compare and contrast tale stories
Paper details:
You were asked to compare and contract. For Essay #3, you will pick the tale type. You can choose one of Seáinín Tom Ó Dioráin’s stories (but NOT “Treachery Brings Its Own Punishment”, “Open Sesame”, or “The Ghost” – today’s) and determine which stories in the www.duchas.ie database are similar. Or you can pick a topic not covered in Ó Dioráin’s repertoire and examine three examples of the same story type from www.duchas.ie . So either way, you will look at three examples of the same story type in your paper.
There are two ways to find the stories, . One way to find similar stories is to take an important element from the stories and find what other stories have the same element using the search engine of www.duchas.ie. Then you need to determine if the newly found stories follow the same tale type and judge to what extent. A second way to find similar stories is to click on the word “Topics” at the top of the page at www.duchas.ie . Then scroll down and experiment with some topics. Don’t forget as you examine the stories, refer back to the topic manual from the 1930s that the teachers used at https://www.duchas.ie/download/17.01.26-irish-folklore-and-tradition.pdf
You are expected to create a Works Cited. Use the Works Cited from Essay #2 as an example. Find all of the required citation information at the page that you are examining in www.duchas.ie before leaving the page! I need to be able to revisit the page and see that about which you are writing.
~~IMPORTANT RUBRIC FOR PAPERS~~~
Paper achieving the grade of A should include many of the following
Paper clearly documents the type of folklore requested in the prompt.
The essay has clear links to discussions held in the course on-line.
Aspects of assigned readings and Blackboard notes are evident.
Student’s own thoughts and opinions have been included in the conclusion.
Any quotes have been included in quotation marks or indented text and do not make up more than 10% of the paper. Longer passages are included in appendices and do not figure as part of the word count. Source of quotes are noted at the end of the paper.
Essay is roughly 600 words.
CHAPTER 3
SÉAMUS Ó DUILEARGA AND MAN OF ARAN
The folklore of Seáinín Tom Ó Dioráin in the first half of the 1930s was collected by the local schoolmaster, Seósamh Ó Flannagáin, and selected items were published in Béaloideas by Séamus Ó Duilearga as was seen in the previous chapter. It was the production of the film Man of Aran (1934) by American director Robert Flaherty on Seáinín Tom’s native island that created the opportunity for the storyteller to move beyond the fireside hearth. However, as this chapter points out, that was not the expected outcome.
Robert Flaherty, the American director of Nanook of the North fame, was filming the docudrama Man of Aran on the Aran Islands for Gaumont British Picture Corporation in the first half of the 1930s.[1] In the end, sound for Man of Aran was recorded in London at Gainsborough Pictures Islington Studios in the first month of 1934. The primary actors for Man of Aran were islanders who were picked for their photogenic appearance as may be the case with a drama, and not because of the particular part of the island where they lived or because of family relations as one would expect with a documentary. As a result, the starring mother, father, and son were not related and were from the west end, centre and east end of the island respectively. The film enterprise left its mark on the island, and its traces can still be seen today.[2] Flaherty employed many islanders in a variety of capacities, and even Seáinín Tom was employed as an extra in the 1934 film as recounted by Pat Mullen in his book, Man of Aran (1935, pp. 240-247).
Man of Aran was shot as a silent film, and the British version included English-language title cards. The English-language sound track that was heard with Man of Aran when it premiered in London on Wednesday, 25 April 1934, was dubbed a few months prior to that by several of the island actors, most of whom knew English as a second language, and at least one of the actors, Patch Ruadh, it is reported, had to learn his lines.[3]The British version of the film premiered in Dublin on 6 May 1934. An Irish language soundtrack was not additionally recorded by the actors in London nor has one ever been created since.[4] The Irish government, rather than seeking to commission an Irish language version of Man of Aran, sought to have a completely different Irish language film created using the same director and film company. The Irish government’s film was produced only in Irish with no additional English soundtrack recorded, nor were there versions in other languages created for audiences on the continent. This new film was to be an Irish language film for the school children of Ireland only.
