A._H._LEAHY-HEROIC_ROMANCES_OF_IRELAND_VOLUME_1.pdf

HEROICROMANCESOFIRELAND

VOLUME1

A.H.LEAHY

INTWOVOLUMES

VOL.I

PREFACE

Atatimelikethepresent,whenintheopinionofmanythegreat

literaturesofGreeceandRomeareceasingtoholdtheinﬂuencethat

theyhavesolongexerteduponhumanthought,andwhenthestudyofthe

greatestworksoftheancientworldisderidedas”useless,”itmaybe

toosanguinetohopethatanyattentioncanbepaidtoaliterature

thatisquiteasuselessastheGreek;whichdealswithatime,which,

ifnotactuallyasfarremovedfromoursasareclassicaltimes,isyet

furtherremovedinideas;aliteraturewhichisknowntofewandhas

yettowinitswaytofavour,whilethefarsuperiorliteratureof

Greeceﬁndsithardtodefendthepositionthatitlongagowon.It

maybethatreasonslikethesehaveweighedwiththosescholarswho

haveopenedupforusthelong-hiddentreasuresofCelticliterature;

despairingoftheeorttoobtainforthatliteratureitsrightful

crown,andthehomageduetoitfromthosewhocanappreciateliterary

workforitself,theyhavebeencontentedtoaskforthesupportof

thatsmallerbodywhofromphilological,antiquarian,or,strangeasit

mayappear,frompoliticalreasons,arepreparedtotakeamodiﬁed

interestinwhatshouldbeuniversallyregardedasinitswayoneof

themostinterestingliteraturesoftheworld.

TheliteraryaspectoftheancientliteratureofIrelandhasnotindeed

beenaltogetherneglected.Ithasbeenusedtofurnishthemesonwhich

modernpoemscanbewritten;ancientauthorityhasbeenfoundinitfor

whatisessentiallymodernthought:modernEnglishandIrishpoetshave

claimedtheoldIrishromancesasinspirers,buttheromances

themselveshavebeenlefttothescholarsandtheantiquarians.

ThisisnotthepositionthatIrishliteratureoughttoﬁll.Itdoes

undoubtedlytellusmuchofthemostancientlegendsofmodernEurope

whichcouldnothavebeenknownwithoutit;butthisisnotitssole,

orevenitschiefclaimtobeheard.Itisitselftheconnecting-link

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betweentheOldWorldandtheNew,written,sofarascanbe

ascertained,atthetimewhentheliteraryenergiesoftheancient

worldweredead,whentheliteraturesofmodernEuropehadnotbeen

born,[FN1]inacountrythathadnoshareintheancientcivilisation

ofRome,amongapeoplewhichstillretainedmanylegendsandpossibly

arudimentaryliteraturedrawnfromancientCelticsources,andwas

producingthemenwhoweretheearliestclassicalscholarsofthe

modernworld.

[FN1]Theonlypossibleexceptionstothis,assumingthelatest

possibledatefortheIrishwork,andtheearliestdateforothers,are

thekindredWelshliteratureandthatoftheAnglo-Saxoninvadersof

Britain.

