The Aran Islands

Famous poet and novelist John M. Synge recounts his travels to the Aran Islands in 1906 - a group of small yet culturally significant isles off the west coast of Ireland. Notable for their history, which stretches back thousands of years, it was with this in mind that Synge conducted his travels of the islands. He attempts to catalog the unique culture of the isolated islands, noting how the peoples adapted to the rugged and adverse climate. Although Synge - a cultured, literate Irishman - thought the people simple, he had the greatest respect for their adept use of boats. Already the winds of change beckon the younger members of the Aran community; Michael, realizing that there is no future on the bleak and grey isles, departs to seek his fortune elsewhere. Synge couples these accounts with observations of the primitive culture; there were no wheeled vehicles on the Aran Isles at the time, and many of the residents only spoke traditional Irish, rather than the dominant English.