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Cover of “The Playboy of the Western World”

The Playboy of the Western World

J. M. Synge (1871–1909)

A young man arrives at a pub on the Irish coast claiming he killed his father, and the village makes him a hero. A poetic comedy that caused riots on opening night.

First published
1907
Genre
Theatre
Length
76 pages · 19,729 words
Reading time
≈ 1 h 30 min
Language
English
License
Public domain

How it begins

Act I

Scene: Country public-house or shebeen, very rough and untidy. There is a sort of counter on the right with shelves, holding many bottles and jugs, just seen above it. Empty barrels stand near the counter. At back, a little to left of counter, there is a door into the open air, then, more to the left, there is a settle with shelves above it, with more jugs, and a table beneath a window. At the left there is a large open fireplace, with turf fire, and a small door into inner room. Pegeen, a wild-looking but fine girl, of about twenty, is writing at table. She is dressed in the usual peasant dress.

Pegeen

Slowly as she writes. Six yards of stuff for to make a yellow gown. A pair of lace boots with lengthy heels on them and brassy eyes. A hat is suited for a wedding-day. A fine tooth comb. To be sent with three barrels of porter in Jimmy Farrell’s creel cart on the evening of the coming Fair to Mister Michael James Flaherty. With the best compliments of this season. Margaret Flaherty.

Shawn

A fat and fair young man comes in as she signs, looks round awkwardly, when he sees she is alone. Where’s himself?

Pegeen

Without looking at him. He’s coming. She directs the letter. To Mister Sheamus Mulroy, Wine and Spirit Dealer, Castlebar.

Shawn

Uneasily. I didn’t see him on the road.

Keep reading in the Library

This edition

The Playboy of the Western World by J. M. Synge (1871–1909) was first published in 1907. It is in the public domain worldwide: its author died more than a hundred years ago.

Text based on the Standard Ebooks edition (dedicated to the public domain under CC0), https://standardebooks.org/ebooks/j-m-synge/the-playboy-of-the-western-world. Their cover, imprint, colophon and licence pages were removed; the text and its structure were kept and restyled for this edition.

Original cover and design by the Arcadópolis Library.

Text source: Standard Ebooks

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