Characters

Download PDF PDF Page Citation Cite Share Link Share

The Narrator

The speaker of the poem, typically understood to be Yeats himself, writes about his everyday activities at the beginning of the poem. He nods to people as he passes them, and he also tells a funny or satirical story at the pub. Later, he muses about the people who have died while taking part in the Easter Rising of 1916.

The Argumentative Woman

Yeats mentions a woman who is argumentative and ignorant. However, when she sacrificed herself in the Easter Rising, she was transformed into someone beautiful.

The Sensitive Man

Yeats also writes about a sensitive man who is the friend of a man who runs a school. This sensitive man had something great about him, Yeats believes, and he was sweet yet daring. Yeats believes that if this man had not died, the man would have likely gone far in his life.

The Drunken Lout

The poet also writes about a drunken man who is arrogant. Yeats dislikes this man, as the man wronged some of the people Yeats is close to. However, this man, Yeats believes, has also been redeemed through his sacrifice for Ireland's freedom.

Thomas MacDonagh

Yeats refers at the end of the poem to figures who fought in the Easter Rising. One was Thomas MacDonagh, an Irish playwright who sought to bring avant-garde productions to Ireland. During the wave of militant nationalism that swept Ireland during World War I, he became part of the Irish Volunteers and was sworn into the Irish Republican Brotherhood. He defended a garrison during the Easter Rising and was later sentenced to death by the British. During his execution, he told the firing squad that he did not hold their actions against them, as they were just doing their job, and he offered them a cigarette.

John MacBride

Yeats also references John MacBride. Born in Ireland, MacBride went to South Africa and fought against the British in the Boer War. He later married Maud Gonne, an Anglo-Irish revolutionary who was friends with Yeats, and they returned to Ireland together. He claimed that he was not a member of the Irish Volunteers, but he joined them on the day of the uprising. He was also executed for his role in the Easter Rising.

James Connolly

James Connolly was a socialist and trade union leader who became a military leader during the uprising. He was the most effective leader of the uprising. Wounded in the uprising, he was also executed by the British.

Patrick Pearse

Patrick Pearse was the commander of the Irish rebels during the Easter Rising. A poet and teacher, he believed in publishing works in the Irish language as a means of resisting British rule. He was also executed by the British following the Easter Rising.

Get Ahead with eNotes

Start your 48-hour free trial to access everything you need to rise to the top of the class. Enjoy expert answers and study guides ad-free and take your learning to the next level.

Get 48 Hours Free Access
Previous

Themes

Next

Analysis

Loading...