TheexactextentofthedirectinﬂuenceofIrishliteratureuponthe

developmentofothernationsishardtotrace,chieﬂybecausethe

inﬂuenceofIrelandupontheContinentwasatitsheightatthetime

whennoneofthelanguagesofmodernEuropeexceptWelshand

Anglo-Saxonhadreachedastageatwhichtheymightbeusedfor

literarypurposes,andaContinentalliteratureonwhichtheIrishone

mighthaveinﬂuencesimplydidnotexist.Itssubsequentinﬂuence,

inthetenthandeleventhcenturies,uponWelsh,andthroughWelshupon

theearlyBretonliterature(nowlost)appearstobeestablished;itis

usuallysupposedthatitsactionupontheearliestFrenchcompositions

wasonlythroughthemediumoftheselanguages,butitisatleast

possiblethatitsinﬂuenceinthiscasealsowasmoredirect.In

MerovingianandearlyCarlovingiantimes,whenFrenchsongswere

composed,whicharenowlostbutmusthaveprecededtheextantchansons

degeste,theIrishschoolswereattractingscholarsfromthe

neighbouringcountriesofEurope;Irelandwassendingoutasteady

streamof”learnedmen”toFrance,Germany,andItaly;anditisat

leastpossiblethatsomewhoknewtheIrishteachersrealizedthemerit

oftheliteraryworkswithwhichsomeoftheseteachersmusthavebeen

familiar.Theformofthetwelfth-centuryFrenchromance,”Aucassin

andNicolete,”isthatofthechiefIrishromances,andmaywellhave

beensuggestedbythem;whilstthevarietyoftherhythmandthe

elaboratelawsoftheearliestFrenchpoetry,which,bothinits

NorthernandSouthernform,datesfromtheﬁrsthalfofthetwelfth

century,almostimplyapre-existingmodel;andsuchamodelismore

easilytracedinIrishthaninanyothervernacularliteraturethatwas

thenavailable.Itisindeednearlyashardtosupposethatthe

beautifulliteratureofIrelandhadabsolutelynoinﬂuenceupon

nationsknowntobeincontactwithit,asitwouldbetoholdtothe

beliefthattheancientCretancivilisationhadnoeectupontheliter

arydevelopmentthatculminatedinthepoemsofHomer.

BeforespeakingofwhattheIrishliteraturewas,itmaybewelltosay

whatitwasnot.Theincidentsrelatedinitdateback,accordingto

the”antiquaries”oftheninthtothetwelfthcenturies,sometothe

Christianera,sometoaperiodlonganteriortoit;butoccasional

allusionstoeventsthatwereunknowninIrelandbeforethe

introductionofChristianity,andafewtoclassicalpersonages,show

thattheformofthepresentromancescanhardlybepre-Christian,or

evenclosetranslationsintoOldorMiddleIrishofDruidictales.It

hasthereforebeenthefashiontospeakoftheromancesasinaccurate

survivalsofpre-Christianworks,whichhavebeenaddedtoby

successivegenerationsof”bards,”amodeofviewingourversionsof

theromanceswhichofcourseputsthemoutofthecategoryoforiginal

literatureandhandsthemovertotheantiquarians;butbeforethey

suerthisfate,itisreasonabletoaskthattheirownliterarymerit

shouldbeconsideredinamoreseriousmannerthanhasyetbeen

attempted.

Theideathatourversionsoftheromancesareinaccuratereproductions

ofDruidictalesisnotatallborneoutbyastudyoftheromances

themselves;foreachofthese,exceptforafewverymanifestlylate

insertions,hasastyleandcharacterofitsown.Therewere,

undoubtedly,oldtraditions,knowntothemenwhointhesixthand

seventhcenturiesmayhavewrittenthetalesthatwehave,knowneven

tomenwhointhetenthandeleventhcenturiescopiedthemand

commenteduponthem;buttheromancesastheynowstanddonotlook

likepiecesofpatchwork,butliketheworksofmenwhohadideasto

convey;andtomeatleasttheyseemtobearapproximatelythesame

relationtotheDruidlegendsastheworksoftheAttictragediansbear

tothearchaicGreeklegendsonwhichtheirtragedieswerebased.In

morethanonecase,asinthe”CourtshipofEtain,”whichismorefully

discussedbelow,therearetwoversionsofthesametale,theframework

beingthesameinboth,whilethetreatmentoftheincidentsandthe

viewofthecharactersoftheactorsisessentiallydierent;andwhen

thestoryistreatedfromtheantiquarianpointofview,thatwhich

regardsbothversionsasrestinguponacommonprehistoricmodel,the

questionarises,whichofthetwomorenearlyrepresentsthe”true”

version?Thereis,Iwouldsubmit,insuchcases,notrueversion.The

oldDruidicstory,ifitcouldbefound,wouldinallprobability

containonlyaverysmallpartofeitherofourtwoversions;itwould

bebald,half-savageintone,likeoneofthemoreancientGreekmyths,

andproducingnoliteraryeect;theliteraryeectofboththe

versionsthatwehave,beingaddedbymenwholivedinChristiantimes,

wereinﬂuencedbyChristianideals,andprobablywere,likemanyof

theircontemporaries,familiarwiththeliterarybequestsofthe

ancientworld.[FN2]

