George Moore was a prominent Irish writer and art critic during the Victorian era. Moore is considered to be one of the first English authors to adopt the ideas of the French realists as Emile Zola was a major influence on his work. Moore himself, with books such as Esther Waters, was an influence on the great James Joyce.

A Drama in Muslin is a satirical novel that is considered to be one of Moore's finest. The story is set in Ireland in the 1880s and centers around five young women who graduate from Convent School and now are trying to make their way through life.