Small Things Like These is a poignant and quietly powerful novella by Irish author Claire Keegan, first published in 2021. The story is set in the early 1980s in a small Irish town and follows Bill Furlong, a middle-aged coal and timber merchant, as he grapples with personal and moral dilemmas during the Christmas season. The novella has received critical acclaim for its exploration of themes such as complicity, redemption, and the impact of institutional power on ordinary lives. In 2023, it was adapted into a feature film directed by Gerard Barrett.
Plot Synopsis:
In the film and the novella, Bill Furlong is a man of simple, quiet dignity. He runs his coal and timber business, working hard to support his wife, Eileen, and their five daughters. He’s an upstanding citizen, well-liked by his neighbors, but he carries a deep inner conflict. Bill was raised in poverty by a single mother, and his life has been shaped by the struggles of his childhood. The story takes place in the run-up to Christmas, a time when the town is enveloped in a sense of both hope and oppressive silence.
As Bill makes his daily deliveries of coal and timber, he discovers a troubling secret that forces him to confront his own conscience. He delivers coal to a local convent, where the nuns have been running a laundry known as the "Magdalene Laundries," a notorious institution that housed "fallen women" — women who were often victims of abuse or had been deemed immoral by society. The convent’s dark and harsh environment is a microcosm of the broader societal injustices of the time, particularly the way women and girls were treated by the church and by their communities.
Bill becomes aware that something is terribly wrong in the convent, as he overhears a conversation between two of the nuns that hints at the mistreatment of girls within the walls of the institution. One of these girls, in particular, is a young woman who has been abandoned by her family. Bill’s growing concern about what he has discovered intensifies when he becomes aware that a girl has gone missing.
As Bill tries to piece together the mystery, he is also dealing with personal conflicts. He is a man of integrity, but his quiet, law-abiding life is built on the foundation of avoiding uncomfortable truths. Bill must confront whether to take action and expose the wrongs happening around him or to turn a blind eye to protect his family and his livelihood. His decision will have far-reaching consequences for his own soul and for the future of the women trapped within the convent's walls.
Themes:
- Moral Conscience and Complicity: The central theme of Small Things Like These is the struggle between moral integrity and self-preservation. Bill Furlong is a man who knows right from wrong but has spent his life avoiding difficult choices, choosing a path of quiet acceptance and inaction. The novel explores how individuals come to terms with their complicity in societal wrongs, whether through ignorance or fear. The story asks if one can truly stand by while others suffer, even when the consequences of intervention are personal and grave.
- The Power of Silence: The silence that surrounds Bill’s small town and the convent reflects a broader societal silence around issues of abuse and injustice. People, for the most part, are content to ignore what happens behind closed doors, out of fear or indifference. Keegan paints a portrait of a town where everyone knows something is wrong, but no one speaks of it, allowing the abuse to continue.
- The Church and Institutional Abuse: Set against the backdrop of 1980s Ireland, a country still heavily influenced by the Catholic Church, the novella deals with the power dynamics between the church and its followers. The Magdalene Laundries were infamous institutions where unmarried mothers, pregnant women, and women who were perceived as having fallen from grace were sent to live and work in harsh conditions. These women were often denied their human dignity and subjected to physical and emotional abuse. Keegan sensitively explores how the church, as an institution, exploited its power to silence, control, and oppress these women.
- Family and Protection: Bill’s love for his wife and daughters is contrasted with his sense of duty towards the girls in the convent. The novella questions the cost of protecting one’s family at the expense of the broader moral imperative to help others. Bill is constantly balancing his responsibility as a husband and father with his evolving sense of what is right, which ultimately forces him to question the limits of personal loyalty and family protection.
- The Fragility of Human Life: The novella’s title, Small Things Like These, refers to the seemingly insignificant moments of kindness, compassion, and humanity that can shift the course of one’s life. The novella suggests that small acts — whether they be gestures of kindness, or moments of courage to do what is right — can have profound consequences, not only for those directly involved but for the greater community as a whole.
Film Adaptation:
The film adaptation, which premiered in 2023, stays quite faithful to the novella’s setting and tone, translating the quiet, introspective nature of Keegan’s writing into visual form. Director Gerard Barrett brings a subtle and restrained style to the film, capturing the somber mood of the Irish winter and the weight of Bill’s internal conflict.
The film’s visual aesthetic is one of muted tones and close-up shots, focusing on Bill’s expressions and moments of stillness that communicate his internal turmoil. Much like the novella, the film moves slowly and deliberately, allowing the audience to fully immerse themselves in the quiet desperation of Bill’s world. The cinematography emphasizes the contrast between the warmth of Bill’s home and the cold, isolating environment of the convent.
Bill Furlong, portrayed by Mark O'Halloran, is a man of few words but immense depth. His performance conveys the weight of his character’s inner life — a man trying to reconcile his good nature with the harsh realities he uncovers. The supporting cast, including Catherine Walker as Bill's wife, and Emily Taaffe as one of the young women in the convent, deliver sensitive portrayals of the people trapped by the broader societal structures.
The film has been praised for its haunting, minimalist score, which complements the visual storytelling, and its ability to capture the emotional landscape of the characters without being overtly melodramatic. Much like the novella, the film is deeply atmospheric, allowing the viewer to feel the tension of a man who knows what is right but is afraid to take a stand.
Reception:
Both the novella and the film have garnered critical acclaim for their emotional depth, their exploration of difficult moral questions, and the way they capture the complexities of life in small-town Ireland. Claire Keegan’s writing is often described as sparse but devastatingly powerful, and the film adaptation has been praised for preserving the essence of her work while translating it effectively to the screen.
Audiences and critics have noted how Small Things Like These offers a meditation on the power of silence, the responsibility of individuals to confront injustice, and the complexity of human relationships, all set against the backdrop of a society struggling to reconcile its ideals with its failings.