Northern Spy

Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2021

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Summary

Background

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Part 1, Chapters 1-8

Part 1, Chapters 9-13

Part 2, Chapters 14-22

Part 2, Chapters 23-35

Part 3, Chapter 36-Epilogue

Character Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

Tools

Beta

Discussion Questions

Symbols & Motifs

The Northern Spy Apple

The Northern Spy apple is a symbol that appears twice in the narrative: when Tessa is making an apple pie for Finn and as the book’s title. Northern Spy apples are known for their ability to thrive in harsh and cold conditions. Allegedly, the first apple tree of its kind was found in New York State and proved capable of weathering the terrible winters of the area. In both instances of its inclusion, the apple comes to symbolize the resilience and adaptive quality of not only Tessa and the Daly family as a whole but also of the people of Northern Ireland, given their perilous and violent history. The apple is also a bit of a play on words, aptly describing Tessa’s role as an informer, or spy, for Northern Ireland. Both the people and land have also come to showcase some of the apple’s known qualities. Though Tessa and her sister are often found in dangerous situations, they both find a way to forge on and accommodate their situation. Likewise, though the people of Northern Ireland have seen and continue to see abundant horrors and deaths, they remain capable of having a daily life. Textually, therefore, it helps to support the theme of mundanity in civil warfare as it signifies how resiliency and adaptability are integral parts of surviving in a constantly dangerous environment like Northern Ireland.

Swimming

Swimming is a recurring motif within the story, where the act often becomes a point of peace and reprieve for both Tessa and Marian. In the first chapter, when Marian is meant to be in Ballintoy, Tessa hopes that she will be able to swim in its caves since she sees swimming as the opposite of Marian’s career: “[Swimming in the caves] would be like an antidote, the quiet and spaciousness. The exact opposite of Belfast, of her work as a paramedic, sitting in the back of an ambulance, racing through red lights, steeling herself for the moment when the door opens” (8). For Tessa herself, swimming is an act that allows her to isolate herself from the ceaseless “bad news,” as swimming cuts her off from the real world: “I won’t know if anything happens, the bad news can’t find me here” (91). Later, swimming becomes a ritualistic aspect of her meetings with Eamonn. Though used as a cover for why she’s absented herself and needs someone to look after Finn while she’s gone, swimming in the lough by her home nevertheless creates a distinction between her two roles: Before she swims, she’s playing the part of the informant with Eamonn, and after emerging from the waters, she’s playing the part of a “normal person” who has an affiliation with the IRA.

The Republic of Ireland

The idea of the Republic of Ireland is often used as a symbol to motivate the IRA to maintain their pursuit of reunification as well as serve as a historical reminder of Northern Ireland’s colonized state. Tessa explains in the beginning of the narrative that “the basic argument of the Troubles hadn’t been resolved: most Catholics still wanted a united Ireland, most Protestants wanted to remain part of the UK” (7). In other words, the discontent with the socio-economic situation of Catholics has yet to find a solution, and for most, the one and only way to resolve the issue is to secede from the United Kingdom. Instead, they would rejoin the Republic of Ireland, where, they presume, respect will be offered and discrimination will be minimized. For many, therefore, achieving reunification is synonymous with the idea of freedom, a state of being without oppression. These anti-colonial sentiments are deeply felt by Marian and the IRA, which is why she can claim that bombing power stations, for instance, is justified as she “want[s] a free Ireland” (100). Though most wouldn’t go to such extremes to achieve this goal, many Catholics are of the same opinion as they struggle with the British government’s continuing rule. Even Tessa, a news editor for the largest British media outlet, wishes for reunification: “‘I want a free Ireland,’ said Marian, as though I don’t, too, as though I’m on the side of the colonialists” (106). As a symbol, therefore, the idea of the Republic of Ireland lends itself to the theme of The Collateral Cost of the Greater Good, as it often justifies the gruesome actions taken by the IRA to achieve reunification.