The large extract above illustrates the most obvious connection to the title ‘Translations’. From this quotation we learn not only about their roles in this play but an insight of their characters. We learn that Owen is doing Yolland’s job for him. And in the following text it is clear that Yolland’s thoughts are else where. More important than what we learn about their actual character is what we learn about their attitudes about the relationship between the English and the Irish. It is evident that both these characters are ones who want to break this hostility and abhorrence between the two. Owen is one of the few Irish characters who have worked with the English and is trying to resolve the problems between them. He is a key character throughout the whole play and illustrates the process of translation most clearly.
Owen is known to Yolland at this stage by the name Rolland due to a misunderstanding when meeting. – “…They seemed to get it wrong form the very beginning – or else they couldn’t pronounce Owen…” – Act I-Scene I-36. This misunderstanding affectively sums Owen up as a character – what he is known as to one character is different to another. Owen’s name has been affectively anglicised itself to Rolland, by Lancey and Yolland, just as the Irish place names are being changed as well. The change in Owen’s name is a metaphor for change and confusion involving the anglicising of the place names. This is a form of translation where the Irish-ness is Owens name is lost.
There is also an apparent likeness between the two names, Yolland and Rolland. This suggests an understanding between the two characters; however it could be argued that it is a false understanding. Despite the obvious evidence that the character get on well with each other Yolland does not know Owen’s actual name, so he lead to believe he is a different person. However this is proved wrong when Owen tells Yolland about the mistake and the two laugh at their misinterpretation.
“YOLLAND - “…It was never Rolland?”
OWEN - “Never.”
YOLLAND - “O my God!”
Pause. They stare at one another. Then the absurdity of the situation strikes them suddenly. They explode with laughter. Owen pours a drink. As the rolls about their lines overlap….” – Act II-Scene I-Page 55
The quotation above comes from a scene in which these two characters represent optimism for the relationship between the English and the Iris. There is hope as we see these two characters working together. This is quite different from the disaster into turns into in Act III. Owen now wishes to have no connection with the English and Yolland has been killed. It is as if the two characters that personified hope, had had their ambitions, which represent the want for the Irish and the English to accept each other, flattened and destroyed. Hugh’s last speech sums this up.
“And it was the goddess’s aim and cherished hope that here should be capital of all nations – should the fates perchance allow that. Yet in truth she discovered that a race was springing from Trojan blood to overthrow some day these Tyrian towers – a people kings of broad realms and proud in war who would come fourth for Lybia’s downfall…” – Act III-Scene I-Page 91
Hugh recognises that the Irish and English would never be able to connect properly without the feeling of domination from the English.
One of Friel’s important forms of translation is apparent at the beginning of the play. This involves the character Sarah and her speech defect. This speech defect has lead the locals to believe that she is dumb and convincing her too. Her only way of communicating is by using grunts and unintelligible nasal sounds. At the beginning of Act I, Scene I, Manus is trying to get Sarah to say her name. With much coaxing and encouragement by Manus, Sarah manages to verbalize her name. Sarah’s form of translation is from silence to words. Friel uses it as a sign of hope which is expressed in the words of Manus; -“Marvellous! Bloody Marvellous!...
…Now we’re really started! Nothing’ll stop us now! Nothing in the wide world…” – Act I-Scene I-Page 3
The next character Friel uses to demonstrate in translation is Jimmy Jack. Jimmy is an eccentric, old, smelly tramp whose main love is the speaking and reading of Greek and Latin. Jimmy turns to these scripts because of his loneliness. – “…But what I’m really looking for, Hugh – what I really want – companionship, Hugh – at my time of life, companionship, company, someone to talk to. Away up in Beann na Gaoithe – you’ve got no idea how lonely it is…” – Act III-Scene I-Page 86
Jimmy uses the scripts to compensate this feeling, on the occasion above he is very drunk and the truth behind his intellectual image is revealed. The drink translates his misery while the scripts substitute it.
Brian Friel illustrates the negative attitude of the Irish towards the English largely through the character of Doalty Dan Doalty. We learn at the beginning that Doalty, in his first scene, that he moved some of the English armies equipment, which they are using to map the land. They need the markers to effectively translate the land into meaning and Doalty interferes with that translation.
Brian Friel cleverly introduces another form of translation. The naming of a child is used as a weapon to reveal the father. This way of revealing fatherhood is very is clever and strategic way of revealing it to the community. It almost takes the form of gossip, which appears elsewhere in the play to translate a terrorist action of the English towards the locals.
One of the most important scenes of the play is that of scene II in Act II between Marie and Yolland. Most importantly in this scene is the body language and breath use of both characters. Neither character speaks the others language so the two techniques above are used to communicate and translate their feelings. Both parts are written in English but Friel has arranged and written it so the audience understands what language each character is speaking. This is down to the Friel’s skill as a playwright and the word that he uses. At the beginning of the scene it appears that Marie and Yolland understand each other. The audience could here be led to believe that they do in fact understand each other, but I believe that Friel intending this to happen. It’s mean to represent the connection between the two characters. Every now and again Friel cleverly includes phrases said by both characters in their own language, by perhaps slightly different but the other way round.
MARIE – “The grass must be wet. My feet are soaking.”
YOLLAND – “Your feet must be wet. The grass is soaking.”
Act II-Scene II-Page 62
Once again this indicates the understanding and connection between the two. A phase that is repeated quite often, not only in this scene is the word ‘always’. This is clever writing by Friel because it produces a sense of irony. Both characters pick up this word from the other ones speech and both ask what it means. The do not realise they are saying the same thing. The irony is that they both say they want to be together forever but later Yolland goes missing and is believed dead.
It is important that we recognise how the audience follow the script and understand that they don’t speak the same language. We take this for granted, as it is the skill of the writer who allows us to understand. As Marie ad Yolland cannot speak to same language they go into extreme detail when explain how they feel. This means the audience learns exactly how they feel. By explaining deeply the characters believe they will understand each other better. This coincidentally works terrifically for the audience as they can learn more and more about the characters and their feelings.
The few word that both understand in one or other languages are selective, significant one. When Marie tries to converse in English the words she recognises are ‘Earth’, ‘Fire’ and ‘Water’, words which are essential to life. Yolland on the other hand uses word more connected to the novel by reciting the Irish names that he has been translating to English. I think Friel has made it clear in both their characters their want to learn each other languages. It is Yolland and Marie, along with Owen, are the characters that want to resolve the conflict and get on with each other. Yolland has made it clear from the beginning his wish to speak Irish, just as Marie has done with her wish to speak English. Ironically by the end of the play Yolland has murdered and Owen wishes to have no connection with the English.