[FN2]Itseemstobeuncertainwhetherornotthewritersofthe

IrishromancessharedintheclassicallearningforwhichIrelandwas

notedintheirtime.Thecourseofstudyattheschoolsestablished

forthetrainingoftheﬁliinthetenthandeleventhcenturieswas

certainly,ashasbeenpointedout,verydierentfromthatofthe

ecclesiasticalschools(seeJoyce,vol.i.p.430).Noclassical

instructionwasincludedinthistraining,butitisnotcertainthat

thisseparationofstudieswassocompletebeforewhatiscalledthe

”antiquarianage”setin.CormacmacCuninan,forexample,wasa

classicalscholar,andatthesametimeskilledinthelearningofthe

ﬁli.Itshouldalsobeobservedthatthecourseattheecclesiastical

schools,ashandeddowntous,hardlyseemstobeclassicalenoughto

haveproducedaColumbanusoranErigena;thestudiesthatproduced

thesemenmusthavebeenofadierentkind,andthelayschoolsas

originallyestablishedbySanchanTorpestmayhaveincludedmuchthat

afterwardsgaveplacetoamorepurelyIrishtraining.Thetaleof

Troyseemstohavebeenknowntotheﬁli,andthereareintheirworks

allusionstoGreekheroes,toHerculesandHector,butithasbeen

pointedoutbyMr.Nuttthatthereislittleifanyevidenceof

inﬂuenceproducedbyLatinorGreekliteratureontheactualmatteror

thoughtoftheolderIrishwork.Onthispointreferencemaybemade

toanoteon”MaeDatho’sBoar”inthisvolume(p.173),butevenif

thisabsenceofclassicalinﬂuenceisestablished(anditishardto

saywhatwillnotbefoundinIrishliterature),itisjustpossible

thatthesameliteraryfeelingwhichmadeIrishwritersof

comparativelylatetaleskeepthebronzeweaponsandchariotsofan

earlierdateintheiraccountsofancientwars,whiletheydescribed

armsoftheperiodwhenspeakingofbattlesoftheirowntime,aected

theminthisinstancealso;andthattheyhadenoughrestraintto

refrainfromintroducingclassicalandChristianideaswhenspeakingof

timesinwhichtheyknewtheseideaswouldhavebeenunfamiliar.

Itmaybe,andoftenis,assumedthattheappearanceofgrotesqueor

savagepassagesinaromanceisanindicationofhighantiquity,and

thatthesepassagesatleastarefaithfulreproductionsofDruidic

originals,butthisdoesnotseemtobequitecertain.Someofthese

passages,especiallyinthecaseofromancespreservedintheLeabhar

nah-Uidhri(TheBookoftheDunCow),looklikeinsertionsmadeby

scribesofanantiquarianturnofmind,[FN3]andareprobablyofvery

ancientdate;inothercases,asforexampleinthe”BoarofMac

Datho,”whereConalldashesAnluan’sheadintoKet’sface,thesavagery

isquitein’keepingwiththecharacterofthestory,andwayhavebeen

deliberatelyinventedbyanauthorlivinginChristiantimes,toadda

ﬂavourtohistale,althoughindoingsoheprobablyimitateda

similarincidentinsomeotherlegend.Totakeaclassicalparallel,

thebarbarityshownbyAeneasinAeneidx.518-520,insacriﬁcingfour

youthsonthefuneralpyreofPallas,anactwhichwouldhavebeen

regardedwithhorrorinVirgil’sownday,doesnotprovethattherewas

anyancienttaleofthedeathofPallasinwhichthesevictimswere

sacriﬁced,noreventhatsuchvictimsweresacriﬁcedinancient

LatiuminPallas’day;butitdoesshowthatVirgilwasfamiliarwith

thefactthatsuchvictimsusedinsomeplacestobesacriﬁcedon

funeralpyres;for,inasense,hecouldnothaveactuallyinventedthe

incident.

