Later that night, Sive is doing her schoolwork in the house, while Mena is washing a shirt and Mike is stitching. There is a knock on the door and we see that Thomasheen and Sean Dota have come to visit.
The stage directions tell us that Sean Dota, ‘looks for a moment gloatingly at Sive,’ highlighting how he thinks that because he has money, he has a right to buy the girl. The directions also say that he could be any age from 55-70.
Thomasheen tries to paint Sean Dota in a favourable light, emphasising his youthfulness and good manners. He goes over to see what Sive is studying and says that he regrets not staying in school. He recites a poem that he says he heard from a ‘tinker woman,’ which has the lines, ‘the ripest apple is the soonest rotten; the hottest love is the soonest cold,’ which conveys the message that young love is not made to last. He recites this while looking at Sive. They then get Sean Dota to recite a poem to try to impress Sive.
Mena then goes and asks Sive to go to Seamus Donal’s cottage to get a rail for carrying turf. Sive agrees to go and Thomasheen says that Sean Dota should accompany her as it is dark out. Sive says that there is no need for him as she knows the way herself. But they insist on Sean going too and he tells them that he is thinking of buying a car. This is done to impress Sive, who is far from impressed and is ‘irritated’ by Sean Dota’s presence.
When Sive and Sean Dota leave, Mike, Mena and Thomasheen discuss the match. Mike insists that Sive will never go for it, while Mena keeps reminding him of the £200. Mike says that Sive ‘will be dreaming about love with a young man.’ Mena reminds Mike about Liam Scuab and it is clear that his presence has had an effect on his thinking about Sean Dota.
Thomasheen rubbishes the notion of love and says to Mena, ‘he would sooner to stick his snout in a plate of mate and cabbage, or to rub the back of a fattening pig than whisper a bit of his fondness of you.’ He goes on to tell the audience that he was once in love but he had not the means to marry her. He tells the story of how he had two pigs fattening but his father took his own life and that the two pigs were used to pay for his wake and funeral. ‘I swear to you he never would have hanged himself but he knew my two pigs would pay for his wake and funeral.’
He continues to tell us that he has his sights set on marriage and that he needs a £100 to seal the marriage. This is the £100 that he will make in the match between Sean Dota and Sive.
Thomasheen then warns Mike about Liam Scuab and informs him that he has seen Sive sneaking out to meet him at night. He is using his knowledge of Mike’s hatred of Liam to cement the notion of the marriage between Sean Dota and Sive. Mike reacts to this news exactly the way Thomasheen wants. ‘This is more serious than I thought and ‘twil have to stop! I don’t want her going down the same road as her mother.‘ Note how serious the idea of an illegitimate child is taken in Ireland at the time. Compare how this would be treated today.
Mena comes to the conclusion that Nanna must be helping Sive to sneak out so she says that they must be split up and Sive must move to the other side of the house, so she is unable to get out at night as she would have to go through their bedroom. Mike says that this won’t be enough and that Liam could meet her on the way to school so she will have to give up her schooling. He says that they can use the excuse that Mena needs help with the running of the house.
Mena asks when they will get the money and they are told that they will get nothing until they are married. Thomasheen tells Mike and Mena to be weary of Nanna, saying that, ‘she have makin’s of trouble.’ He leaves the scene.
Mike tells Mena that he is going to bed as he doesn’t want to see Sive. ‘I have no heart somehow for looking her in the face.’ Mike and Mena both leave the stage, going to bed for the night.
When the kitchen empties, Nanna appears and sensing that there is no one around, she lights her pipe. Sive enters in a state of panic and she tells Nanna that Sean Dota ‘Nearly tore the coat off me…like an ould sick thing.’ Here we see that Sean Dota thinks he can do whatever he pleases with the young girl because he is wealthy. Nanna tells her that this is the nature of men and that age has no bearing on it.
Sive tells Nanna that it appeared as if the whole thing was pre-planned to which Nanna replies, ‘there are queer doin’s goin’ on between Mena Thomasheen Rua.’ They are interrupted by Mena who orders them to bed, as they are wasting oil. Nanna leaves the stage, concealing her pipe, while Mena puts out the fire.
Questions:
- How does Thomasheen try to make Sean Dota out to be a desirable catch?
- What is the meaning of the poem that Thomasheen recites?
- What have you learned about the attitudes of men towards women in this scene? What does this tell us about the role of men and women in the world of the text?
- How do we know that Mike is embarrassed by what he is asking Sive to do? Reference text.
- What have you learned about the treatment of illegitimate children in this scene?
- Why does Mena try to split Sive and Nanna up?
- What is your impression of Mena? Back up your points with suitable reference to the text.
Enda's English Notes 