The Heroes in the Dark House by Benedict Kiely
"The Heroes in the Dark House" by Benedict Kiely presents a compelling narrative that intertwines the tales of ancient Irish heroes with the modern experiences of American soldiers in Northern Ireland during World War II. The story centers on Arthur Broderick, a storyteller who shares his tales with a young admirer, illustrating how the fleeting presence of American G.I.s transformed the village and evoked memories of legendary figures like Shawn of Kinsale. Kiely contrasts the gallantry of these soldiers with the storied past of Ireland, as Broderick reflects on both historical and contemporary heroism. The titular "dark house," a significant setting in the narrative, symbolizes the enduring legacy of past heroes and the shadows they cast on the present.
Throughout the tale, themes of memory, folklore, and the cyclical nature of heroism are prominent. As Broderick recounts the vibrant lives of the American soldiers, who leave no trace behind after their departure for battle, he emphasizes the spontaneous emergence of folklore and its evolution through storytelling. The narrative captures the essence of heroism as experienced in both ancient and modern contexts, highlighting the transformation of everyday events into memorable tales. Ultimately, Kiely's work invites readers to reflect on the nature of heroism and the impact of stories in shaping cultural identity.
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The Heroes in the Dark House by Benedict Kiely
First published: 1963
Type of plot: Frame story
Time of work: 1944
Locale: Northern Ireland
Principal Characters:
Arthur Broderick , an elderly folktale collector and storytellerA young Scholar , unnamed, interested in Broderick's talesPatrick , a village public-house keeperAmerican soldiers , stationed briefly in Northern Ireland
The Story
Benedict Kiely's "The Heroes in the Dark House" is both a story of the sudden arrival and disappearance of modern-day heroes and the story of the narrator's visit with a young admirer who would hear one of his best Irish tales. Its dramatic impact comes from the juxtaposition of the exploits of ancient heroes such as Shawn of Kinsale with those of ordinary American G.I.'s stationed for a time in a Northern Irish village.
The story begins with Arthur Broderick, a collector of stories dealing with heroes, ending his tale about the American soldiers. The third-person narrator of the story indicates that Broderick has enthralled his young listener with an account of how dashing, even gallant Americans forever transformed the life of his village, then were gone to fight in France without any good-byes. Like true heroes, they went into the realm of myth and left behind no physical trace of their visitation. A bulldozer smashed everything they cast off, from bicycles to bayonets.
Most of the tales that Broderick collects from old people with long memories deal with events set in pre-Christian Ireland, but he insists to his scholar-visitor that the story of the American soldiers is a genuine folktale in its own right.
The "dark house" of the title is Broderick's old dwelling, which is both reminiscent of the smoke-filled castles of ancient Irish warriors and a reminder of the rebellion of 1798, when the house was used as a gathering place for conspirators against the Crown. Broderick makes much of the fact that the handsome oak table in front of the scholar was fashioned from a bellows in a smithy that was destroyed by British redcoats, who feared that it would be used to fashion the deadly Irish rebels' pikes. His mentioning the "men of '98" reemphasizes the heroic motif introduced when he spoke of the deeds of Shawn of Kinsale, who battled seven mile-high crags and seven miles of angry sea to gain the hand of his love.
The presence of departed heroes, the narrator notes, hangs about Broderick's house like smoke. Smoke and darkness are used throughout the story to establish the continuity of past and present.
After letting the reader know something about Broderick's house, the narrator then discusses some of the sources of his tales, people such as Peader Haughey of Creggan Cross, a wizened man recalling the struggles of the king of Antua and the tyranny of the giant of Reibhlean, and an eighty-year-old woman named Maire John who remembers the tale of the three princesses and a wishing chair. The narrator emphasizes that such tales grow spontaneously in Ireland. Whenever a magical event occurs, it is transformed into a folk story by someone and thereafter is polished and reworked by tellers down the ages.
Next, the narrator is taken on a walk with Broderick during which he enters into the recent past and sees soldiers waving as they casually pass by and the dust clouds announce their passing. They stand out against the life of the village as the heroes of the past would have done; they are larger-than-life figures invigorating the world with their youth and vitality.
Patrick the pub keeper, a local trickster and character, cannot understand the Americans' lack of decorum and discipline, nor can he figure out why one large Texan would stoop so low as to assist a local prostitute struggling with a milk pail. Broderick counters that perhaps what every Irishwoman needs is a bit of chivalry.
A few days later, the shouting, friendly, gallant men are gone off to battle in Normandy to encounter the mighty and terrible weapons of Adolf Hitler's German army and air force. Broderick lets his listener know that the tests the American soldiers would face in Normandy would be as terrible as those faced by heroes of ancient times. Instead of mountains of fire, they would have to contend with mortars, rockets, and grenades. The story ends as it began: with an empty barracks and a quiet village.