3 thoughts on “January 30th – The Táin”

1. Throughout these chapters, each of these three women can be seen using their sexuality as a controlling device or weapon of sorts. Medb offers her “friendly thighs” to Ferdia in exchange for a fight against his foster brother, using her sexuality as an advantage in the battle–something not meant for that man in particular but rather something that she must do in order to win against Cúchulainn (p. 169). Finnabair also uses her sexuality as a bridge for an alliance as she sleeps with Rochad in exchange for “his promise not to fight the armies” (p. 215). However, she differs from her mother in the sense that Finnabair showed true affection for Rochad, calling him her “chosen love” (p. 214). Both of these women use their sexuality as a form of control over their external conflicts, yet Finnabair demonstrates control over her sexuality and her love unlike her mother. Just as Finnabair shows her desire for love, the Morrígan highlights her love for Cúchulainn, but instead of using her sexuality as a weapon, she uses her witt and talk of magical powers to establish an alliance. As a result, they show kindness to one another even as she takes the form of an “old woman” (p. 137). The reciprocity in their relationship can be seen as she feeds him and he seems to immediately heal her wounds, exemplifying a relationship that goes deeper than sexuality.

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2. The two female figures with in The Táin that share similarities are Medb and Finnabair, more so because they are mother and daughter. Medb is a remarkable woman, who is very cunning and deceitful, willing to do whatever she can to get what she wants. Her daughter, Finnabair seems to take after her mother, doing whatever her mother wants her to do so that her mother may be successful against Cuchulainn. With in the epic, women are portrayed to be cunning and intelligent, often times using their femininity, their bodies, and their wit to get what they want from men. Over and over we see Medb persuade men with the help of her daughter to go against Cuchulainn, even men who are Cuchulainn’s foster brothers, or close friends. These men are easily charmed with material goods and the promise of Finnabair’s body. It is stated that Medb, “knew well how to stir up strife and dissension,” while attempting to persuade warriors to go up against her foe (169). Despite so many men being led to their death so many times after offering them all the same thing, she is still manages to manipulate them so that they do what she wants them to do. Medb is a powerful female figure because of her wit and cunning. Not to mention she fearlessly entered battle that was full of powerful male warriors, got her period, and still managed to protect herself from death while she “relieved” herself. Although Medb was causing all of the grief and war, it was her daughter who received the worst punishment. While Medb, at the end of the war, was spared by Cuchulainn, who proclaimed that he was not a “killer of woman,” Finnabair was killed brutally (250). Despite doing what her mother wanted her to do, as part of Medb’s plan to “seduce” men, Cuchulainn punishes her by “thrust[ing] a pillar-stone under her cloak and tunic” (141).

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3. All three of these women seem to be fairly powerful. Beyond their social status, even, these women are smart and relentless, which makes them more powerful than most women in the Táin. Many women in this story play a background role. They are used for their sexuality, and they ask for almost nothing in return. These three women have more drive than the others. They have goals, and they have the ability to achieve their goals. It’s hard to say who suffers the most BECAUSE of her gender. Medb is probably the most disadvantaged because of her gender, but her daughter is killed (perhaps in part to her gender). Morrigan, and I may have misunderstood this, didn’t seem to be quite as disadvantaged by her gender. She was more disadvantaged by her bad timing?

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