Night Watch: A Novel

Night Watch revolves around the traumas of the main characters, and the broken timeline of the novel emphasizes the lasting effects of those traumas. The traumas of the novel are inherently tied to the idea of invasion, with Papa invading the ridge, invading Eliza’s home, and physically invading Eliza and ConaLee through sexual assault. These invasions frame trauma as a fundamental issue of self-defense and self-perception after the initial trauma takes place, and the novel is essentially an exploration of Eliza and ConaLee’s struggle to overcome their traumas. Eliza struggles with her own construction of identity after feeling like she failed to protect herself and her daughter, while ConaLee suffers “fits” to protect herself from a trauma she does not fully realize. For both characters, there is no clear resolution to the long-term effects of their trauma. Instead, they each find their own methods for recovery and tranquility in their new lives.

Early in the novel, ConaLee recalls Dearbhla’s advice regarding Papa: “Hear me, ConaLee. No matter what that man do, you fly to me in your mind. I hold you until he go away” (36). Dearbhla’s recommendation is that ConaLee try to actively black out her own experience to protect her psyche from the trauma of Papa’s assaults.