The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1909-05-16

SolntG'--tne coast on mayo anu U 6iou
Ia County Wicklow. II he had lived
he might have described with the Same
vitality and vivaoity the man who walks
in Phoenix Park. or the people Of Donegal.
athe far down. Judging from his own
unpleasant experiences In Dublin he
have echoed Charles Lever, who once sang
Of his country folk as:
Fishun' like divtls for Cancellation.
An hstin' each other for the love OF God.
these people make no distinction be-
tween the natural and the supernatural
wrote Synge In his .Aran Islands Nor
do the characters Of his plays. Teohni-
cally buttressed as they at every point
the skeleton cleanly articulated. the major
impression they convey is atmospheric.
Real people pass before your eyes; there
is not the remote and slowly moving
antique tapestry. as In the Maeterlinok
fantasies. Stout built lads whack their
father, or the tinker and his trull knock
oyer the priest: there is loud talk n
drink and bold actions; nevertheless, the
magic Of the Celt ehvelops all. This Is
more notable in Riders to the Sea-
which has o Maeterlinokan touch-the
meditation OF the suspicion Of death into
its eliminating ~terrors; but 1t is Irish.
II is Synge. What could be more Irish
than the last speech Of Mdurya, the mother
bereaved by the greedy sea OF her
and sons: "No man at all can be living
forever; and we must be satisfied The
very pith OF Celtic fatalisml The grim
humor Of the supposed dead man in THE
Shadow Of the Glen" is Irish too. And
also the tramp who flls the ears OF the
banished wife with his weaving ~eloquence;
she goes with him into the wet and wind
OF the night. knowing that a grand
morning. will surely follow. This humor
is ~pervasive and does not reveal itself
in the lightning fash OF epigram. 1t Is
the same with the tender poetry that in
forms Synge's rhythmic prose. His dia-
losue goes to a tune OF its own. a tune
In the web OF which music and meaning
are closely spun in the same skein. while
beneath huns the sad diapason OF hui
mainly.
Consider the speeches in the Playboy
OF the Western World the most important
OF tho dramas. Each line 10 illuminating.
Such CONCESSION is refreshing. Character
emerses from both phrase and situation.
This play. while 1t IL not 90 shudder
breeding az the Riders to the Sea- 10
moro universal In interest. Christy Ma
hon. the young hero who is not heroic,
Is an Irish Peer Gynt. He lies that no
may create the illusion OF heroism; a liar
OF the breed artistic. He boasts OF VI
dering his father didn't the cultivated
Charles Baudelaire actually boast the
same noble deed?) for he knows the simple
folk will regard him with mingled horror
and admiration. The two rivals for his
love. Pepeen Mike and the Widow Quin.
are etched by the needle OF a master;
the fierce. passionate girl is real. but the
cunning widow is delightful comedy.
She crosses the page or the footlights
and you touch her iuttering hand. hear
her b~larneying voice. The minor charac-
ters are excellent, and they are subtly
disposed on the various planes Of interest
and action. The piece o briskly or
lsnguidly. the varying lines At each
human with consummate appropriate
ness. The story itself Is as old as
Troy, as is also the theme Of THE Well
Of the Saints Synge is esoterio.
HE argument eve leaves the earth, yet
few dramatists evoke such a sense OF the
Beyond. He is a seer as well as a manipu-
lator Of comedy. The vigorous sketch OF
his head by John B. Yeats (prefacing The
Playboy OF the Western WORLDLY shows
US a fine strong profile. a big brow, and
the gaze OF the dreamer. but a dreamer
for whom the visible world existed.
"The Synges are strong answered a
relative to the inquiry: "Was J. NJ. Synge's
death fastened by the hostile reception
accorded his play in Dublinf' 1t was not.
His view Of life was too philosophical
for criticism TO hurt; he had the objective
temperament Of the dramatist. the painter
OF manners. the psychologist. Near.
ing the maturity Of his splendid powers.
OH the threshold Of a love marriage, he
disappeared like the mist on n of his
fairy haunted hills; but the real John
.Synge will endure in his plays.