More Celtic Fairy Tales
(The Children of Lîr, A Book of Myths.jpg from Wikimedia Commons.)
The Fate of the Children of Lir: Part I, II and III
- He threw a temper tantrum.
- Dearg thought of a great way to combine the houses, plus ensure peace in the kingdom they had fought for.
- I was a little surprised Lir picked the oldest daughter, but their exact ages were never mentioned, so this girl could have been young anyway.
- And she died...
- I was getting the evil-stepmother vibe from Oifa, however, I was a little irked that 'her womanhood and her weakness prevented her...' Not that I wanted her to kill the children, but I did after the narrator decided she could not do something because of her gender.
- I was also getting the swan princess vibe when she turned them into swans.
- "This she said because repentance seized her for the evil she had done."
- I wondered why the children did not follow him back to his home or to the 'trial' they gave Oifa.
- I wonder what the significance is of how Fingula held her siblings, I wonder if it is a culture thing.
- Did the children not go to their father because they were cursed to stay on the lakes and rivers of the Erin? So they couldn't live anywhere else besides the water of Erin? Hmm.
- "...found all desolate and empty, with nothing but unroofed green rafts and forests of nettles-no house, no fire, no dwelling-place." This provides a nice picture!
- OH! They did not stay young, I was not expecting that ending. Not quite the Swan Princess ending I was expecting, but still entertaining. I wonder how Oifa saw the entire thing, I think it would be interesting to see her point of view.
The Vision of MacConglinney: Part I and II:
- In the beginning, I thought he was in it because it would ruin the kingdom. I was a little shocked when he wanted profit for helping King Cathal, but at the same time I wasn't too surprised.
- He is very smart and manipulative... I can't decide if I like this character or not.
- Such a descriptive vision, it made me hungry reading it.
- "The lawless beast that dwelt within the king, came forth until it was licking its lips outside its head." Oh, this gave me chills!
- Very smart, but I have decided I do not like MacConglinney
Dream of Owen O'Mulready:
- I did not except him to be in the dream until Owen was told to go to America and send a letter. Because why would he give him a letter to send in the middle of the night? Why send him when they probably have a postal system in place?
- Plus the cow-boy was a bit interesting. I do not know if this is to be taken in the literally sense or that is what the boy's title is as a cow herder - I first took it literally because I assumed it was a dream and dreams are a bit wonky sometimes.
- Flying on a crane is something I would like to include in my stories.
- I laughed when I read the last sentence: ' Owen came down off the rock and washed himself and from that out there was no envy on him ever to have a dream again.'
The Story of the McAndrew Family:
- I honestly did not enjoy this story, it just wasn't entertaining. I know this teaches a lesson (many in fact), but I just didn't enjoy it.
- I was also surprised the people manipulated the brothers out of their wealth (besides their wives).
More Celtic Fairy Tales by Joseph Jacobs (1895).
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