Book Club Discussion Questions and Guide for The Temporary Gentleman by Sebastian Barry

1. The Temporary Gentleman opens just before Jack is plunged into the sea. How does this scene set the stage for the rest of the novel?
2. Jack is considered a "temporary gentleman" because of his status as an Irishman with a temporary officer's commission in the British army. Does your understanding of the phrase change over the course of the book?
3. If Mai adored her father as much as Jack believed, why did she ignore his pleas to end her relationship with Jack? What does Mai's obsession with the cinema tell you about her character?
4. After Mai and Jack have their first child, Mai's brother—also named Jack—signs Grattan House over to them. Could Jack McNulty have maintained the family home if he hadn't been a gambler and a drinker?
5. Is it really possible that Jack could live with Mai and not realize she had begun to drink?
6. Discuss the way in which Jack's red hair is used as a symbol for his relationship with Mai.
7. Jack's parents provided a loving and supportive home for their children. Yet, each of their sons encounters mostly tragedy and heartbreak. Was their generation somehow damned by the era in which they lived?
8. One night on the battlefield, Jack McNulty meets the other Jack McNulty—his distant cousin from the Protestant branch of the McNultys. What is the significance of their encounter?
9. Why does Sebastian Barry make Tom Quaye the same age as Jack and give him the same name as Jack's brother and an Irish accent?
10. Does Jack do all he can to protect Maggie and Ursula? Does he deserve their forgiveness?
11. After Mai's death, Jack makes it his mission to solve the mystery of his mother's parentage. And in Ghana, he works to reunite Tom Quaye with his estranged wife. Do these acts atone for the pain he inflicted on Mai?
12. Why does Jack plan to burn the memoir that he so painstakingly wrote?
13. Does Jack truly want to return to Ireland? Or does he invite his own death?

Unless otherwise stated, this discussion guide is reprinted with the permission of Viking. Any page references refer to a USA edition of the book, usually the trade paperback version, and may vary in other editions.