We know from the first sentence of the novel that the premise on which Ned Kelly is writing is as a father relating his life story to his daughter; yet, we are 169 pages into the novel and still have not heard much of anything about Ned’s romantic life. Because Ned is writing down, in detail, everything about his immediate and extended family and significant events in his life (including his emotional respond to them), it can be assumed that this father/daughter relationship was not a close or intimate one (as he has apparently never shared any of this with her before). This raises the question of how Ned came to have a daughter. Was she a product of a sexual escapade that mirrors Ned’s nomadic, unstable lifestyle as a bushranger? Or does Ned eventually mature sexually and fall in love?
At this point in the story, Ned sees himself as a man, but recognizes that he has been lacking experience on the subject of romance. “…my last hope of youth was stripped away I had never kissed a girl but were old enough to be a married man” (168). Peter Carey offers the reader only a few tidbits of information about Ned’s possible love interest/marriage. He foreshadows that the location of his daughter’s conception would be at Eleven Mile Creek (50) and references the meeting of himself and his daughter’s mother (“…it were [Alex Fitzpatrick] who introduced me to your mother” (150)). Additionally, we get a glimpse of the sole interaction (thus far) between Ned and a female interest as he spends time with Caitlin when he is waiting to be reunited with Harry Power at the “human boy substitute’s” home (112). Her impact on him is seen in his hesitance to leave without a proper farewell, reasoning that “I suppose it were the girl that done it to me” (114).
If it turns out that Ned does not end up a married man or settling into a fatherly role in the typical family homestead, I believe this may have a lot to do with the influence of his parents’ unstable relationship. Throughout his childhood, Ned is receiving an extremely distorted view of what marriage and love really are, as his mother was dreading the return of his alcoholic from jail (34). Furthermore, after the death of Ned’s father, his mother engages in prostitution and is financially dependent on a myriad of suitors. Despite this, however, I personally believe that Ned has the capacity to overcome this influence and develop a true affection for someone (although perhaps his lifestyle as a criminal/bushranger may, in the end, prohibit the formation of a stable marriage). In contrast with his often rough exterior, Ned has exhibited his ability to be tender and affectionate (most notably perhaps in aiding with the birth of his sister (27) and in dealing with his female siblings in general), which could eventually be translated into a romantic relationship.
Your inferrence that Ned Kelly's relationship with his daughter is not a close one is really interesting; I hadn't considered that possibility, but I think it's entirely probable. After reading back on several of the passages you cited, I too am questioning whether Ned ever matures sexually and emotionally enough to the point where he is able to formulate and maintain a romantic relationship. Although we have been introduced to a potential love interest of Ned's (209), it seems unlikely that any relationship that he starts with Mary Hearn will end well due to her circumstances as well as his own. I, like you, think Ned is capable of overcoming any deep set issues regarding emotional intimacy, but think that he is too entangled in his criminal lifestyle to engage in a close relationship without putting his loved one in danger. I'm intrigued by Ned's emotional side and predict that his capacity to love will allow him to retain his moral code and sense of right and wrong (however skewed it may become), but doubt that any woman that may enter his life will be able to remain fully unharmed by his dangerous lifestyle.
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