The Irish Language Film
The Irish Department of Education approached Robert Flaherty while he was beginning to film Man of Aran and asked if he would consider directing an Irish language film for educational use. Séamus Ó Duilearga met up with Robert Flaherty during his 1932 summer visit to the Aran Islands. While some claimed that a script for this short film was forced on Flaherty (Ó Laoghaire, 1945, p. 159), one letter from the autumn of 1932 suggests otherwise. In a letter from Adolf Mahr[5] to Ó Duilearga, it is indicated:
He [the Secretary of Education] gave no instructions however and it was left to Flaherty to suggest. He having at once grasped what the Department wanted, proposed a story-teller, and I think it is a very good idea; so we rely now upon you to provide a good story-teller. […] Please do not fail to do your job now with the story-teller. The whole scheme now depends on your selection.[6]
The short film was to be made without studio costs with funds eventually being sought only for supplies and travel. It appears that Gaumont British originally agreed to make this educational film at no cost since a studio was already built on the Aran Islands for interior shots of Man of Aran, the actors already gathered, and the film crew assembled. Many such as Flaherty were on salary already. The primary costs were the film itself and any funds needed for reimbursing Ó Duilearga, storyteller pay, transportation and lodging. At the beginning of the same letter as above, Mahr stated:
…you must now make up your mind to get a very good story-teller with very good stories and you must remind him that he must be prepared to go to Aran for the little sound film which the Government wants made. Flaherty is at present in London to look after the sound film business. Probably he will return with the sound outfit or having taken all the necessary steps to get it.
Alas, Flaherty did not arrive back to Árainn with the sound system in October 1932 nor any time after that. The feasibility of transporting the sound recording system was a concern. Having this equipment in Árainn for about a year would also have meant that it could not be used for other films being shot in the studio back in London. It proved far easier to bring the actors from Man of Aran to London to record sound for that film during a few weeks after nearly two years of silent filming in Árainn. Of course, this was a major change of events for the Irish language short. Flaherty writing from Árainn stated to Mahr three months later, on 2 January 1933,
… I believe, the recording of the tale in sound ought to be done in London when we return; but I am going to make some sketches here soon with silent film, of our local story-teller, the Fairy Cobbler, telling some of the islanders one of his stories.[7]
By the time the Irish Government officially approved the initial ₤200 for the film six months later, on 14 June 1933, it was clearly indicated that the storyteller needed to travel to London for the film.
The Fairy Cobbler was Darach Ó Direáin. He could be identified as the storyteller that Flaherty first preferred. It is known that Flaherty had a personal interest in folklore, and there are many pages of handwritten Irish folklore among his papers maintained at Columbia University in New York. He considered Darach Ó Direáin as the “local story-teller” for the part of the island on which he was staying. Being skilled in folklore of the Fianna and other longer hero tales, Darach was held in higher regard in terms of storytelling then raconteurs such as Seáinín Tom. It is known that storytelling took place at the Flaherty hearth with Pat Mullen assisting with translation into English during the winter months of the nearly two-year stay in Árainn.
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PLACE GRIANGHRAF 8 HERE
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Figure 8: Darach Ó Direáin. Photo courtesy of The Robert and Frances Flaherty Study Center at Claremont School of Theology.
Yet, for a director, it is understood that Flaherty did not intend to play on the words of the storyteller in the film, in neither the rehearsals nor in the actual film. He did not speak Irish himself, and there was no desire by the Irish Government to have any sort of translation of the filmed tale. As a result, Flaherty using skills previously perfected in silent film, needed to basically shut out the sound and focus on the faces of those gathered to listen to the storyteller.
I shall photograph the various expressions of his face [that of the storyteller] as he tells the tale, and what is more important, the expressions of the faces of his audience, who will be a few of the local islanders, as they listen to it. As I see it, the important thing from a cinema point of view, are the various facial reactions of the audience to the story.[8]
In viewing the recently rediscovered copy of the film, this emphasis on facial expressions is obvious to the point that the camera focuses on the audience for more time than the storyteller himself. However, this was not new to Flaherty. Outtakes from Man of Aran found at the Irish Film Institute show multiple short takes of young Michael Dillane and a donkey for Man of Aran with Michael’s changing facial expressions with each take of the same scene.[9]
Selection of the Storyteller
By June 1933, little progress had been made on the short. On 21 June 1933, Séamus Ó Duilearga noted in his diary,
A talk at Dept. of Education with Dr. Quane; the Secretary, Joseph O’Neill, and other officials. They wish me to select a suitable storyteller and to supervise the recording in connection with the Irish sound film to be made by Robert Flaherty, the famous film producer in Aran. It was my suggestion to have this sound film made.[10]
On the same day, Flaherty sent both a telegram and a letter begging that Ó Duilearga join them in the Aran Islands. The telegram read, “Could you possibly come over within next week to decide details etc the Irish film / writing regards. Flaherty.”[11] The letter provides greater detail.
