke about his liking cooking when a man shouldn't like cooking.."

Yet another part reminded me of the politics of marriage.

"...fear of being alone because of the social stigma that automatically attached to it. Marry anybody therefore. He'll do. Yer man there will do. Or she'll do. Pick yer woman. Then there was being bullied into it because you have to fit convention, because you can't let people down - the date's been set, the cake's been ordered, haven't you even gone and booked the honeymoon? Then there was fear of oneself, of one's independence, of one's potential, so avoid that path by marrying somebody not on it.." 

Milkman follows a non-linear narrative and the writing is dense. Most chapters go on for as long as 40 pages, leaving the reader with limited breakpoints. And for the same reason, it demands much focus and patience. The characters are nameless, except for a few (Lawrence, Jason, George and some fifty off others). However, no woman is ever named in this book, which in itself tells how insignificant they always are. The book begins slow and the only reason anybody would continue reading it is for Burns' sarcastic, wry humour and compelling storytelling.