Purgatory (Masterplots, Revised Second Edition)
At a glance:
- Author: William Butler Yeats
- First Published: 1939
- Type of Work: Drama
- Type of Plot: Fantasy
- Time of Work: Early twentieth century
- Setting: Ireland
- Principal Characters: An Old Man, A Boy
- Genres: Drama, Fantasy
- Subjects: Parents and children, Murder or homicide, Twentieth century, Ghosts or apparitions, Fathers, Inheritance or succession, Fantasy, Symbolism, Fratricide, parricide, or filicide, Ireland or Irish people, Celtic Twilight, Celts
- Locales: Ireland
The Story:
An Old Man and his adolescent son stood before a ruined old house, behind which stood only one bare tree. The boy complained of long wandering carrying a heavy pack while having to listen to his father’s talk. Ignoring the complaints, the Old Man instructed the boy to study the house, which once was the scene of camaraderie, storytelling, and jokes. He was now the only living person with such memories. Although the boy scoffed at these reminiscences as pointless, the Old Man continued with his moonlit reverie about the cloud-shadowed house. He had visited the site...
[The entire page is 2295 words long]
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