Antonia White

Antonia White's fiction often explored the complexities of human relationships and family dynamics, set within extraordinary personal circumstances. Her characters, whether Catholic or non-Catholic, grappled with internal conflicts and mutual influences stemming from their backgrounds and incomplete self-understanding. White infused her work with her own struggles with mental illness, which she termed "The Beast," and a persistent sense of failure. She candidly admitted that the creative process was not a source of joy for her, but rather a battle against self-doubt and "old terrors," compelling her to prove her own existence as a writer.