Post by Dan on Apr 16, 2020 0:41:29 GMT -6
Unlike all of Season One, which functions as a prelude to Elly's story, Season Two begins the actual entries of Eilis Abaigeal Kedward's diary, or as she was commonly known - Elly Kedward. To better understand the context, it is imperative to read "Found Amongst the Papers of the Late William Barnes." which explains in detail how this all came into being and how we are able to share this material.
Chapter Four is quite revealing, in that it is taken and translated directly from her journal and now presented with proof-of-concept visuals and aural narration to better understand and appreciate her life experience, and in this case as a young girl.
In this opening chapter of her diary, we are first met with a pretty, young, blonde girl. She is not but ten-years old, running in fields, skipping and splashing in creeks and dancing among the meadows and wildflowers of her Irish countryside.
She is the epitome of joy, youth, laughter and wonder.
The young girl intentionally knocks herself down and joyfully rolls with enthusiasm down a small hill, coming to a stop surrounded by "all the love and gifts that nature can provide."
We are finally introduced to Elly Kedward. Or rather, Elly Kedward introduces herself.
Taken straight from the first page of her diary...
"Is e mo ainm Elly. Elly Kedward. Rugadh me i nGleann Garbh, Eire an 21 Deireadh Fomhair i mbliana ar dTiarna 1729."
Translated from Gaelic to English...
"My name is Elly. Elly Kedward. I was born in Glengarriff, Ireland on the 21st of October in the year of our Lord 1729."
From there, Elly shares all of the lovely aspects of her childhood. We learn that she was raised Catholic and how every day she prayed. She shares with us all about her family, of her mother and father, of the love from and for her mother and father, and of her brother whom she played with (and teased) throughout the days and nights of a wonderful childhood.
She then explains of her being at her happiest when playing alone, "gan ach na hein agus na feileacain agus Dia" (with only the birds and butterflies and God as her company). Elly pretends and fancies she is a knight, not a princess, but rather a knight, leading "arm a tog me fein deanta as batai agus sreangain" (an army I've built myself made out of sticks and twine) that she creates as dolls to play with as "companions agus cosantoiri i gcoinne ainmhithe an domhain" (companions and protectors against the beasts of the world), from whence they can "a chosaint agus a ionsai na cinn olc agus olc" (defend and attack the evil and wicked ones).
The protectors are simple primitive stick figures, each with a kilt, with one having a little sword she makes of a twig and attaches with a twine-made belt.
The evil stick figures are quite ugly and rough, with arms and legs wrapped in weeds and dead grass. They are a strong contrast to the well-manicured stick figures of her personal army. As mentioned, little Elly is the epitome of joy, youth, laughter and wonder.
We then learn those are her fantasies only, an alter-ego she has created in her own imagination, the exact opposite of her reality and of how she sees herself.
In her imagination and fantasies, she is that "cailin beag gleoite beag" (pretty little blonde freckled girl) with a family, a home, a vast farm in which she can play, dance and be amongst the Lord Himself.
In her reality, she is an orphan, trapped in an institution long since birth; an orphanage infested in filth, neglect, disease, abuse, rape and death. Elly is not that "pretty little blonde freckled girl," rather as she sees herself - "dilleacht breagach, breoite le gruaig dorcha, maisithe saibhir riamh a fuar i gceart agus nach raibh peire eadai ur aige riamh ... riamh" (a filthy, sickly orphan with dark, foul matted hair who has never bathed properly and hadn't a fresh pair of clothes, ever). She's worn the "feistis tattered ceanna" (same tattered dressing) for years that is rarely laundered, if ever there has been access to bathe, which is rare, very rare. She sees herself as a "carn siuil de flesh rothlach a itheann scraps agus an coirce no pratai o am go cheile" (walking pile of rotting flesh that eats scraps and the occasional oats or potato).
She's never had meat, she's "Nior aimsiodh glasrai ceart riamh, no ceann amhain ar a laghad le dath" (never seen a proper vegetable, or at least one with colour).
But Elly does have her fantasies. They are her only possession, and the only possession she can control; fantasies so vivid that they penetrate her subconscious to create dreams when she sleeps, to oblige her what otherwise does not exist, giving her a life she imagines by day, and then experiences in her dreams at night, as though they were real.
Her dysfunctional life becomes so acute that slowly her conscious fantasies no longer deliver subconscious pleasant dreams. She is still the "pretty little freckled blonde girl" that she invented of herself, but now that fictional alter-ego too suffers from horrific torment.
But she also has, and most sacred and important of all: God.
Whether as a defense mechanism and/or the petrifying thought, there is nothing more than what her life has been and condemned to be. He is her hope, and she is desperate to be with Him. So despite her despondence, Elly still prays. She's convinced she's being "tastail agus triail" (tested and tried), and that the more she prays, the more "Beannaigh Dia liom le a ghrasta agus a chuid eolais" (God will bless me with His grace and knowledge).
Elly is being challenged at every turn, but despite "na trialacha agus na triobloidi uile" (all the trials and tribulations), she will hold her faith to maintain her own sanity.
What Elly does not know at this time is that she will one day begin a diary, a journal of her life, of where she came from, where she is, and where she hopes to be.
She will call it "Deuchainn de Eilis Kedward."
Translated to English... "The Trial of Elly Kedward."