To be honest, we are not told much about the character of
Patrick. Far more is revealed to us about the character of Mary Maloney, his wife.
However, we do know that he is a senior, high-ranking policeman and that he works very
hard at his job, as he comes back tired from work. Although we are not told specifically
why he is leaving Patrick, we can perhaps infer he has a mistress that he wants to live
with and leave Mary. This shows he is leading a double life and has been for quite some
time. Above all, we can say that he is a selfish and self-obsessed man. Note what he
says to Mary:
"And I know it's kind of a bad time to be telling
you, but there simply wasn't any other way. Of course I'll give you money and see you're
looked after. But there needn't be any fuss. I hope not anyway. It wouldn't be very good
for my job."
Note how he is
more concerned about his job than he is concerned for Mary and her feelings at hearing
this terrible news. Thus, although we are not told much about his character, we can
infer that he is a selfish man who has been practising deception for some time and is
leaving his wife at a terrible time during her pregnancy.
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