Earnan Gowan

Earnan Gowan (April 3, 1854-1920)

Biography

Early life and education

Earnan Gowan was born on April 3, 1854 to parents Ana and Conan in Connaught, Ireland. Just two years later, in 1896, the family of seven was forced to move because of the drastic effects of the Irish Potato Famine. Earnan's parents moved the family to Dublin in search of employment. Although the conditions of Dublin were rather poor, Conan was able to find jobs doing casual labor and services while Ana stayed home and raised the five children. Conan was barely able to support the children, but made sure that his only son, Earnan went to school. Earnan's sisters stayed home to help his mother around the house. They would frequently walk about town trying to find odd jobs to help bring some money home for the family.

In 1859, when Earnan was only five years old, his youngest sister Rosaleen died of an unknown illness. Both Ana and Conan took the death of their youngest child hard. As a result, Conan began to drink regularly and often came home from work belligerent. Most of the grunt of Conan's anger was taken out on Earnan. Conan beat Earnan daily, often times as his wife and daughters watched on.

Even though Conan was not the best father, he still kept his promise of sending his only son to school. Gowan attended Belvedere College as a boy. This was where he found his love for literature. Gowan loved to read and especially enjoyed the poetry of Thomas Moore and the works of Sir Walter Scott and Lord Lytton. He would often borrow the books from school to take home and read. This literature became a refuge for the young boy; often times reading to escape his father and his abuse.

Gowan was a very bright student, and when financial troubles forced him to leave school, the College provided him with a scholarship so he could attend for free. Gowan continued his education and did well enough so that he could enroll in college. He was accepted into Trinity College, a constituent of Dublin University, and began attending school there in 1873.

Along with literature, Gowan also became interested in girls while attending Belvedere College. He was often seen playing in the streets chasing girls. Gowan had many girlfriends as a child and affectionately referred to them as his sweethearts. He would often talk to his mother about his sweethearts saying what nice soft hair they had and how soft their hands were. Ana listened happily to his stories, glad that girls were interested in her only son. Conan, on the other hand, found these sweethearts to be another reason to beat Earnan. If Conan ever found Gowan talking to girls he would whip him. Because of this, Earnan would often lie to his father about having a sweetheart. When Conan found out Gowan had lied to him, he gave him the worst whipping he had ever endured. After this, Gowan stopped talking about sweethearts, and quit playing with the girls after school.

College

As a nineteen-year-old in Trinity College, Gowan continued to excel academically. He continued his love for reading and literature. Often times staying home to read and study, while his fellow classmates went out with friends or to the bars. Gowan still enjoyed reading Moore and Scott, but really began to enjoy Lord Lytton's works. Although he read his works as a child, Gowan began to truly understand Lord Lytton's genius. From his poetry, to his historic novels, Gowan read almost every piece of Lord Lytton's works. It was while reading "Richelieu: or, The Conspiracy," that Lytton's works really hit home. His quote, "the pen is mightier than the sword," rang true for Gowan. It was as he graduated college that Gowan became interested in writing.

Travels

London

When Gowan graduated from Trinity College in 1877, he decided to travel the world instead of getting a job and starting his career. He travelled to Great Britain where he explored the cities of Liverpool, Glasgow, and Bristol. Gowan was seduced by the world's largest capital, London, and decided to settle there in 1878 to begin his writing career. Gowan’s early works were short stories loosely based on his childhood in Dublin. These stories often involved young boys in school and the adventures they had. Gowan tried several times to get these stories published, but was turned down every time. Because of this refusal, Gowan never formally titled these works. They are commonly referred to as, "The Tales of Young Boys"."

A few months after living in London, Gowan met Algernon Charles Swinburne. Although Swinburne was seventeen years his senior, Gowan and him became fast friends. Swinburne, who at the time was considered London's premier poet, was also an alcoholic. Gowan, who had managed to stay sober his whole life, presumably because of the effects it had on his father, was an amateur when it came to drinking. He was soon intrigued by the wild life Swinburne led, and began to frequent the parties and bars with him. Typically, they would drink all day, and then write into the night. Swinburne would write his controversial poems about sadomachism and lesbianism, while Gowan was still trying to find his writing niche. Although, the two went on to do this for about a year, much of what Gowan wrote in that year has never been seen nor read.

The relationship of these two men was questionable. While the two said they were strictly friends, many believed them to be lovers. This relationship remains ambiguous until this day. However, a large portion of Gowan's memoir is about Swinburne, who is referred to anonymously in his book as, "my lost friend"."

The two continued to write together for almost a year until an unknown incident caused a falling out between the two. Some believe that the men had broken up and ended their relationship, while others believed Gowan just wanted to get back to Dublin. Years after the split, Gowan learned that Swinburne had fallen ill due to a mental breakdown (it is rumored that the breakdown was a result of the couple splitting up.) Gowan began writing letters to Swinburne; however, he never received any response from him. Gowan later published these letters as, "Letters to a Lost Friend."

GWR

After his stay in London, Gowan's funds were beginning to run low. Since none of his works were being published, Gowan had no income. Discouraged by his lack of publishing, and of his lost friend Swinburne, Gowan decided to give up writing, and to try a new profession. Still not wanting to return to Dublin, Gowan began doing odd jobs around Great Britain. He later took a job with the Great Western Railway (GWR). It was while working near Paddington Station, that Gowan suffered a blow to the leg by a railroad pick. This injury would force Gowan to permanently walk with a cane for; leading to the characteristic limp that Gowan had for the rest of his life.

