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Riders To The Sea: by John Millington Synge
Riders To The Sea: by John Millington Synge
Keening is a form of vocal lament associated with mourning that is traditional in Ireland,
Scotland, and other cultures. The principle of improvised vocal lament is in no way reserved
to the Gaelic world and that laments are documented from various cultures around the
world. The Irish tradition of keening over the body at the burial is distinct from the wake -
the practice of watching over the corpse - which took place the night before the burial. The
"keen" itself is thought to have been constituted of stock poetic elements (the listing of the
genealogy of the deceased, praise for the deceased, emphasis on the woeful condition of
those left behind etc.) set to vocal lament. While generally carried out by one or several
women, a chorus may have been intoned by all present. Physical movements involving
rocking, kneeling or clapping accompanied the keening woman ("bean chaoineadh") who
was often paid for her services.
An Irish keener
"The keener is almost invariably an aged woman; or
if she be comparatively young, the habits of her life
make her look old. We remember one, whom the
artist has pictured from our description; we can
never forget a scene in which she played a
conspicuous part. A young man had been shot by
the police as he was resisting a warrant for his
arrest. He was of 'decent people,' and had a 'fine
wake.' The woman, when we entered the
apartment, was sitting on a low stool by the side of
the corpse. Her long black uncombed locks were
hanging about her shoulders; her eyes were the
deep set greys peculiar to the country, and which
are capable of every expression, from the bitterest
hatred and the direst revenge to the softest and
warmest affection. Her large blue cloak was
confined at her throat; but not so closely as to
conceal the outline of her figure, thin and gaunt, but
exceedingly lithesome. When she arose, as if by
sudden inspiration, first holding out her hands over
the body, and then tossing them wildly above her
head, she continued her chant in a low monotonous
tone, occasionally breaking into a style earnest and
animated; and using every variety of attitude to give
emphasis to her words, and enforce her description
of the virtues and good qualities of the deceased."
To form the "recent news" past tense, the Irish say "I'm only after [doing
something.]"
Example: "I'm only after getting here."
In the perfect past tense, the form that in standard English uses "had [done
something,]" the Irish say "(was/were) after [doing something.]"
Example: "I was after buying the paper" means "I had bought the paper
(when [something else happened.])”
It is also common that the past-tense conditional is quite Irish — "would have
been" is often expressed as "were/was."
Example: "One more step and you were dead."