Riders to the Sea
by John Millington Synge
Riders to the Sea Character List
Maurya
Maurya has given birth to six sons during her life on the coastal island lying of at the mouth of Ireland's Galway Bay. Four of them are already dead, along with their father and grandfather. She is old and poor and fears that the extended and uncharacteristic absence of her son Michael means he is about to added to the list of her deceased loved ones. As if worrying that Michael has drowned weren't enough stress, she also doesn’t appear to be very successful at persuading her other remaining son, Bartley, from crossing over to the mainland in a bid to deal away a couple of horses. In the end, Maurya has only her daughters to help with the cold comfort of knowing that there are no more men in her life for the sea to take from her. She feels at last a sense of peace and serenity now that her greatest anxiety has been lifted.
Bartley
Bartley is the youngest of Maurya’s six sons; when Michael’s death is confirmed, he steps up to become the family's sole financial support. His means of supporting the family is what gives the play its title: he rides horses out to sea and to the steamer ship, which must lay anchored far offshore; the horses are sold at a fair on the mainland. Maurya refuses to give Bartley her blessing after having a vision of his impending death.
Cathleen
Cathleen is the eldest of Maurya’s daughter. Cathleen is 20 years old; she commiserates with Bartley’s position and is scornful of her mother’s superstitions. In contrast to the somewhat mystical bent of her mother, who is given to lamentations and omens, Cathleen is pure practicality in action, which is a great necessity when living with someone like Maurya.
Nora
The youngest member of the clan, Nora is much more patient with mother’s penchant for self-pity than her oldest sister is. At the same time, she provides a great sounding board for Cathleen to express her contrarian views.
The Priest
The priest is never actually seen on stage, but his presence is so vital to the story that he must be considered at least as important a character as Nora. It is the priest who delivers the message through Nora that Maurya must put her faith and trust in a God that would never allow every last one of her sons to die while she is still alive. He is younger and more modern than Maurya.
Riders to the Sea Summary
The play, set on an island off the coast of Ireland, begins with Nora bringing in a small bundle with her and telling Cathleen that these may be the clothes of their brother Michael. The young priest told her a body of a drowned man was found at Donegal, and the body might be Michael's. The sisters are scared to open the bundle of clothes because they do not want their mother, Maurya, to know: Michael has been missing for a week and the family had already lost five men to the sea. They hide the bundle in the turf loft of the cottage.
Maurya is prepared for the funeral for Michael, with whiteboards for his coffin ready at the cottage. She enters the kitchen; she is a woman who is seen lamenting all the time and worrying that her sons will never come back from the sea. Maurya, Nora, and Cathleen discuss the last son, Bartley, who is also planning to go the sea to sell the family horses so they could get some money. Nora and Cathleen are convinced that Bartley should go to the fair at Galway to sell the animals, while Maurya is still hoping that the Priest will not allow him to go in such dangerous tides.
Bartley enters the cottage looking for a new piece of rope. Maurya tries to stop him, but he says he wants to make a halter for the horses; clearly Bartley plans to go to the sea. Maurya again tries to dissuade him by showing him the whiteboards for Michael. Paying no heed, Bartley changes his clothes, asks his sisters to take care of the sheep, and leaves without receiving any blessings from his mother. It is a tradition in Ireland that the son receives the blessings of his mother before going anywhere, but Maurya breaks this fashion.
Bartley leaves with a red mare and a grey pony tied behind. Cathleen then notices that he has not taken any food and tells Maurya to walk down to the well to give Bartley his food and the blessings. Maurya leaves using a stick that Michael brought, lamenting over how in her family, the old ones never leave anything behind for their heirs, despite that being the general custom.
Once Maurya is gone, the girls retrieve the bundle of clothes from the loft to check if they are Michael's. Nora realizes that the stockings are truly Michael's, because she recognizes her own stitching on them. They count the number of stitches and arrive at the conclusion that Michael was dead and buried.
The sisters hide the clothes again because they think that Maurya will be returning in a good mood since she got the chance to bless Bartley; however, Maurya comes back more distressed than ever. She tells her daughters that she saw Michael on the grey pony; she could not bless Bartley due to the shock. To calm her down, Nora and Cathleen show Maurya the clothes and tell her that Michael has had a clean burial. Maurya's laments are interrupted when islanders bring the body of Bartley into the cottage and tell the women that the grey pony knocked Bartley into the sea, where he drowned.
Maurya gets on her knees near Bartley's body and sprinkles holy water on him. She finally resigns herself to her fate as she claims that she will finally sleep at night because she no longer has anyone to worry about: all the men of her family have died to the sea. The whiteboards that were supposed to be used for Michael's coffin will now be used to bury Bartley. Maurya prays that the souls of her husband, her husband's father, and four sons may rest in peace, and the curtains are drawn.
Critical Analysis
Themes
The All-Powerful Sea Representing Fate
The sea in the play assumes a very vital role; it is the chief source of livelihood for the helpless islanders and simultaneously, a constant cause of unexpected and unavoidable death. Bartley is fully aware of how the sea has claimed the lives of his brothers, yet he desperately sails out, disregarding all odds. Determining the destiny of the islanders, the sea as such serves as fate.
Subtle Paganism Steeped in Catholicism
Synge’s observation of the keen inclination of the islanders towards Celtic paganism is brilliantly portrayed through the varied traits of the central character, Maurya. Despite being a Catholic, she invests more faith on the sea, and natural happenings are looked upon by her as a warning of impending doom. It is only after the death of her last son that she can surrender herself fully to the Catholic faith.
Tradition as Opposed to Modernization
Maurya, with her rigid reluctance to leave her cottage and her belief in pagan values, stands for a traditional way of life, whereas her children embrace a modern outlook in refusing to wash away their capabilities around the uncertainties of the sea.
As a Greek Tragedy
Riders to the Sea follow a typical Greek tragedy in most of its aspects. Primarily, its central plot, revolving around the unending misery of the central character, Maurya, affected by the merciless sea, directly echoes the classic theme of the Greek tragedies of focusing on human suffering against a backdrop of unyielding fate. Maurya’s stoical philosophy in calmly accepting her deadly misfortune imparts a universal tone to this tragic play. Secondly, its structure also adheres to the three unities of action, time and place. The deaths of Michael and Bartley, being the only action occurring, help in achieving the unity of action. The unities of place and time are also observed as everything takes place on a single day and Maurya’s cottage is the dominant scene of the drama. In commenting on the proceedings of the plot, Cathleen, and Nora, to a great extent, act as the Greek chorus. On the other hand, Irish superstitious beliefs, like the mentioning of “pig with the black feet” or the “star up against the moon” play the part of tragic foreboding, an integral component of Greek plays.
As a Poetic Drama
The chief tenets of a poetic drama – the inclusion of a poetic vision as well as epical characters are admirably attained in this elegiac play. Dissatisfied with the insistence of the then raging “Prose Plays of Ideas” on urban life and its multiple issues, dramatists like Synge and Eliot sought to radiate emotion, vitality, and spontaneity through their works. Naturally, poetry seemed to be an ideal medium of expression in comparison to prose. The simple life of the Aran Islanders appealed to Synge, and he captured their universal struggle for survival through the suggestive, lyrical and symbolic power of poetry. Even the characters, their heroism, passion, and dedication evidently help to reinforce this poetic spirit. The poetic quality is also achieved through the use of lyrical dialogue and symbols in the play.
