Carleton, William (1794-1869), an Irish author, wrote many stories that reflect his insights into peasant life in Ireland. Carleton tried to describe accurately the virtues of the Irish people, because he thought that many people ignored these virtues. But he also described the Irish people’s vices and became unpopular with many of his fellow countrymen. Carleton’s writings dealt with such problems of the day as the distribution of agricultural land, secret patriotic societies, and the potato famine of the 1840’s.
Carleton wrote a number of sketches for the periodical the Christian Examiner that were collected in Traits and Stories of the Irish Peasantry (1832). A second series appeared in 1833 and Tales of Ireland in 1834. Probably his greatest work was the novel Fardorougha the Miser (1839). His other novels include The Misfortunes of Barry Branagan (1841), Valentine McClutchy (1845), and The Evil Eye (1860). Carleton was born on Feb. 20, 1794, in Prillisk, County Tyrone. He died on Jan. 30, 1869.
