"Juno and the Paycock" vs. "Playboy of the Western World"

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses how the line between nationalistic and anti-nationalistic themes is often blurred in J.M. Synge's "Playboy of the Western World" and Sean O'Casey's "Juno and the Paycock" and how both plays propose a very different approach to the Irish nationalist cause. The paper also looks at how both plays were written at a time when Irish people were evaluating themselves and how they were questioning their faith, loyalty and their ability to win their revolution and, in the case of "Juno", if they actually won. The paper also examines how this struggle and the consistent deliberation of ideas, which are accurately embraced, in the sometimes-skewed nationalistic messages are found in both pieces.

From the Paper:

"It is necessary to understand that at the times both plays were set in, there was extreme violence throughout Ireland. Playboy was set during the Land War, a time when troops both British and Irish were everywhere. In Juno, there is still much violence in Dublin, whether from the IRA or from the English, it didn't matter. Ireland was beginning to deal with its questionable independence and wounds from the urban war were just starting to heal however, at the cost of great poverty and lack of employment. Both plays demonstrate a sense of sympathy for this reconstructing Ireland. "

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