Summary
Summary of Irish Fairy Tales
Key ideas
Key idea 1
Old tales gain a poet's voice
James Stephens retells stories from the Irish storytelling tradition, especially those about Fionn mac Cumhaill and his warriors, the Fianna. He brings them to life with humour, quick action and a poet's feeling for the land.
These are not stories of heroes who always act wisely. Alongside enchanted animals and gifts of wisdom come pride, jealousy and tricks. The tales laugh as well as grieve, making room for both the courage of their heroes and the mistakes that leave them exposed.
Key idea 2
Memory survives a changing body
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Key idea 3
Jealousy turns family into hounds
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Key idea 4
Fionn needs wisdom alongside strength
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Key idea 5
Kindness reveals the woman within
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Key idea 6
Strangers unsettle courts and heroes
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Key idea 7
Wonder and humour share the world
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Key idea 8
Kindness answers the harm of jealousy
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The rest of the summary, written and spoken, and the whole book: free to start.
Read the rest freeWho it’s for
For readers who love myths, folklore and the Irish landscape, and anyone who wants a gentle way into the Fionn stories. It also suits families reading aloud.
What this book is
Irish Fairy Tales is a collection of old Irish stories retold by the Dublin poet and novelist James Stephens. It was published in 1920, with pictures by Arthur Rackham. Stephens did not invent these tales. He took them from the old Irish storytelling tradition, especially the cycle of stories about Fionn mac Cumhaill and his band of warriors, the Fianna. His aim was to give them new life for readers of his own day, with humour, quick action and a poet's feeling for the land.
In this book you meet shape-changers, enchanted deer, hounds born of a spell, a boy who gains wisdom from a fish, and a woman whose beauty brings trouble to a kingdom. You also meet fools and tricksters, for these stories laugh as often as they sigh. Heroes here are brave, but they are also proud, jealous and easily fooled. Let us begin with the story of a man who remembers living many lives, because it shows how deep these tales reach into the past.
In this summary
- 1A man who remembers many livesFree
- 2A spell that makes hounds of kin
- 3A boy grows into the leader Fionn
- 4The deer woman and her lost son
- 5Strangers, kings and troublesome beauty
- 6Humor, wildness and a poet's voice
Key point 1 of 6
A man who remembers many lives
The book opens with the story of Tuan Mac Cairill, an ancient being who has outlived his own time. In Stephens's telling, Tuan is an old man who lives in a stronghold in Ulster. A holy man named Finnian comes to him and asks for the history of the land. Tuan agrees, and what he offers is not a list of kings but a record of his own strange life.
Tuan explains that he once belonged to a people who settled Ireland long ago. A sudden sickness kills his people within seven days, and he is left alone. Then he began to change. He became an animal, and then another animal, and each time he kept his memory of what had gone before. He knew the hills and rivers as a man, and later he knew them as a creature that lived off them.
This is a clever way to open a book of legends. Through Tuan, the reader sees Ireland as a land of waves of settlers, each with its own gods and wonders. The tale also sets the mood for what follows. In these stories, the border between human and animal is thin, and a body can be changed by magic, age or grief.
The tale also gives a feeling for time. Tuan watches centuries go by from inside the skin of a stag, a boar, a bird and a fish. He does not tell the history of battles so much as the history of seasons and survival. For a listener, the lesson is that memory is a kind of treasure, and that the old stories are held by those who keep watching.
That’s 1 of 6 key points.
The rest of the summary, written and spoken, and the whole book: free to start.
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What does Tuan preserve as he passes through different animal forms?
Right. “He became an animal, and then another animal, and each time he kept his memory of what had gone before.”Not quite. “He became an animal, and then another animal, and each time he kept his memory of what had gone before.”
What makes Fionn a leader beyond his physical strength?
Right. “Fionn becomes the head of the Fianna because he joins courage with knowledge and with a willingness to learn from older people.”Not quite. “Fionn becomes the head of the Fianna because he joins courage with knowledge and with a willingness to learn from older people.”
What does the book set against the troubles caused by pride and jealousy?
Right. “Against this, the book sets loyalty, courage and cleverness, and it shows that these virtues do not always win quickly.”Not quite. “Against this, the book sets loyalty, courage and cleverness, and it shows that these virtues do not always win quickly.”
Who’s who
- Fionn mac Cumhaill
- Fionn mac Cumhaill leads the Fianna, a band of warriors, and is the father of Oisin.
- Oisin
- Oisin is the son of Fionn and Sadb, whose family history involves enchantment and the woodland world.
- Sadb
- Sadb is Oisin's mother, a woman forced by a dark druid's spell to live as a deer.
- Bran
- Bran is one of Fionn's two famous hounds, born under enchantment and linked to his master's family.
- Tuan Mac Cairill
- Tuan Mac Cairill is an ancient survivor who recounts his many lives and transformations to the holy man Finnian.
- Becuma
- Becuma is a banished fairy woman who enters the human court of Conn and his son Art.
- Finegas
- Finegas is an aged poet and teacher who waits beside a river for a salmon carrying knowledge.
About this edition
Every format is free to start, and print and large print are at cost.
- LengthAbout 67,000 words
- Reading timeAbout 4 h 30 min
- FormatseBook, large-print eBook, audiobook, 15-minute summary
- LanguagesEnglish and 13 other languages
Questions about Irish Fairy Tales
What is Irish Fairy Tales by James Stephens about?
It is a collection of old Irish legends retold by Stephens. The tales feature Fionn mac Cumhaill and his warriors, shape-changers, enchanted animals, fairy women and clever fools, in a world where magic is part of daily life.
Who is Fionn mac Cumhaill?
Fionn mac Cumhaill is a legendary Irish hero and the leader of the Fianna, a band of warriors and hunters. He is known for his strength, his hounds, and the wisdom he gains as a young man.
When was Irish Fairy Tales written?
James Stephens published it in 1920, with illustrations by Arthur Rackham. The stories themselves are much older, drawn from Irish oral and manuscript tradition and retold by Stephens in his own style.
Are these Irish fairy tales true stories?
No. They are legends and myths, mixing old folk memory with magic. They belong to Irish tradition, and were passed on by storytellers long before Stephens wrote them down in his own words.
Is Irish Fairy Tales good for children?
Many readers enjoy it aloud with older children. The tales are lively and funny, though they also include loss, jealousy and danger. It suits readers who like myths and folklore, young or adult.