Dublin

After the injury, Gowan was no longer able to work for the railway. He decided it was finally time to return home. In 1885, after eight years of being abroad, Gowan had made it back to Dublin a little worse for the wear. Since his injury limited him to certain things he could do, Gowan decided to begin to write again. However, this time he knew he needed a second job for income while he was waiting to be published. Luckily, Trinity College, Gowan's Alma Mater, hired him as an English professor. Gowan was a professor at Trinity College from 1886-1897.

During his tenure at the College, many students enjoyed Gowan's lectures. He taught with such enthusiasm and joy about English that the students were rapt with attention. Gowan would often stay after class to discuss literature with the students. Ryan Avery, a particularly bright student in one of Gowan's classes, was extremely fond of his professor. The two were often found together before and after class discussing books and literature. The two continued their relationship after Avery had graduated. Gowan had become a mentor to the aspiring writer and Avery looked to him for guidance. Avery ended up having a mediocre career as a writer. His most famous work, "The Scholar's Acquaintance" (1904) is said to be the true story about his and Gowan's relationship.

Gowan had many out-of-school relationships like this. It was not unusual for him to be seen walking the streets with his students. No one thought this was especially strange until Gowan began tutoring a student of his. The tutoring often took place in Gowan's home and ran late into the night. The student, whose name is unknown, was having trouble with literature and enjoyed the extra help he was receiving from Gowan. However, one night when Gowan made some advances towards this student, the boy went to the head of the college and explained what had happened with Gowan. Although Gowan went on to dispute these claims, he was dismissed from the college and disgraced throughout the city of Dublin.

His Greatest Work

Seclusion

After being dismissed from the college, Gowan isolated himself in his Dublin home. To ensure total isolation from the outside world, Gowan hired a maid who did all the household chores, but who would also get anything from town when he needed it. From 1897 to 1907, Gowan did not leave his house. Most believed he stayed in his home to avoid the shame and disgrace of being in town. Although this was part of the reason, Gowan also stayed cooped up in his house because he was writing his greatest work entitled "A Life Once Lived".";a memoir of his life and experiences.

A Life Once Lived

Gowan's memoir took ten years to complete and was finally published in 1908. His memoir was a detailed account of his life, dating back to his earliest years as a child, and ending with his life as a disgraced college professor. His memoir told the story of his numerous relationships; from his troubled relationship of his father to the "most powerful love he felt" (which is believed to describe his relationship with Swinburne.) It also discusses his travels around Britain and what he learned while travelling there. Arguably, the most shocking part of the memoir is when Gowan is recalls his childhood and admits that he was molested by his father. He goes on to explain that, "not even my mother or my sisters ever knew this, and I feel liberated as I write this."

The End

Insanity

During his ten years of seclusion and writing, Gowan began to drink again. The maid was seen carrying bottles and bottles of liquor into his home and disposing of them late at night. Gowan would drink from dusk until dawn. It was said that during those ten years, Gowan was sober for about a week. Along with the belligerent alcoholism, Gowan began to show signs of a mental illness. After the maid quit in 1901, she told her friends stories about Gowan; how he began talking to himself and screaming in his sleep. Psychologists believe that Gowan's mental stability began to decline when he began reliving his childhood trauma in order to complete his memoir. The emotional distress this caused Gowan led to his mental breakdown. Ultimately, a doctor diagnosed Gowan with insanity in 1910, three years after he came out of seclusion.

Queer Old Josser

By the time his memoir was published and he began leaving his house, Gowan had lost all sense of reality. He began roaming the streets of Dublin with his cane and characteristic limp, wearing shabby old clothes. He would tell stories to anyone who would listen. Often times these stories were about his childhood and his schoolboy days. He spoke of them most affectionately and wished he could go back. Most of Dublin felt bad for poor old Gowan, and commonly referred to him as the Queer Old Josser.

Gowan continued to roam the streets of Dublin until he died in 1920 at the age of sixty-six. Unbeknownst to him, Gowan had outlived all of his siblings and therefore had no living relatives to mourn his death.

Works by Earnan Gowan

"The Tales of Young Boys" (1878)

"Letters to a Lost Friend" (1880)

"A Life Once Lived" (1908)

References

"19th Century Dublin." [.]

"Algernon Charles Swinburne." Wikipedia. [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Algernon_charles_swinburne]

Bailey, Roger B. "Literature of the Victorian Period." British Literature Index. [http://www.accd.edu/sac/english/bailey/victoria.htm]

"Edward Bulwer-Lytton" Dictionary of Literary Biography, Volume 21: Victorian Novelists Before 1885. A Bruccoli Clark Layman Book. Edited by Ira B. Nadel, University of British Columbia and William E. Fredeman, University of British Columbia. The Gale Group, 1983. pp. 73-87. [http://galenet.galegroup.com.ezproxy.library.drexel.edu/servlet/LitRC?YBE=A.D.&locID=drexel_main&srchtp=advathr&c=1&NR=lytton&ai=U13670802&docNum=H1200002533&bConts=16047&vrsn=3&OP=contains&YDE=A.D.&DYQ=is&ca=1&ste=6&BYQ=is&tab=1&tbst=arp&n=10&GD=any]

"Europe, history of: Europe, 1871–1914." Online Map/Still. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. 2 Sept. 2008 . [http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://cache.eb.com/eb/image%3Fid%3D363%26rendTypeId%3D4&imgrefurl=http://original.britannica.com/eb/art/print%3Fid%3D1432%26articleTypeId%3D0&h=461&w=630&sz=45&hl=en&start=1&um=1&usg=__M9TS1RK5iwuzre14hLx_noM3QEw=&tbnid=X9jIntKHjhrK2M:&altq=map+of+europe+in+1914,&tbnh=100&tbnw=137&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dmap%2Bof%2B19th%2Bcentury%2Beurope%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DN]