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What does Yeats mean by "casual comedy" in "Easter 1916"?

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In "Easter 1916," Yeats uses "casual comedy" to describe the mundane and somewhat absurd nature of life in Ireland before the Easter Rebellion. This term reflects the resigned acceptance of British rule and the uninspiring daily existence. The rebellion transformed even flawed individuals, who abandoned this "casual comedy" to strive for a new and inspiring Irish independence.

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The passage in the poem that mentions a "casual comedy" is as follows:

He, too, has resigned his part
In the casual comedy;
He, too, has been changed in his turn,
Transformed utterly:
A terrible beauty is born.

The "he" that Yeats' speaker refers to is a man he describes as "drunken" and a "lout" who has badly wronged some of the speaker's dearest friends. Nevertheless, Yeats includes this man in the "casual comedy," which was what life was like in Ireland before the Easter Rebellion of 1916.

The 1916 Easter Rebellion was the largest rebellion in Ireland in more than a century. It was propelled by a desire to mount a fight for independence while the British were preoccupied with World War I. It was a bloody rebellion that was put down harshly, but it marked a turning point—inspiring many Irish people to support Irish nationalism and Irish independence.

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The 1916 Easter Rebellion was the largest rebellion in Ireland in more than a century. It was propelled by a desire to mount a fight for independence while the British were preoccupied with World War I. It was a bloody rebellion that was put down harshly, but it marked a turning point—inspiring many Irish people to support Irish nationalism and Irish independence.

The man described in the passage above is one of the multitude who has "resigned" his part in going along with the "casual comedy" of British rule of Ireland. Even though an imperfect person, he has changed—"Transformed utterly"—and become part of the new and terrible beauty of Irish independence that is being born.

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Humorously, while pontificating on the Easter Rebellion, Yeats comments negatively about his own country, but he does so in a manner that seems resigned to its lackluster charms. Yeats calls his home country of Ireland a “casual comedy," referring to the almost comedic nature of its continued existence and the bleak way of life within that nation.

There is clear resignation in his voice, because, although the nation is dull and unsatisfying, it is, according to the speaker, better than England. The speaker spends a good deal of time criticizing the dreary and grey countryside of the nation of England, as well as its miserable cities.

The speaker has resigned himself to this nation and committed to it in spite of its issues. This signals his commitment to “righting the wrongs,” as it were, in the nation; he enters the rebellion to try and fix the country he lives and make it beautiful and inspiring once more.

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