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The Aran Islands and Connemara
J.M. Synge paints a very moving picture of the reality of life in the west of Ireland. He admires the simplicity of the people's character, their skill in many and varied crafts and their readiness to face risks and danger without any show of bravado. Synge's sympathy and delight with whatever was traditional enriches every page of this book. As we visit the Aran Islands, Spiddal, Carraroe, Ballina, Belmullet, and the inner lands of Mayo we frequently hear beautiful and striking phrases as we meet fiery peasants in their cottages. ""Classic travel essays chronicle the harsh, dignified lives of the region's Gaelic-speaking inhabitants. . . vividly evoking a world of poverty, isolation and endurance."" - New York Times Book Review
224 pages, Paperback
First published April 30, 2004
About the author
J.M. Synge
404 books99 followersEdmund John Millington Synge (pronounced /sɪŋ/) was an Irish playwright, poet, prose writer, and collector of folklore. He was one of the cofounders of the Abbey Theatre. He is best known for the play The Playboy of the Western World, which caused riots during its opening run at the Abbey theatre. Synge wrote many well known plays, including "Riders to the Sea", which is often considered to be his strongest literary work.
Although he came from an Anglo-Irish background, Synge's writings are mainly concerned with the world of the Roman Catholic peasants of rural Ireland and with what he saw as the essential paganism of their world view.
Although he came from an Anglo-Irish background, Synge's writings are mainly concerned with the world of the Roman Catholic peasants of rural Ireland and with what he saw as the essential paganism of their world view.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
August 23, 2020
JM Synge is an Irish playwright - author of The Playboy of the Western World - who was involved with the Gaelic League and spent a lot of time on the Aran Islands and done a bit of travel around Connemara.
This book is a turn of the century memoir/travel log about life on the west coast of Ireland. Synge talks a lot about rural life, local traditions, hardships, reforms (and whether they work or not), and the people who resided here. One topic he talks a lot about was emigration, with the book providing a lot of perspective on living in Ireland in the Victorian era and why so many people ended up leaving the country.
He also collected folktales and poems, and included these stories in the first half about the Aran Islands.
Ireland in the 1800s and early 1900s was a very different place than what we see today, esp the west coast. It was insanely rural, quite poor, and gull of hardships. There were stories and traditions too, but life was pretty rough. There was a movement starting the Victorian era with Home Rule and on into the 1900s with eventual independence, regarding Irish nationalism, the Irish language and Irish tradition in an attempt to find Ireland's own identity and de-British-ify the island after 800 years of British occupation (starting with the Normans). Irish language was a main way such nationalism was furthered. Many scholars and nationalists went to the Gaeltacht (often islands) to learn Gaelic, much like Synge did on the Aran Islands. (Though Synge later backed away from the nationalist movement as his interest was more in the people, traditions and folktales rather than in political movements and war.)
Synge's book is part memoir, part travel log, part folklore collection and part essay. It provides a very good and descriptive picture of the time, explaining about daily life in Ireland's fringes. He talks about things such as cutting turf, fishing in curraghs, collected kelp, digging potatoes, funerary practices, childrearing, village shops, washing, spinning and dying cloths, and more.
If you're interested in learning more about Irish life 120-140 years ago in the years leading up to Independence (not that Synge knew that!) from a contemporary and well-written author, I highly recommend this book.
This book is a turn of the century memoir/travel log about life on the west coast of Ireland. Synge talks a lot about rural life, local traditions, hardships, reforms (and whether they work or not), and the people who resided here. One topic he talks a lot about was emigration, with the book providing a lot of perspective on living in Ireland in the Victorian era and why so many people ended up leaving the country.
He also collected folktales and poems, and included these stories in the first half about the Aran Islands.
Ireland in the 1800s and early 1900s was a very different place than what we see today, esp the west coast. It was insanely rural, quite poor, and gull of hardships. There were stories and traditions too, but life was pretty rough. There was a movement starting the Victorian era with Home Rule and on into the 1900s with eventual independence, regarding Irish nationalism, the Irish language and Irish tradition in an attempt to find Ireland's own identity and de-British-ify the island after 800 years of British occupation (starting with the Normans). Irish language was a main way such nationalism was furthered. Many scholars and nationalists went to the Gaeltacht (often islands) to learn Gaelic, much like Synge did on the Aran Islands. (Though Synge later backed away from the nationalist movement as his interest was more in the people, traditions and folktales rather than in political movements and war.)
Synge's book is part memoir, part travel log, part folklore collection and part essay. It provides a very good and descriptive picture of the time, explaining about daily life in Ireland's fringes. He talks about things such as cutting turf, fishing in curraghs, collected kelp, digging potatoes, funerary practices, childrearing, village shops, washing, spinning and dying cloths, and more.
If you're interested in learning more about Irish life 120-140 years ago in the years leading up to Independence (not that Synge knew that!) from a contemporary and well-written author, I highly recommend this book.
June 13, 2023
While I know this book is famous and I’ve wanted to read it for a while I ended up not really liking it that much. He seemed to enjoy the people of the Aran Islands and appreciated their strength and fortitude in what was a very challenging existence.He definitely seemed empathetic towards the poor people in western Ireland.
May 12, 2017
A lovely little book about life on the Aran Islands early 20th century. Traditional way of life explored. Synge really enjoyed, even loved, the time he spent there and the people he met and this really comes across in this book.
January 25, 2019
Enlightening view of far west Ireland at the turn of the 20th Century. We visited there last summer, and this helped put the place in historical perspective. But it's even more interesting than that!
September 1, 2011
always fascinated by aran islands and the tales
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews