Harder, Faster, Stronger, Better!
In this episode, we get to examine some remarkable exploits of one of the central figures in the Tain tradition: Cú Chulainn. We explore stories told by some of the characters who know the hero, remembering him as a child.
Join the Story Archaeologists as we try to decide if the young Cú Chulainn can be considered a ‘child prodigy’ or merely a ‘precocious brat’.
Read the texts for yourself!
Here are links to the texts and translations that we used for the childhood deeds of Cú Chulainn:
“The Boyhood Deeds of Cú Chulainn.” Ancient Irish Tales. ed. and trans. Tom Cross and Harris Slover. NY: Barnes and Noble, 1996. reprint
The Boyhood of Cú Chulainn, from Táin Bó Cuailgne Recension 1; pp 135-148 [translation]: ed. and trans. Cecile O’Rahilly
The sections we refer to are under the following titles:
- The Eulogy of Cú Chulainn
- The Boyhood Deeds
- The Death of the Boys
- The Fight between Eógan mac Durthacht and Conchobar [aka Cú Chulainn and the Battlefield Phantoms]
- The fate of the twenty-seven men and the reason why none dared to wound the Ulstermen when they were in their debility.
- The killing of the Smith’s Hound by Cú Chulainn and the reason why he is called Cú Chulainn
- The Death of Nechta Scéne’s Three Sons
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