“Riders of the Sea”
Riders of the Sea was the first play Synge wrote, and it most
directly reflects his experiences in the Aran Islands. It tells the story of Maurya, who has lost her husband, father‑in‑law, and four sons to the sea and is expecting news of the fate of another son, Michael, who has
drowned. Her last son, Bartley, is about to make a dangerous journey by
horseback. This thirty‑minute one‑act play effectively depicts the
rugged realities of life in an Irish fishing community while combining elements
of Greek tragedy and the fatalistic and nihilistic character of primitive
Gaelic society.
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