Oithona by James Macpherson (1765)
Oithona, by James Macpherson, tells how Gaul, son of Morni, returns to Dunlathmon and finds the hall dark and empty, with no sign of Oithona, the daughter of Nuath, whom he loves. Sitting sadly at a rock with the son of Leth, he sleeps and dreams of her. She appears with loose hair, tears and a bloodied arm, and tells him that she is held in a cave on the sea-ringed isle of Tromathon by the dark chief of Cuthal, who burns with a rage of love. At dawn Gaul sails, and on the third day Tromathon rises before him like a blue shield in the sea. Oithona sits on the shore weeping. When she sees him she turns away and tries three times to flee. Gaul asks why she avoids him and offers to fight her enemy. She answers that she wished to fade unseen, like a flower on a rock, and that Gaul has come only to hear her dying sigh. Gaul asks her to raise his tomb and send his sword to his father's hall if he falls. She replies that she will not live on while he is dead, and that they will wither together. She then tells her story. After Lathmon left for the wars of his fathers at Duthormoth, night came and she sat in the hall. Dunrommath, the red-haired chief of Cuthal, burst in, and her defenders were killed by his sword. He carried her off by sea because he feared the return of Lathmon, her brother. Now he is sailing toward the isle with his people. Gaul draws his sword, tells her to wait in the cave until the fighting ends, and calls on the son of Leth to bring the bows of their fathers. Oithona goes to the cave with a troubled joy and a settled resolve. Dunrommath arrives and mocks the strangers. Gaul names himself as the man who pursued Dunrommath's host in the battle of Lathmon in Morven. Gaul then advances, his spear pierces the chief, and his sword cuts off the head. Dunrommath's warriors flee, and ten of them fall to the arrows of Morven. Gaul walks toward the cave and finds a wounded youth in a helmet leaning on a rock, an arrow in his side. He offers healing herbs and asks about the youth's fathers. The youth speaks of high walls on the banks of Duvranna and asks that his brother receive the helmet. The helmet falls from Gaul's hand, and he sees that the youth is Oithona, who armed herself in the cave and went out seeking death. She asks Gaul to prepare her tomb, laments that she dies in youth, and says her father will blush in his hall. She falls pale on the rock. Gaul raises her tomb and goes back to Morven with a darkened soul. Ossian takes up the harp in her praise, and Gaul's face brightens, though his sighs still rise at times among his friends.
By James Macpherson · First published 1765 · Genre: Epic poetry, Heroic poetry, Tragedy · 2,530 words
First lines
Argument. Gaul, the son of Morni, attended Lathmon into his own country, after his being defeated in Morven, as related in a preceding poem. He was kindly entertained by Nuath, the father of Lathmon, and fell in love with his daughter Oithona. The lady was no less enamored of Gaul, and a day was fixed for their marriage. In the mean time Fingal, preparing for an expedition into the country of the Britons, sent for Gaul. He obeyed, and went; , but not without promising to Oithona to return, if he survived the war, by a certain day. Lathmon too was obliged to attend his father Nuath in his wars, and Oithona was left alone at Dunlathmon, the seat of the family. Dunrommath, Lord of Uthal, supposed to be one of the Orkneys, taking advantage of the absence of her friends, came and carried off, by force, Oithona, who had formerly rejected his love, into Tromathon, a desert island, where he concealed her in a cave. O-aul returned on the day appointed; heard of the rape, and sailed to Tromathon, to revenge himself on Dunrommath. When he landed, he found Oithona disconsolate, and resolved not to survive the loss of her honor. She told him the story of her misfortunes, and she scarce ended when Dunrommath with his followers appeared at the farther end of the island. Gaul prepared to attack him, recommending to Oithona to retire till the battle was over. She seemingly obeyed; but she secretly armed herself, rushed into the thickest of the battle, and was mortally wounded. Gaul, pursuing the flying enemy, found her just expiring on the field; he mourned over her, raised her tomb, and returned to Morven. Thus is the story handed down by tradition; nor is it given with any material difference in the poem, which opens with Gauls return to Dunlathmon, after the rape of Oithona.
Genres
- Epic poetry — Long narrative of warriors, battles and voyages led by Fingal, Gaul and Dunrommath, in the manner of classical epic
- Heroic poetry — Central focus on the martial exploits, personal honor and single combat of Gaul, who defeats Dunrommath and avenges the rape of Oithona
- Tragedy — The plot ends in the death of its heroine, the ruin of honor and love, and the grief of the survivors
- Elegy — Built around lament, mourning and the raising of a tomb, with Oithona's dying words and Gaul's grief shaping the close
Tags
Ossianic poetry · Epic poem · Celtic legend · Scottish setting · Morven · Fingal · Abduction · Captivity · Revenge · Doomed love · Heroic battle · Warrior honour
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Oithona is listed on Textopian as a poem by James Macpherson, dated 1765 CE.
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- Work type: Poem
- Author: James Macpherson
- Date: 1765 CE
- Language: English
- Genres: Epic poetry, Heroic poetry, Tragedy, Elegy, Ossianic literature
- Length: 2,530 words
- Structure: 1 section, 19 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Very Easy (5th Grade or below)
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- Work identity for Oithona by James Macpherson
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