As you perhaps know, Dr Flower is here…. We are beginning now to consider actively the outline for the Gaelic talkie we are to record later on in London. I have invited Judge Forde to come over from Galway; but it seems that the most important person to be here is yourself.[12]
In the summer and autumn of 1933, Ó Duilearga wrestled with the options and responsibility of the storyteller choice. The Department of Education continuously reminded him with comments such as this one in a letter from Seósamh Ó Néill, “With regard to the story-teller, we hope that you will succeed in securing the services of a good type of old man, possessing excellent Irish, with a good voice and bearing”.[13] Ó Duilearga confided in his fiancée Maud McGuigan writing, “The delay here is because I cannot fix on the speaker. I may have to go back to Connemara…”.[14]
A second problem that Ó Duilearga encountered regarded what exactly should be asked of the storyteller to recite. It appears that there was a general struggle between recording a tale as would have been done at the time in folklore preservation on Ediphone or on completing a film about the tradition of storytelling. The former would require Ó Duilearga to find the best example of storyteller with a suitable tale chosen. However, the second option had much greater emphasis on the filming experience and less focus on the authenticity of the act.
The term documentary, especially through the lens of Robert Flaherty, included the idea of a re-enactment. The actor playing the role of shark hunter in Man of Aran did not actually have to be previously skilled in that task and nor did the storyteller need to actually be a storyteller.
Although Mahr initially indicated in 1932 that “a very good storyteller with very good stories” was desired, the Department of Education appeared to have become more flexible on this point by 1933. Ó Néill writing to Ó Duilearga on the Aran Islands noted,
With regard to the story of the film, it is not necessary that you should confine your attention to the folk-lore type of story. Any suitable story will do, and it is desirable that, if possible, some action should be shewn in it so as to add to its interest and to hold the attention.[15]
Returning to the pressing issue of finding a storyteller for the short film, Darach Ó Direáin whom Flaherty considered as his “local story-teller”[16] was by June 1933 no longer considered desirable.[17] Seán Mac Giollarnáth’s suggestion was Patrick Cloherty (Pádraic Ó Clochartaigh) of Connemara. Upon seeing the photograph that Mac Giollarnáth sent, Flaherty remarked of the mainland storyteller, “…he impresses us very much.”[18] By the end of the summer, Ó Duilearga eventually sided with another Connemara man whom he too came to know through Seán Mac Giollarnáth, namely Seán Ó Briain of Carna.[19] Ó Flannagáin, the local schoolmaster, appeared to be the lone voice recommending another Aran Islander, supporting the choice of Seáinín Tom Ó Dioráin. Flaherty insisted that Ó Duilearga should make the call. “…I think that you are the person to have the last word on this all-important point.”[20]
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PLACE GRIANGHRAF 9 HERE
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Figure 9: Patrick Cloherty (Pádraic Ó Clochartaigh). Photograph reproduced with permission of NFC.
However, a month after Flaherty wrote to say he was no longer siding with the choice of Darach Ó Direáin, Seósamh Ó Néill sent a letter to Ó Duilearga indicating that Education Minister Thomas Derrig (Tomás Ó Deirg) wanted the Fairy Cobbler interviewed.
The minister has received a recommendation on behalf of Darach Ó Direáin of Eoghanacht as being a suitable man and the role of story-teller and he would be glad if you could arrange to interview him and see what you think of him. I understand that he is a native of Aran.[21]
Ó Duilearga had no shortage of storytellers to interview in the summer of 1933 in Árainn. Ó Duilearga had previously brought storyteller Patrick Cloherty (Pádraic Ó Clochartaigh) from Leitir Mealláin to Árainn on 30 June. A boat was hired from Carna specifically with the purpose of bringing him from the island of Garmna to Árainn.[22] Besides auditioning in terms of tales, voice, and Irish language clarity, the visit also entailed a film test. It is noted that Patrick Cloherty stayed a week in Árainn lodging with Pat Hernon in Cill Mhuirbhigh. A second test is noted later in July with the same storyteller. Patrick Flaherty was also brought in by boat from Ballinakilla on 13 July.
