How does Brian Friel establish the theme of language Essay

How does Brian Friel establish the ascendent of run-in and its effects on communication, force and identity in Act one?In the spell Translations, terminology and its effects is all the way one of the central themes. This is evident because the characters all immortalize what nomenclature means to them ranging from Hugh who uses his knowledge of run-ins as a form of business office over the British to Owen who does non show any concern for his language and identity and provides the British to call him Roland. furthermore the title of the play Translations is juiceless because although one of the themes of the play is keeping your identity the book itself looses its identity. This is because although the play is written by an Irish author and set in Ireland, it is written in side of meat. Thus the title foreshadows the outcome of the play.One of the ways Brain Friel establishes the theme of language is by using Sarah as a device to withdraw the b ar negligible of lang uage. Her limited knowledge of language limits her communication. moreover this could too be a benefit to her as she is able to have secrets without creation expected to share them. Sarah is starting introduced in the play by the grade directions which say Sarah shakes her head vigorously and stubbornly this is because baseball glove wants her to let the cat out of the bag so she has an identity in the world. This could foreshadow that the Irish, who do non want to accost side ordain be forced too for there declare good as it will help their country prosper.The character Sarah merchant ship be interpreted as the symbol of Ireland due to the play beginning with her trying to claim her identity by saying My institute is Sarah. This performance of Sarah saying her name at the start of the play shows just how decently language send word be as just a a a few(prenominal)(prenominal) words washbasin turn you from someone who is unknown to a somebody who has office in t he world. baseball glove sympathises this and reacts by saying nothingll dismiss us now. This can either be interpreted as nothing will stop Sarah from skill Gaelic now or that the now in the quote refers to all of Ireland and that as long as people are still learning Gaelic the British will not stamp out their language.The character handwriting is Hughs first son and is a teacher at Hedge School. The relationship that Manus has with his yield is made genuinely clear by Brain Freil when Hugh first enters the play as he treats Manus like a striver by handing him his hat and coat as, if to a footman. Brain Friel shows that due to Manuss lack of communication with his father and his willingness to do all the things his father asks of him, that he has become a servant. Out of all the characters in the play it is further Manus who really sees the British as an enemy in the First Act. This is likely to be because Manus clearly loves his country and his language and sees these two things as part of his identity.Also although the play is not overtly political, political issues do run under the surface. For example when Dan Doalty moves the Britishs poles Manus says this is just a gesture to indicate a strawman. However when analysing Doaltys character it can easily be seen that it is super unlikely he was doing it for this reason and was more likely just feel to make fun of the British. what is more Manus is the solo one who sees Owens job as traitorous to Ireland. All the other characters do not level mention it. However although Manus feels this way about Owen, he himself is guilty of betrayal as he ignores Sarah when she tells him that she said her name. As Sarah symbolises Irelands identity ignoring her is like a betrayal to Ireland.The character prise, although contributing to the prank in act one when Doalty and Bridget are making fun of him. I believe also that this represents just how different the British and Irish cultivation was in the ni neteenth century as his character reveals that in Ireland even the most poor man can emit Greek and Latin. In England it is most likely only the richer upper class people would be able to speak these languages revealing that language doesnt represent status in Ireland. Furthermore jemmys character is also the only character that stays true to his identity as he is unable(p) to speak English and shows know signs of wishing to learn English I have only Irish.However although Jimmy shows know signs of absentminded to learn English his love of Latin and Greek have caused him to be unable to communicate properly with other characters as they only speak Gaelic. Thus Jimmy portrays what could happen to Ireland if they do not learn English as they will be cut off from the world. Additionally Jimmys character also uses his knowledge of languages as a exponent over the British as he mocks headwaiter Lancey for not creation able to speak Latin Nonne Latine loquitur?.Brain Friel also sho ws that due to Jimmys reading of Greek stories such as the Odyssey he has created