From Home to Prison: The Breakdown of the Family Unit in Martin McDonagh’s The Beauty Queen of Leenane
Abstract
As the inaugural play in The Leenane Triology, The Beauty Queen of Leenane has a distinct place in Martin McDonagh’s writing career. Premiering at the Town Hall Theatre in Galway on February 1, 1996, the play explores the unsettling relationship between seventy-year-old Mag and her forty-year-old daughter Maureen, set within the ostensibly secure confines of their rural home – a space that merely ‘appears’ insulated from the anxieties and threats of the external world. Still, as the play unfolds, it becomes obvious that the true menace resides within. The source of this internal danger is the tension between the mother and the daughter, as they are ‘chained’ to each other by invisible bonds, thereby transforming this domestic sphere into a ‘torture room’ marked by emotional and physical destruction. The play culminates in matricide, committed by Maureen, who, driven by trauma and emotional degradation, ultimately begins to mirror her mother’s persona. This convergence erodes the distinction between the two characters and subverts the traditional connotations of the home as a space of comfort and stability. Accordingly, this study aims to examine the disintegration of the foundational ideals such as home, family, faith, and identity through a close reading of the fractured relationship between Mag and Maureen.
References
- Aston, E. (2006). Feminist theatre practice: A handbook. Routledge.
- Castleberry, M. (2007). Comedy and violence in The Beauty Queen of Leenane. In R. R. Russell (Ed.), Martin McDonagh: A casebook (pp. 41–59). Routledge.
- Cixous, H. (1976). The laugh of the medusa. Signs, 1(4), 875–893. https://www.jstor.org/stable/3173239
- Conwell-Eden, S. (2019). Imaginative possibilities: Fantasy and trauma in literature. Palgrave Macmillan.
- Crowley, J., Smyth, W. J., & Murphy, M. (Eds.). (2001). Atlas of the Irish rural landscape (2nd ed.). Cork University Press.
- Diehl, H. (2001). Classic realism, Irish nationalism, and a new breed of angry young man in Martin McDonagh’s
- The Beauty Queen of Leenane. The Journal of the Midwest Modern Language Association, 34(2), 98–117. https://www.jstor.org/stable/1315142.
- Fitzpatrick, L. (2015). Satire and identity in the works of Martin McDonagh. Irish Theatre Studies Journal, 12(2), 75–92.
- Frank, J. (2010). The doppelgänger: Literature’s haunting double. Oxford University Press.
- Harrington, J. P. (2003). Trauma and memory in contemporary Irish drama: The case of The Beauty Queen of Leenane. Journal of Irish Studies, 18(1), 40–55.
- Huff, L. (1992). Fantasy as coping: A psychological perspective. Journal of Trauma and Dissociation, 13(2), 115–130. https://doi.org/10.1080/15299732.2012.715835.
- Johnston, M. (2005). Home and identity in Martin McDonagh’s The Beauty Queen of Leenane. Irish University Review, 35(1), 61–74. https://doi.org/10.2307/30071072.
- Kirby, P. (2002). The Celtic Tiger in distress: Growth with inequality in Ireland. Palgrave Macmillan.
- Lowry, B. (2013). Space and place in Irish drama. Palgrave Macmillan.
- McDonagh, M. (1999). The Beauty Queen of Leenane. In Martin McDonagh plays: 1 (pp. 1-60). Methuen Publishing.
- Middeke, M. (2010). Martin McDonagh. In M. Middeke & P. P. Schnierer (Eds.), The Methuen drama guide to contemporary Irish playwrights (pp. 213–233). Methuen Drama.
- Morrison, C. S. (2010). Bread and butter to boiling oil: From Wilde’s afternoon tea to The Beauty Queen of Leenane. New Hibernia Review, 14(3), 106–120. https://muse.jhu.edu/article/396146.
- Murray, C. (2002). Twentieth-century Irish drama: Mirror up to nation. Syracuse University Press.
- O'Hearn, D. (1998). Inside the Celtic Tiger: The Irish economy and the Asian model. Pluto Press.
- O’Rourke, S. (2010). Dark laughter: Comedy and violence in rural Irish plays. New Perspectives on Irish Theatre, 7(3), 110–120.
- O’Toole, F. (1999). Introduction. In M. McDonagh, Martin McDonagh plays: 1 (pp. ix–xvii). Methuen Publishing.
- Rich, A. (1995). Of woman born: Motherhood as experience and institution. W.W. Norton & Company.
- Rose, G. (1993). Feminism and geography: The limits of geographical knowledge. University of Minnesota Press.
- Yeats, W. B. (1892). To Ireland in the coming times. In The poetry of W. B. Yeats. Retrieved from https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/57300/to-ireland-in-the-coming-times.
- Yeats, W. B., & Gregory, L. (1902). Cathleen ni Houlihan. In The Collected Plays of W. B. Yeats (1934). Macmillan.
- Yelmiş, İ. (2016). Martin McDonagh's The Beauty Queen of Leenane as a tale of debunked mother myth, (self-)exile and emigration. The Journal of International Social Research, 9(45), 234-241. https://doi.org/10.17719/jisr.20164520604.
