Folklore and myth on stage: a comparison of their use in revival and contemporary Irish drama

of the Thesis The topic of this thesis is the use of mythology and folklore in Irish drama from the era of the Irish National Revival and the contemporary period. It focuses closely just on two plays, The Countess Cathleen by William Butler Yeats, representing the Revival period, and At the Black Pig's Dyke by Vincent Woods, representing the contemporary era. The thesis is divided into six chapters. The introductory chapter explains how the terms folklore and mythology are defined and used in the thesis. It also provides some basic background to Irish culture and literature. The second chapter presents the events that conditioned the development in Ireland until the end of the nineteenth century, describing the circumstances that led to the Irish National Revival. The third chapter is dealing with the life of W. B. Yeats, his involvement in the Revival, and also the sources of his inspiration and motivation for writing. Another focal point of this chapter is The Countess Cathleen, its background, origin, reception, and the folklore and mythological elements it contains. In the fourth chapter, a short account of the changes in Irish drama during the last hundred years is given. It focuses on some of the events that had a direct impact not only on the life in Ireland, but also on the modern Irish..