Seán Ó Briain
One storyteller that stood out from the group was Seán Ó Briain from Loch Conaortha, Cill Chiaráin, Carna, Connemara.[23] This was another storyteller with which Seán Mac Giollarnáth acquainted Séamus Ó Duilearga. Mac Giollarnáth indicated that Ó Briain “… was held to have been the greatest of contemporary sgéalaidhthe”. In a 1934 article in The Irish Press, he further stated,
Irish was his only language. …he was … in possession of a stock of wonderful tales and of great artistic skill in the telling of them. […] In the telling of his stories Seán O Briain became possessed by the spirit and power of their genius. The very flow of the language seized him and his delivery in the heroic tales was like that of an actor; he could not pause or suffer interruption to the end of the passage. He recited with great clarity, and always as if before a large audience. (Mac Giollarnáth, 1934)
Seán Ó Briain was among the storytellers from whom American folklorist Jeremiah Curtin collected tales two generations previous, publishing English language versions of them in America.
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PLACE GRIANGHRAF 10 HERE
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Figure 10: Storyteller Seán Ó Briain, of Loch Conaortha, Carna. Photograph reproduced with permission of NFC.[24]
Although Flaherty and Ó Duilearga eventually agreed on Seán Ó Briain in the summer of 1933, as mentioned above, it soon became obvious that the sound film had to be taken in London, and not on the Aran Islands as planned. While previously it was emphasized that the storyteller should be an “old man” and able to travel to Árainn, now an additional requirement had
to be added. The storyteller needed to be physically able and want to travel as far as London. Seán Ó Briain’s response was not encouraging, but that did not discourage Ó Duilearga.
Aran Islander Seán Ó Flatharta was tested in the studio at Cill Mhuirbhigh on 25 July, and Seáinín Tom had his chance at an audition on 28 July there. Though it was clear that Seán Ó Briain was not willing to go to London, Ó Duilearga made a visit to him on 31 July 1933. There were more tests still with other storytellers on 2 August 1933. In September Ó Flannagáin wrote to Ó Duilearga, and encouraged him to pick Seáinín Tom; however, increasingly in the autumn of 1933 it appears every effort was made to get Seán Ó Briain to London. By November, it was understood that Seán Ó Briain was the chosen storyteller as can be seen in a letter to the editor in The Irish Press in which Mícheál Ó Maoláin complained of the fact that a non-Aran Islander was chosen for the role (Ó Maoláin, 1933).
In December 1933, the main actors in Man of Aran travelled to London. The plan was that sound was to be recorded first for Man of Aran and then the Irish language film would be made. Flaherty sent a telegram to Ó Duilearga on 14 December 1933 saying, “Not ready for storyteller until after Christmas – Will advise exact date as soon as possible.”[25] Yet, right about this time it appears that the storyteller came down with the flu. Seán Mac Giollarnáth reported in The Irish Press a few weeks later that Seán Ó Briain had been sick for a fortnight.
Brian Ó Catháin published the following account from Seán Ó Briain’s daughter, Mary O’Brien, in 2004.
Bhí Seán Éadbhaird [Seán Ó Briain] le bheith sa bpictiúr – mar scéalaí. Bhí sé lántsásta a pháirt a dhéanamh agus áthas air go mbeadh deis aige dul go hÁrainn áit a raibh cuid mhaith dá mhuintir ach bhí sé ag breith suas leis na ceithre scóir an uair sin. Is cuimhneach liom go maith go raibh go leor fuisiú ann. Bhí údar culaith de ghlas caorach réidh ag mo mháthair i gcóir na hócáide. Tugadh é go dtí an táilliúr… Bhí gach rud faoi réir ach sul má bhí an scannán réidh le tosnú tháinig chuaig fliú ar Sheán Ó Briain…. (Ó Catháin, 2004, p. 219)
[Seán Éadbhaird (Seán Ó Briain) was to be in the picture – as a storyteller. He was quite content to do his part and happy that he would have the opportunity to go to Árainn where a good number of his relatives lived, but he was reaching the age of eighty at that point. I well remember that there was a lot of fussing. My mother had reason to have a grey wool suit ready for the occasion. He was taken to the tailor… Everything was prepared but as the filming was to begin Seán Ó Briain came down with the flu…]
Ó Duilearga made a final visit in the end of December. Sadly, the scéalaí passed away soon after on New Year’s Day. The entry in Ó Duilearga’s diary read, “Cailleadh Seán Ó Briain, scéalaí, Loch Conaortha, Carna, inniu 3pm, R.I.P. Chonaic mé é Dé hAoine seo caite. Is mór an méala é a bhás.”[26] On the Financial Dept. Claim Form for December 1933, Ó Duilearga notes [bold added by author],
26/28 Dec. 1933 To visit to Seán Ó Briain selected storyteller at Loch Con Uidhre, Kilkerrin
1st rail return Dublin-Galway 2-1-9
Bus fare return, Galway-Kilkerrin 10-0
Subsistence allowance Kilkerrin
26, 27, 28 Dec. @16/- 2-8-0[27]
Ó Flannagáin writing more than a fortnight later refers to the death of Seán Ó Briain saying,
…I saw where you were in “at the death” or rather before it of poor Seán Ó Briain RIP. I hope you were not responsible for “extinguishing the flame”. You know you’ll be getting rather a bad name in that respect.[28]
Ó Duilearga himself often had the feeling that he was a decade or two too late as he never seemed to be able to survey a storyteller’s complete repertoire before death.
