JM Synge's The Playboy of the Western World is a three-act play that follows Christy Mahon's escape to a rural community in the west of Ireland after hitting and presumably killing his father. In the small village of Mayo, authority presents itself in many facets as a linear and interconnected structure, at once tangible and intangible. Three aspects of the power structure present in the text are patriarchal figures, religious figures, and community, which are also intertwined with logical behaviors and gender stereotypes. Furthermore, Synge describes epochal and significant resistance exercised against patriarchal and communal forces alone: ​​religious figures are subject to perversion, distortion, or reallocation of their authority. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay In Playboy there are three father-son relationships to examine: Christy and Old Mahon, Pegeen Mike and Michael Flaherty (Michael James), and Shawn Keogh and Father Reilly. Each relationship represents a different gradient of resistance to paternal oppression, with Christy demonstrating significant defiance. Nothing Pegeen or Shawn attempts in the play remotely compares to his crime of parricide. Christy's motivation for doing so, explained in a considerably more dramatic version of the tale later in the play, is to avoid an arranged marriage with the widow Casey who is a woman significantly older and larger than Christy and "of known demeanor unfair to the old and young' (2.116-120). The reason for this union is none other than his father's personal gain, according to Christy, evidenced by the judgment of the Old Man Mahon who considered him not worthy of the Widow (2.125-127, 137).Further reinforcing Old Mahon's tyranny is Christy's initial description of himself as "a strong farmer's son" (Synge 1.203-204), but Christy then replaces that "strong farmer" with a "dirty" man. and "scabby" that he could not tolerate. (1.266-268). Therefore, by describing Old Mahon as an overbearing, selfish and less than ideal father, Synge allows the villagers to pity Christy and accept the killing of his father as justified, even honorable. Where Christy engages in maximum resistance to paternal authority, Pegeen is only able to struggle between her willpower and her dependence on her father. For the most part in Playboy she conforms to Michael James' wishes, but she also doesn't hesitate to express her own inclinations when they differ from his. This aspect of his personality remains intact throughout the text; for example, in Act 1 she scolds her father for leaving her alone while she attends Kate Cassidy's wake (1.102–105), and in Act 3 she rejects Michael James's agreement of her marriage to Shawn and instead insists on marrying Christy (3.350-351). After some hesitation, her father finally gives in to Pegeen's persistence and gives the two his blessing. His tenacity, however, does not translate into repudiation. When Christy and old Mahon leave the village, Pegeen loses "the only playboy in the Western world" (3. 653-654) and, unable to support herself, remains dependent on her father and the life he provides for her. everything is Shawn Keogh, Pegeen's second cousin and future husband until Christy appears at the tavern. His relationship with Father Reilly is different from Christy's relationship with her father and Pegeen's with her because Shawn makes no effort to challenge Father Reilly's religious power (and by extension that of the Church). Unlike Old Mahon and Michael James, Father Reilly never appears on stage but wields enough power to make Shawn constantlynervous, in turn forcing him to abandon all religious expectations for the sake of his own self-interest. When Michael James tells Shawn to stay the night to act as Pegeen's protector while he is away, Shawn responds "[in horrified confusion] I would... but I'm not." I'm afraid of Father Reilly, and what would they say the Holy Father and the cardinals of Rome if they knew that I did something like this?" (1.116-119). Her aversion to being associated with indecency, coupled with her rejection because she is "afraid of Father Reilly," is met with contempt as Michael James sarcastically reflects that he has found a decent man for Pegeen (1.148-149). As Christy grows from "a dirty, stammering lout" (2.434) to "the master of all [future] fighting" (3.636-637), Shawn is never able to break away from Father Reilly's paralyzing influence. Although Shawn and Father Reilly have a religious rather than familial connection, direct comparisons between this couple and Christy/Old Mahon are inevitable. Levitt argues that the comparison implies that oppressive patriarchal authority should be – and can be – overthrown, and that this is necessary for the child's maturation (20). Pegeen seems aware of the concept, but isn't quite willing or able to implement it. Furthermore, Shawn's total obedience to Father Reilly relieves him of the responsibility of making any difficult decisions, but leaves him as a flat character and an undesirable man. Christy and Shawn begin the show as equals, but by the end one has transgressed prescribed paternal boundaries while the other has remained comfortably static (21). No significant resistance to Father Reilly's religious authority can really be expected due to his absence from the show, and Synge explains that this is due to fear of the murderous Christy. According to Levitt, Father Reilly's avoidance of Christy and his failure to alert the local police both paint him as a priest whose fear exceeds not only his sense of moral duty, but also his "authoritarian sympathies" as a Father of the Church (21 ). This is not an attempt by Synge to dismantle the power of the Church, but rather an attempt to transfer religious identity to other characters, particularly female ones. Therefore, transference combines with a reversal of gender roles. Upon entering the play, the Widow Quin announces that she has come to the tavern on Father Reilly's orders to host Christy in her home (Synge 1.488-496). His command seems out of place, as there is no immediate logical explanation for why a self-confessed murderer would be housed alone with a woman. Father Reilly's apprehension prevents him from serving orders in person, and he assigns a hardened woman to take care of the "young electrician who would turn the stars upside down" in his place (3.349). Furthermore, during the next morning scene, four village girls chase Christy to the tavern bringing him gifts of duck eggs, butter, cake and boiled chicken (Synge 2.63-77), reminiscent of the Three Wise Men offering their gifts . The analogy is further emphasized when it is mentioned that one of the girls traveled ten miles to see him (2.45). Other men besides Father Reilly repeatedly rely on the widow Quin for her steadfastness. For example, early on Shawn tries to bribe Christy with a ticket to the United States, a new hat, breeches, and a new coat as incentives to leave and preserve Shawn's marriage proposal to Pegeen (2.320-327). But his bids are unsuccessful and he turns to the widow Quin for help. Even Philly O'Cullen and Jimmy Farrell, two of the men who had earlier mocked Shawn for his cowardice, can't muster the courage when Old Man Mahon drags himself into the village with his. 98-146.