The Lammas Hireling by Ian Duhig Flashcards
Title: “The Lammas Hireling”
Dramatic monologue - The speaker is never interrupted so represents his self-obsessive character and desperate desire for power
tells the story of a farmer who came to hire a young man to help with his cows. The title ‘hireling’ and the actin of hiring a labourer at a fair takes us back to a rural world that dates back to rural world that dates back at least 100 years.
Allusion to paganism as well as Christianity when the confession is made to the priest emphasizing ambiguity
focus on a single and unnamed individual establishes a sense of mystery and intrigue immediately-attempt to distance the farmer from the hireling from guilt or hatred
Stanza 1:
“I’d still a light heart and a heavy purse, he struck so cheap.”
“I grew fond”
“Knew when to shut up.”
“Then one night,”
- Falsely Positive opening that will descend into murder
-optimistic tone
-Antithesis between ‘light heart’ and ‘heavy purse’ + Intensifier ‘so’ emphasises at the hireling’s good value
-‘struck so cheap’ alludes to the Marxist concept of the exploitation and objection of the working class by the bourgeoise - Financial value rather than broader human nature prioritised - verb ‘fond’ allude to the the idea that women are perceived to be more verbose stemming from a homoerotic read. The speaker feels an affinity with males.
-Ideas about homosexuality considered to be a taboo
-Aggressive phrase
-Temporal phrase marks a volta in the poem - switch from a prosaic tone to a disturbing one. Sense of unease created
Stanza 2:
“disturbed from dreams of my dear late wife”
“I hunted down her torn voice”
“light from the dark lantern”
“stark-naked”
“a cow with leather horns”
From psychoanalytical perspective dreams represent unfulfillment of the subconscious desires we feel or guilt
‘Torn voice’ acts as a transferred epithet for his fragmented, unstable mental state
-‘hunted’ makes the speaker seem primitive and predatory. He could possibly be the cause of his wife’s death too along with the hireling.
Paradoxical symbolic of the speakers internal conflict with his hidden homoeroticism
Grotesque imagery through using this compound adjective we see connotations of sexual attraction
Old folklore image for a hare. The hare is a shapeshifter in folklore
Stanza 3:
“The moon came out.”
“His lovely head thinned. His top lip gathered. His eyes rose like bread.”
Associated with the development of monsters and transformations - sense of unnaturalness - Speaker has transferred into a monster/beast - Allusion to witchcraft - moon illuminates the speakers sin
Use of calm declaratives taking away from the sickening brutality of murder - Corporeal imagery alludes to the speakers homoerotic desires
Simile ‘rose like bread’ is incongruous with death
Stanza 4:
“There was no splash”
“elf-shot.”
“Bless me Father for I have sinned.”
“It has been an hour since my last confession.”
Onomatopoeic noun ‘splash’ gives sense of finality - The fact there was no splash indicate the speakers sanity disappearing as there is no evidence of the hireling existing (no splash from the body thrown)
Archaic language meaning cursed
Asking for forgiveness from a priest - repenting
Leaves readers speculating what possible transgression the speaker could have committed
Structure
The symmetry created by the four regular sestets is cut across by the jarring effects of the enjambment, perhaps linking to Duhig’s message that appearances do not always match the internal characteristics of an individual
Furthermore, the enjambment adds a sense of fluidity to the poem that may represent the ongoing feeling of guilt that the narrator is experiencing and his constant desire for purgation in attending confession
No clear rhyme scheme highlighting lack of stability of this unbelievable story
Enjambement creates a jarring which suggests the speaker’s erratic, impulsive nature and emotional as well as mental instability from a psychoanalytical perspective. Further emphasized by use of caesura.
Agenda
Context
Poet born to Irish Parents - Irish background
Northern Irish Folk lore - set at the time of the Lammas Harvest, or the festival that celebrates the harvesting of wheat (usually on August 1st). For this festival farmers hired extra hands to assist on the farm.
Paganism believe in the goddess Eostre, whose mythology deeply intertwines with the themes of rebirth, fertility, and abundance.
The hare was a sacred and mystical animal to the Celts; a symbol of abundance, prosperity and good fortune. They were believed to have connections to the Otherworld. They were treated with great respect and never eaten.
Themes
Sin
Guilt
Lust
Supernatural: the supernatural transgresses the ordinary world and links to pagan beliefs, emphasising the consequences of murder but also how their are higher forces that make humanity fragile and powerless.
Truth: accuracy of the poem seems questionable. Archaic language suggests farmer is unable to express himself clearly.