With Seán Ó Briain out of the picture, a runner-up had to quickly be readied. This time, Ó Duilearga placed much of the responsibility on the local schoolmaster in the western end of Árainn, his friend, Seósamh Ó Flannagáin. The first reference to a newly chosen storyteller for the film did not appear in The Irish Press until 22 January 1934, two days after Séamus Ó Duilearga and Seáinín Tom Ó Dioráin left for London (“Sgealaidhe Sound Film,” 1934).
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PLACE GRIANGHRAF 11 HERE
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Figure 11: The set for interior shots on location in the Aran Islands, Man of Aran Cottage. Photo courtesy of The Robert and Frances Flaherty Study Center at Claremont School of Theology.
In summary, in this chapter it was seen that the important role of selecting a storyteller was placed on Séamus Ó Duilearga. Three possible scenarios could have enfolded: (1) the selection of a raconteur of hero-tales like Darach Ó Dioráin, Patrick Cloherty (Pádraic Ó Clochartaigh), or Seán Ó Briain, (2) the selection of a raconteur of stories and local history like Seáinín Tom Ó Dioráin, or (3) the selection of a photogenic actor like Patch Ruadh Mullen (Peaits Rua Ó Maoláin) from the Man of Aran cast, who could talk of times past and thereby play the role of a storyteller. Although Ó Duilearga desired the first scenario and was not keen on the third, he ended up with the agreeable second scenario and to his delight, Seáinín Tom had a few wonder-tales in his store. As mentioned in the methodology section of this book, storytellers such as Darach Ó Direáin and Seán Ó Briain who are known for their hero-tales including Finn-tales are referred to in the literature as a scéalaí. Likewise, a storyteller such as Seáinín Tom Ó Dioráin who is known for short stories and local history was often referred to as a seanchaí. Clearly, Ó Duilearga and Flaherty did permit the third option to be a possibility as individuals such as Jamesy Ó Flaithbheartaigh were given screen tests.
[1] The terms ethnofiction or docufiction may be more appropriate here as opposed the general term of docudrama.
[2] For example, during a 2015 summer visit to the island, the author observed that the film Man of Aran was regularly shown in one of the shops in Cill Rónáin, one of the sweater shops in the same village was selling a number of clothing items advertised as being in the Man of Aran style such as waistcoats, and the cottages that Flaherty built were being used as a bed and breakfast called the “Man of Aran Cottage”.
[3] See Chapter One concerning Patch Ruadh Mullen (Peaits Rua Ó Maoláin). The English sound track actually contains quite a few Irish language comments. Maggie Dirrane also keens in Irish on the English language sound track. This is not surprising since those doing the voiceovers were native speakers of Irish.
[4] A Spanish-language sound track is available as well as versions with subtitles in other languages.
[5] During the period of years being investigated in this chapter and the following, Mahr served as Keeper of Irish Antiquities in the National Museum of Ireland in Dublin (which was affiliated with the Irish Department of Education). He was an Austrian archaeologist who was employed at the museum starting in 1927 and became Director in 1934. Flaherty relied on him to collect much of the background information for the basking shark hunting scene in Man of Aran (a specimen of the basking shark from 1870 was in the museum’s collection and can still be seen today on the ground floor of the museum in Dublin). Ó Duilearga frequently sent him traditional Irish tools collected in the field. All departments of the National Museum were in Dublin at that time. Today, the museum houses its country life section in Turlough Park, Co. Mayo, while the natural history section remains at Merrion Square, Dublin.
Adolf Mahr came to be known in the later 1930s as a Nazi. He was one of several Germans speakers brought into Ireland in the early period of the Free State to take up scientific positions. He joined the National Socialist German Workers’ Party while in Dublin in 1933. In 1938, he took on the role of leader of the Dublin branch for a year. He attended a conference in Germany as an official Irish representative in August 1939 and once out of Ireland, he was never permitted to return. During the war years in Germany, he took an active role in supervising broadcasts of radio propaganda on Irland-Redaktion (the same service where another Celticist worked for the Nazi cause, Hans Hartmann). In the post-war years, Mahr was arrested in January 1946 by British troops in Germany and imprisoned. Though officially on leave without pay since 1939 from his position at the museum in Dublin, the Irish government prevented his return to Ireland in the post-war years. See Mullins (2007).