an alternative reality for himself in which figures of myth are as real to him as the people he sees everyday. This is revealed as he imagines situations when he would have to pack between Athene, Artimis and Helen. Due to these fantasies Manus calls Jimmy a bloody grave man suggesting that living in the past is treacherous. Thus foreshadowing that Manus, who does not embrace the English language in his country, may be dangerous as he is still living in the pastThe characters captain Lancey and Yolland although both working for the British army have very different views on what they have been ordered to do in Ireland. This is apparent by the way that they act when they first meet the Irish people. Captain Lancey who clearly symbolises England as his manner is polite and imperative, is very patronising when he talks, intellection that if he just talks slow and loud as if to a child the Irish will s ome how be able to understand him a picture- you understand picture?.However even though he uses this patronising tone it is clearly unjustified because when jimmy asks him Nonne Latine loquitur? he mistakes it for Gaelic showing that he is not as intelligent as them. Furthermore the language used by Lancey although already in English is very political and imperialistic and it is likely some British people wouldnt understand what he was saying. In comparison Yolland although a soldier has few characteristics normally associated with the military as he is shy and awkward. This is shown when Yolland says I I Ive nothing to say really -. The quote reveals that he is not uncomfortable being in Hedge Schools as he stutters. Furthermore unlike Lancey, Yolland is uneasy about not being able to speak Gaelic as he says Sorry sorry when he cant understand Maire. Additionally Yolland shows very clearly that he set language and identity as he wishes to learn Gaelic.The strong-minded, stron g somatic women Maire is a very pragmatic character as she will do things to better herself. This is shown by her willing to embrace the future and learn English so that she can move to America as it is the land of opportunities. This reveals that learning English to Maire is a form of tycoon as it will allow her to escape her poor life in Ireland.However although she desires this, there is a clear uncertainty in what Maire wants as she speaks approvingly of modern promotion but on other occasions finds comfort in the belief that things will never change. This is shown when she talks about Baile Beags potato harvest-feast never failing. The repetition of the word never suggests that her willingness to embrace the future is rare and selective showing that she wants some things to change while finding a misplaced assurance in the belief that somethings will never change. This could suggest that although she is willing to give up part of her identity, she is comforted by the fact that it is unlikely to happen.The character Owen is Hughs youngest son an presents a large contrast to Manus, as he is lively and charming. Furthermore although Owen is the son who left over(p) his father to pursue his own ambitions he is treated more warmly then Manus. This could be why Owen and Manuss relationship is uneasy. Owen can either be interpreted as a traitor or as a pragmatic character like Maire. This is because although Owen is helping the British standardise Irish place names, he could just be doing this as he believes embracing English is the only way Ireland will prosper.However due to Owen allowing the British to call him Roland, which is a common British name it is likely that the former is true. This is further apparent as when questioned by Manus about why the British call him Roland he replies with Its only a name. Its the same me isnt it?. This quote reveals that Owen places know appraise in his identity. Owens translation of what Lancey is saying on pages 31/32 also show how Owen uses his ability to communicate with the English as power over the Irish. This is because his mistranslation of what Lancey is saying to the Irish allows Owen to make it seem that the British are in their country to help them, not remove their language.The character Hugh although conveyed as a figure of dignity in Baile Beag is ironically a weighty drinker and is shown little respect by characters such as Daolty as he mocks him behind his back by impersonating the way he acts. Hugh, who is runny in English, Latin, Greek and Gaelic is very critical of the British language referring to it as a language for traders. Furthermore the distain with which he speaks of Lancey for not sagacious any Gaelic, Latin and Irish shows how he uses his knowledge of languages as a weapon against the British as he is able to show his overlord intelligence.In conclusion Brain Friels uses characters, dramatic setting and more other devices to show how language plays a key ro le in this play. Furthermore his use of characters in the play to convey the bare minimum of language (Sarah) and the height of language (Hugh) add to the effect of how he uses language.