The Feast of Lupercal
| Company type | Novel |
|---|---|
| Industry | Literature |
| Founded | 1957 |
| Founder | Brian Moore |
| Products | Fiction book |
The Feast of Lupercal is a work of fiction authored by Northern Irish-Canadian writer Brian Moore. Its initial publication occurred in the United States in 1957 through the Boston-based publisher Little Brown, followed by a 1958 release in the United Kingdom via London’s André Deutsch. A paperback version appeared in 1969, issued by Panther Books under the alternative title A Moment of Love.
Plot
The narrative is set against the backdrop of 1950s Belfast and centers on Diarmuid Devine, a 37-year-old Catholic male educator who remains unmarried and lacks sexual experience. Upon overhearing a coworker refer to him as “that old woman,” he becomes acutely aware that time is slipping away. Subsequently, he develops an interest in a Protestant woman nearly two decades younger than himself, who is in the process of recovering from a relationship with a married man.
Critical review
Poet Patrick Hicks observes that Moore employs this novel to critique prevailing notions of masculinity within the educational system, marking him as one of the pioneering male authors to adopt an explicitly feminist perspective.
Jo O'Donoghue, in her work Brian Moore: A Critical Study, emphasizes the novel’s pronounced anti-clerical message, portraying it as a thorough denunciation of Catholicism’s role in limiting personal freedom. She links this critical tone to Moore’s own background in religious schooling.