[6] Ó Duilearga, S., 1899-1980, A. Mahr to Ó Duilearga, 30 September 1932.
[7] Ó Duilearga, S., 1899-1980, R.J. Flaherty to A. Mahr, 2 January 1933.
[8] Ó Duilearga, S., 1899-1980, R.J. Flaherty to A. Mahr, 2 January 1933, in reference to the filming of a storyteller on the Aran Islands in preparation for the London Irish language film.
[9] See the Man of Aran 2012 DVD by Park Circus with additional material from the Irish Film Institute.
[10] Ó Duilearga, S. (21/6/1933). [Diary entry]. NFC, UCD. Published with permission of Caitríona Miles.
[11] Ó Duilearga, S., 1899-1980, R.J. Flaherty (telegram) to Ó Duilearga, 21 June 1933.
[12] Ó Duilearga, S., 1899-1980, R.J. Flaherty to Ó Duilearga, 21 June 1933. Robin Flower was an Englishman with a keen interest in Irish language folklore. He worked as Deputy-Keeper of Manuscripts in the British Museum and collected folklore in the Blasket Islands. Ó Duilearga at the time in question here had already published several articles of Flower’s with Blasket tales in Béaloideas. Judge Forde here refers to Seán Mac Giollarnáth previously discussed in Chapter One.
[13] Ó Duilearga, S., 1899-1980, S. Ó Néill to Ó Duilearga, 21 July 1933. Ó Néill (Joseph O’Neill) served as Permanent Secretary of the Department of Education from 1923-1944. More than twenty years Ó Duilearga’s senior, Ó Néill grew up in the Aran Islands where his father was posted as a member of the Royal Irish Constabulary. See http://www.ricorso.net/rx/az-data/authors/o/ONeill_J2/life.htm .
[14] Ó Duilearga, S., 1899-1980, Ó Duilearga to M. McGuigan, 22 July 1933.
[15] Ó Duilearga, S., 1899-1980, S. Ó Néill to Ó Duilearga, 21 July 1933.
[16][16] Ó Duilearga, S., 1899-1980, R.J. Flaherty to A. Mahr, 2 January 1933.
[17] Ó Duilearga, S., 1899-1980, R.J. Flaherty to Ó Duilearga, 21 June 1933. Flaherty stated, “…we do not think [Darach] is a good enough type.”
[18] Ó Duilearga, S., 1899-1980, R.J. Flaherty to Ó Duilearga, 21 June 1933.
[19] References to Seán Ó Briain by Séamus Ó Duilearga appear to go back as far as 1931.
[20] Ó Duilearga, S., 1899-1980, R.J. Flaherty to Ó Duilearga, 21 June 1933.
[21] Ó Duilearga, S., 1899-1980, S. Ó Néill to Ó Duilearga, 21 July 1933.
[22] Garmna, or Gorumna, is an island that along with Leitir Mealláin and Leitir Móir and other nearby islands are collectively referred to as “Ceantar na nOiléan.” These three islands as well as Eanach Mheáin and Fornais are connected by bridges to the mainland.
[23] 1852-1934
[24] This photograph appeared at the beginning of Volume 30 (1962) of Béaloideas which contained three of Ó Briain’s stories collected by Séamus Ó Duilearga. The photo can also be seen as part of the permanent collection at the National Museum of Ireland, Country Life, Turlough Park, Co. Mayo (viewed on 23 July 2016).
[25] Ó Duilearga, S., 1899-1980, R.J. Flaherty (telegram) to Ó Duilearga, 14 December 1933.
[26] Ó Duilearga, S. (1/1/1934). [Diary entry]. NFC, UCD. Published with permission of Caitríona Miles. “Seán Ó Briain passed away, storyteller, Loch Conaortha, Carna, today 3pm, R.I.P. I saw him last Friday. His death is a cause of great mourning.”
[27] Ó Duilearga, S. (1933, December). Financial Dept. Claim Form. Oidhche Sheanchais file, NFC, UCD.
[28] Ó Duilearga, S., 1899-1980, S. Ó Flannagáin to Ó Duilearga, 17 January 1934.