Abstract
Leenane Üçlemesi’nin ilk oyunu olması sebebiyle, Leenane’in Güzellik Kraliçesi, Martin McDonagh’ın yazarlık kariyerinde önemli bir yere sahiptir. İlk olarak 1 Şubat 1996’da Galway’deki Town Hall Tiyatrosu’nda sahnelenen oyun, yetmiş yaşındaki Mag ile onun kırk yaşındaki kızı Maureen arasındaki tekinsiz ilişkiyi, dışarıdan bakıldığında dünyanın tehdit ve kaygılarından yalıtılmış gibi ‘görünen,’ kırsal evlerinin sözde güvenli sınırları içerisinde incelemektedir. Ancak, oyun ilerledikçe, asıl tehdidin dışarıda değil, evin içinde gizli olduğu ortaya çıkar. Bu içsel tehdidin kaynağı, anne ve kız arasında görünmeyen bağlarla birbirlerine ‘bağlı’ olmalarından doğan gerilimdir; bu gerilim, ev ortamını bir ‘işkence odasına’ dönüştürür ve daha fazla duygusal ve fiziksel yıkıma yol açar. Oyun, Maureen’in annesini öldürmesiyle sonuçlanır. Bu eylem, karakterin yaşadığı travma ve duygusal yıkımın bir sonucudur ve nihayetinde Maureen’in, annesine evrilerek onun kimliğini yansıtmaya başladığı görülür. Bu benzerlik, anne ile kız arasındaki ayrımı bulanıklaştırır ve evin huzur ile istikrarı simgeleyen geleneksel anlamlarını altüst eder. Tüm bunlardan hareketle, bu çalışma, Mag ile Maureen arasındaki kopuk ilişkinin yakın okuması üzerinden; ev, aile, inanç ve kimlik gibi temel ideallerin çözülüşünü incelemeyi amaçlamaktadır.
References
- Aston, E. (2006). Feminist theatre practice: A handbook. Routledge.
- Castleberry, M. (2007). Comedy and violence in The Beauty Queen of Leenane. In R. R. Russell (Ed.), Martin McDonagh: A casebook (pp. 41–59). Routledge.
- Cixous, H. (1976). The laugh of the medusa. Signs, 1(4), 875–893. https://www.jstor.org/stable/3173239
- Conwell-Eden, S. (2019). Imaginative possibilities: Fantasy and trauma in literature. Palgrave Macmillan.
- Crowley, J., Smyth, W. J., & Murphy, M. (Eds.). (2001). Atlas of the Irish rural landscape (2nd ed.). Cork University Press.
- Diehl, H. (2001). Classic realism, Irish nationalism, and a new breed of angry young man in Martin McDonagh’s
- The Beauty Queen of Leenane. The Journal of the Midwest Modern Language Association, 34(2), 98–117. https://www.jstor.org/stable/1315142.
- Fitzpatrick, L. (2015). Satire and identity in the works of Martin McDonagh. Irish Theatre Studies Journal, 12(2), 75–92.
- Frank, J. (2010). The doppelgänger: Literature’s haunting double. Oxford University Press.
- Harrington, J. P. (2003). Trauma and memory in contemporary Irish drama: The case of The Beauty Queen of Leenane. Journal of Irish Studies, 18(1), 40–55.
- Huff, L. (1992). Fantasy as coping: A psychological perspective. Journal of Trauma and Dissociation, 13(2), 115–130. https://doi.org/10.1080/15299732.2012.715835.
- Johnston, M. (2005). Home and identity in Martin McDonagh’s The Beauty Queen of Leenane. Irish University Review, 35(1), 61–74. https://doi.org/10.2307/30071072.
- Kirby, P. (2002). The Celtic Tiger in distress: Growth with inequality in Ireland. Palgrave Macmillan.
- Lowry, B. (2013). Space and place in Irish drama. Palgrave Macmillan.
- McDonagh, M. (1999). The Beauty Queen of Leenane. In Martin McDonagh plays: 1 (pp. 1-60). Methuen Publishing.
- Middeke, M. (2010). Martin McDonagh. In M. Middeke & P. P. Schnierer (Eds.), The Methuen drama guide to contemporary Irish playwrights (pp. 213–233). Methuen Drama.
- Morrison, C. S. (2010). Bread and butter to boiling oil: From Wilde’s afternoon tea to The Beauty Queen of Leenane. New Hibernia Review, 14(3), 106–120. https://muse.jhu.edu/article/396146.
- Murray, C. (2002). Twentieth-century Irish drama: Mirror up to nation. Syracuse University Press.
- O'Hearn, D. (1998). Inside the Celtic Tiger: The Irish economy and the Asian model. Pluto Press.
- O’Rourke, S. (2010). Dark laughter: Comedy and violence in rural Irish plays. New Perspectives on Irish Theatre, 7(3), 110–120.
- O’Toole, F. (1999). Introduction. In M. McDonagh, Martin McDonagh plays: 1 (pp. ix–xvii). Methuen Publishing.
- Rich, A. (1995). Of woman born: Motherhood as experience and institution. W.W. Norton & Company.
- Rose, G. (1993). Feminism and geography: The limits of geographical knowledge. University of Minnesota Press.
- Yeats, W. B. (1892). To Ireland in the coming times. In The poetry of W. B. Yeats. Retrieved from https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/57300/to-ireland-in-the-coming-times.
- Yeats, W. B., & Gregory, L. (1902). Cathleen ni Houlihan. In The Collected Plays of W. B. Yeats (1934). Macmillan.
- Yelmiş, İ. (2016). Martin McDonagh's The Beauty Queen of Leenane as a tale of debunked mother myth, (self-)exile and emigration. The Journal of International Social Research, 9(45), 234-241. https://doi.org/10.17719/jisr.20164520604.
Details
| Primary Language | English |
|---|---|
| Subjects | Language Studies (Other) |
| Journal Section | Research Articles |
| Authors | |
| Early Pub Date | June 9, 2025 |
| Publication Date | June 11, 2025 |
| Submission Date | May 17, 2025 |
| Acceptance Date | June 8, 2025 |
| Published in Issue | Year 2025 Volume: 3 Issue: 1 |
