How Friel Involves his Audience in the Conflict Between Coloniser and Colonised in his Play Translations
The play 'translations' by Brian Friel is set in Ireland in 1833.
During this time, the area was undergoing colonisation by the English
and the play represents a microcosm of the events occurring all over
the nation at the time. The consequence of this colonisation was
inevitably that the Gaelic language native to Ireland was eventually
lost and replaced by English.
Friel develops a pre-disposed bias towards the colonised through the
characterisation of both Hugh and Lancey and this creates an
allegiance between the audience and the Hedge school natives. Hugh's
humerous persona is in stark contrast to Lancey's dictatorial
character. The fact that the audience knows the inevitable outcome of
the situation adds weight to the empathy felt for the Irish because
the audience knows that no matter what Irish natives do in an attempt
to protect their identity, it will eventually be taken away from them.
During the complication of the play, Hugh discusses the difference
between the English and the Irish languages. "English succeeds in
making it sound … Plebian". Hugh is referring to the translation from
Irish to English and the fact that the poeticism of the words are lost
in the translation and the phrase becomes "Plebian" in his eyes. The
three dot ellipses used in this sentence adds to the emphasis of the
word Plebian and the audience realises the passion that Hugh has for
language, and this leads them to feel empathy for his cause. When
Yolland comments on Latin being "enormously rich and ornate", Hugh
responds with an over elabor...
... middle of paper ...
... to prove accurate. The 'fact' that
the English cannot be dispelled indicates that along with the new
place names, a new language will also be enforced.
Friel involves the audience in the struggle between coloniser and
colonised by forcing them to choose which side they feel most
empathetic with. It is clear that Friel has created the character of
Lancey to be utterly repulsive and the audience responds to this by
disliking him and his cause. On the other hand, Friel has created
humerous, likeable characters in the Hedge school that the audience
can relate to and this creates an understanding between the characters
and the audience. Because the play is written in English, it is
accessible by both the colonisers and the colonised and this will
therefore evoke a reaction of some sort from every person who reads
it.
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