Philadelphia, Here I come
Master Boyle – Visit
Episode 1
Towards the end of episode 1 Master Boyle, Gar O’Donnell’s old school teacher, calls around to bid Gar farewell on the eve of his departure to Philadelphia. Boyle displays a degree of arrogance towards Gar. Also he borrows money from his former pupil. It is this type of behaviour coupled with his drink problem and his ‘lies’ about an offer from an American university that highlights Boyle’s pathetic nature.
In many ways Boyle is the opposite of S.B. O’ Donnell. While S.B is a pillar of society in Ballybeg, Boyle is a rebel. His ongoing dispute with the canon underlines this. There is a warm and emotional side visible in Boyle in this episode that appears virtually non-existent in S.B. He displays genuine affection for Gar and praises his decision to leave Ballybeg.
Boyle feels trapped and repressed in Ballybeg. He seems as though he is tied down by the stagnant changes that take place. His drinking robs him of his status, respect normally given to teachers of the time. Clearly, it affects his finances also.
Boyle is weak-willed. He knows the kind of life he wants and where it can be found but he lacks the courage and effort to pursue his goals. It is likely that he fears failure. The fact that he publishes his poems privately also points to the fact that he fears failure. Despite this, however, he does insult Gar several times for example telling him that he was a man of ‘average intelligence’.
Kate Doogan
Episode 1 - Flashback
The love affair between Gar and Kate is a key element in the plot in the play. Gar’s failure to win the hand of Kate is the chief reason why he is leaving Ballybeg.
Gar describes her as a snob, a description which is completely unjustified. That she loved Gar and wanted to marry him is clearly evident from her actions on the night of Gar’s visit to the Doogan household. She is a practical person, aware of her parent’s social ambitions and their marriage plans for her and she sets out to overcome these.
She encourages Gar to lie about his earnings and savings to her father but is let down by Gar who lacks the courage and confidence to carry off her scheme.
Her attitude to marriage is mature and realistic and she is not carried away with Gar’s romantic fantasies and allusions.
The brief exchange between Kate and her father, following Gar’s hasty departure, suggests that the topic of her courtship with Gar had been discussed with her parents. It is also likely that she has been under considerable parental pressure to consider marrying Francis King.
Episode 2 - Visit
Her visit to Gar on his last night reveals the affection that she still feels towards him. In thisscene she emerges as a sincere and dignified woman, now prepared to accept her lot with her new husband “for better or worse” and not to display any private regrets she may feel about her marriage. There is, however, a certain uncertainty in her comment “I hear no complaints” – in response to Gar’s polite question about Dr. King which may suggest a lack of interest on her part towards Francis.
Senator Doogan – Flashback
Episode 1
Beneath the Senator’s friendly welcoming manner is displayed a smooth and persuasive man who craftily predicts Gar’s intentions, detects Gar’s lack of confidence and influences him with ease and grace. Gar is utterly lost for words in front of Senator Doogan.
Senator Doogan represents the higher more privileged classes of Ireland at the time. His casual references to old school friends and his university days reinforce the social gap between the O’Donnell and the Doogan families.
However, Senator Doogan could also be regarded as a loving father who is trying to do the best for his only daughter. He most likely moves in circles where social, economic and political success is of paramount importance. It would be unfair to judge him and label him the villain of the play. Also, there is some evidence that Senator Doogan is uneasy about “forcing” his daughter Kate to marry the man that meets the social and economic ambitions of his wife and himself. Senator Doogan was not wholly responsible for ending the romance between Kate and Gar. Much of the blame must rest with Gar. If Gar had the confidence and courage to announce that he intended to marry Kate, things might just have worked out differently.
The Boys – Visit
Episode 2
The boys arrive at the O’Donnell household after an invitation from Madge. This is unknown to Gar upon their arrival. From the moment that they arrive, they are ill at ease. This is an occasion - not just another uneventful night. They are away from their familiar haunt - the darkened street corner – and one of them is leaving for good. Nevertheless, meaningful conversation between them is non-existent. Silence makes them feel uncomfortable so they resort to indulging in a series of boasts on their toughness and claims about their sexual encounters with women. Gar (Private) confirms the obvious – that their boasts and claims are empty and hollow.
They avoid the topic of Gar’s departure because they fear the consequences of facing the issue and talking about it. If they had to face that truth it may prompt them to take a look at their own situations in Ballybeg and what the future holds for them.
Their attitude towards women is coarse and brutish. Their hollow boasts are a useless attempt to hide their personal failures. They view women merely as objects.
The boys’ lifestyle is bleak and aimless. The little village of Ballybeg offers no scope for them to develop the kind of lifestyle they like to believe they lead. The image of them standing around as the lights go out around the village shows the drabness of their existence. They have a constant shortage of funds and no prospects of them improving their material well being.
On the one hand, the boys visit and their indulgence in their pathetic antics confirms Gar’s decision to leave. On the other hand, he realises that he is one of them and that they had many happy and carefree times together. He realises, with nostalgia, that this chapter of his life has been closed forever.
The Yanks – Flashback
Episode 2
They call to the O’ Donnell household on the day of Kate Doogan’s wedding. The language of Lizzy’s dialogue is laced with American phrases and images. These are probably used to impress Gar. Our initial impressions of her are of a vulgar and pushy woman. Gar is painfully aware of this aspect of her character and it is one of the factors which cause him unease about accepting Lizzy’s offer of coming to America to live with her and her husband.
Lizzy frequently refers to her material possessions. However, it is clear that, despite her wealth, Lizzy is a very unhappy and lonely woman. She misses Ireland. This is evident as she speaks of the many Irish records that she has back home. More importantly, she misses the children that she and Con were unable to have.
Lizzy is different to other characters in the play in the way that she blurts out her real feelings, though in a chatty and powerful manner. Her overall behaviour supports her view that the Gallaghers were “Sorta silly and impetuous” and unlike the O’Donnells whom she regards as “kinda cold”.
Lizzy encounters Gar on a day when he is emotionally vulnerable. His sweetheart, Kate Doogan, was marrying another man, as he comes face to face with his dead mother’s only living sister for the first time in his life. For the second time, a woman, whose love he would have wanted to share, is cut off from him forever. He needs warmth and affection while Lizzy needs him as a son.
Con, Lizzy’s husband is a quiet, patient man at whom she directs a series of rude and critical remarks. We get the impression that he has heard it all many times before. He, of course, must share and understand the constant disappointment and pain that Lizzy feels over their childless state. While we can sense his irritation and weariness, we admire him for not responding sharply or angrily to her abuse.
Ben Burton contributes little or no dialogue. Nevertheless, he is a vivid reminder and a symbol of all that is positive and admirable in the American character – generosity, tolerance and hospitality. Lizzy explains that it was not without the help and kindness of Ben Burton that they have been successful in America. Also, when she unintentionally attacks his race and religion he tolerates it, like Con, as if he is used to it.
Canon O’Byrne
Episode 3
Canon Mick O’ Byrne, a symbol of Christianity and a representative of the church, displays absolutely none of the virtues that his calling demands of him. He lacks compassion and understanding and would seem to be unaware of life and uninterested in the needs of his people. As he sits at the table of the O’Donnell household uttering his nonsensical observations, he is utterly oblivious of the anguish and loneliness that both Gar and his father are silently suffering on Gar’s last night at home.
He repeats Madge’s remark about the timing of his nightly visit and giggles stupidly to himself as if it were a rare gem of wit.