Fay Keenan Character Analysis in The Turning

Fay Keenan is the mother of Sky and daughter of Marjorie and Don. Peter Dyson’s childhood lover, Fay is a willful, difficult, and often mean-spirited personality. While not a bad person, she is driven by her desires and often acts impulsively and destructively, hurting both herself and the people around her. She is a recovering heroin addict and has left her daughter to be raised primarily by her parents. Fay attempts to renew her sexual relationship with Dyson, begging him to have sex with her when he refuses. She attempts to blackmail him, threatening to reveal to her religious parents that she aborted her and Dyson’s child as a teenager and implying that this is the source of her struggles with addiction. When Dyson still refuses to have sex with her, she leaves without another word.

Fay Keenan Character Timeline in The Turning

The timeline below shows where the character Fay Keenan appears in The Turning. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

...to be his football coach. The Keenans’ explain that Sky is their granddaughter; their daughter Fay, with whom Dyson was once close, is a recovering addict. (full context)

Dyson and Fay Keenan were lovers throughout high school; their relationship, however, was tempestuous and often toxic. Despite... (full context)

...traffic pass overhead. The bridge, however, is special to him as a place he and Fay once shared. Coming back home that evening, Dyson finds Fay waiting for them, smoking a... (full context)

Dyson continues to wrestle with his worry and his guilt, both over Fay and Sophie. Sometimes, he wonders if the reason he married Sophie is because she was... (full context)

...watch, and plays football with him. They run into Don, who expresses his frustration with Fay, while also affirming his love for her. (full context)

Late that night, Fay comes to visit Dyson. He is surprised, but invites her in, making her a cup... (full context)

Fay becomes angry, telling Dyson he does not know what she has been through and rejecting... (full context)

Fay suggests to Dyson that her teenage abortion precipitated her struggles with addiction. She threatens to... (full context)