[FN3]Seetheexhibitionofthetipsoftonguesinthe”Sick-bedof

Cuchulain,”page57.

ThustheappearanceofanarchaicelementinanIrishromanceisin

itselfnoproofoftheDruidicoriginofthatformoftheromance,nor

evenoftheexistenceofthatelementintheromance’searliestform:

uponsuchaprinciplethearchaiccharacterofthemotifofthe

”OedipusColoneus”wouldproveittobetheoldestoftheGreek

tragedies,whileas

amatteroffactitseemstobedoubtfulwhethertheintroductionof

thismotifintothestoryofOedipuswasnotduetoSophocleshimself,

althoughofcoursehedrewtheideaofit,ifnotfromtheoriginal

legendofOedipus,fromsomeotherearlylegend.

ThemostsatisfactorytestoftheauthorshipofanIrishromance,and

oneofthemostsatisfactorytestsofitsdate,isitsliterary

character;andifwelookattheliterarycharacterofthebestofthe

Irishromances,thereisonepointthatisimmediatelyapparent,the

blendingofproseandverse.One,themostcommon,explanationof

this,isthattheversewasaddedtotheoriginaltale,anotherthat

theverseistheolderpart,theprosebeingaddedtomakeaframework

fortheverse,butageneralviewofsomeoftheoriginalromances

appearstoleadtoaverydierentconclusion.Itseemsmuchmore

probablethattheIrishauthorsdeliberatelychoseamethodofmaking

theirworkatonceliteraryandsuitedtopleaseapopularaudience;

theytoldtheirstoriesinplainprose,addingtothemverse,possibly

chantedbytherecitersofthestories,sothatwhiletheprosetold

thestoryinsimplelanguage,theemotionsofpity,martialardour,and

thelikewereawakenedbytheverse.Theydidnotusetheepicform,

althoughtheirknowledgeofclassicalliteraturemusthavemadethem

familiarwithit;theIrishepicformisRomance.Theyhad,besides

theproseandwhatmaybecalledthe”regular”verse,athirdform,

thatofrose,orasitissometimescalledrhetoric,whichisavery

irregularformofverse.Sometimesitrhymes,butmoreoftennot;the

linesareofvaryinglengths,andtoscanthemisoftenverydicult,

analliterationtakingtheplaceofscansioninmanycases.The

rhetoricdoesnotingeneraldevelopthestorynortaketheformof

description,itusuallyconsistsofsongsoftriumph,challenges,

prophecies,andexhortations,thoughitissometimesusedforother

purposes.Itdoesnotconformtostrictgrammaticalruleslikethe

moreregularverseandtheprose,andmanyoftheliteraltranslations

whichIrishscholarshavemadeforusoftheromancesomitthis

rhetoricentirely,owingtothedicultyinrenderingitaccurately,

andbecauseitdoesnotdeveloptheplotsofthestories.Notable

examplesofsuchomissionsareinMissFaraday’stranslationofthe

Leabharnah-Uidhriversionofthe”GreatTain,”andinWhitleyStokes’

translationofthe”DestructionofDaDerga’sHostel.”Withall

respecttothesescholars,andwiththefullconsciousnessofthe

dicultyofthetaskthathasnaturallybeenfeltbyonewhohas

vainlyattemptedtomakesenseofwhattheirgreaterskillhasomitted,

itmaybesuggestedthatthetotalomissionofsuchpassagesinjures

theliteraryeectofaromanceinamannersimilartotheeectof

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