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is set alight to set their spirit free. Of course, Hester has not yet died but Monica’s observation reinforces our belief that she soon will.
In the fi nal moments of the play, Hester fully embraces death. She takes the fi shing knife – presumably the same one she used to cut her brother’s throat – and plans to end her life. However, her daughter Josie appears and, fearing her mother is going away, begs to be allowed to come too. Hester refuses initially but changes her mind when she realises that if she leaves Josie, she will be condemning the child to the same life of longing and loss that Hester had to endure. She tells Josie to shut her eyes and, in one savage movement, slits the little girl’s throat. Josie dies in her mother’s arms, softly saying ‘Mam – Mam – ‘.
After the dreadful murder of Josie, Hester’s death seems inevitable. We remember her earlier words to the Ghost Fancier: ‘I can’t die, I have a daughter.’ Now that her daughter is gone, Hester calls on the Ghost Fancier to take her away too. He obliges, and they engage in a death dance that ends with Hester lying on the ground, her heart cut out. Monica approaches the corpse and sees Hester’s heart lying on her chest ‘like some dark feathered bird’. The play has come full circle with this reference to Black Wing, whose burial introduced the theme of death in the fi rst place.
1. ‘Although Josie’s death is shocking, there have been hints throughout the text that she might die.’ What hints have there been, and did they prepare you for the manner of Josie’s death?
2. ‘The play By the Bog of Cats is so full of violence and death that it is not suitable material for study by young people in schools.’
Imagine that you have read an article in a newspaper containing the above statement. Write the letter you would send to the editor of the paper in reply to the statement. Support the points you make with reference to the play.
How did you fi nd it?
Things you might have enjoyed about the text
• The play keeps you riveted from start to fi nish • There is nothing predictable about the storyline
• The supernatural dimension in the play adds an interesting twist
• The characters are fascinating
• Humour is provided by the ridiculous Mrs Kilbride and the unusual Father Willow
Things you might not have enjoyed about the text
• The ending is bleak and hopeless
• The cruelty and violence in the play are hard to take
• There is no sense of right triumphing over wrong
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