batch.motif.celtic-irish-gods-and-fighting-men-gregory-gutenberg-l13885-l13960
---
record_id: batch.motif.celtic-irish-gods-and-fighting-men-gregory-gutenberg-l13885-l13960
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/gods-and-fighting-men-gregory.md
passage_locator:
label: 'CHAPTER III. AILNE''S REVENGE / BOOK NINE: THE WEARING AWAY OF THE FIANNA.
/ CHAPTER I. THE QUARREL WITH THE SONS OF MORNA / CHAPTER II. DEATH OF GOLL; lines
13885-13960'
start: '13885'
end: '13960'
translation: Gods and Fighting Men
notes: Generated from OpenAI Batch run motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority;
human review required.
canonical_text:
quote: ''
summary: Goll kills Cairell, Finn's son, in a fight by the sea. Goll withdraws to
a sea cave, is besieged by Finn's men after casting a spear at Osgar, refuses
his wife's plea to leave, and dies after twelve days without food or drink. His
wife laments him. Conan, angered by Goll's death, speaks of vengeance against
Finn's household, and later burial traditions for Conan are reported.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: Goll and Cairell exchange sharp words, fight in the sea near the strand, and
Cairell is killed by Goll.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: Finn grieves and is angered when he sees his son Cairell dead.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:3
text: Goll goes to a cave on a point stretching into the sea, intending to stay
until Finn's anger passes.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:4
text: Osgar visits Goll, but Goll thinks Osgar comes as an enemy and throws a spear
that crushes Osgar's shield without wounding him.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:5
text: Finn sends men to watch every path and gap leading to Goll's cave so they
can make an end of him.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:6
text: Goll does not try to escape but remains in place without food or drink, blinded
by blowing sand.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:7
text: Goll's wife comes to a rock from which she can speak to him and urges him
to come to her for nourishment and healing.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:8
text: Goll refuses to leave and says he has never taken the advice of a woman and
will not take it now.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:9
text: After twelve days lying on the rocks, Goll dies.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: obs:10
text: Goll's wife keens him and makes a great lamentation for him.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: obs:11
text: Conan is angered by the death of his brother Goll and urges Garraidh to seek
satisfaction from Finn.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: obs:12
text: Conan threatens to kill named members of Finn's side for the sake of Goll.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: obs:13
text: The passage reports differing local traditions about Conan's burial in or
near Burren.
category: other
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: Goll
description: A warrior of the Fianna who kills Cairell, withdraws to a sea cave,
refuses to leave, and dies after twelve days.
role_refs:
- role:1
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:4
- ev:7
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: Cairell
description: Son of Finn, described as strong and comely, killed by Goll in a fight
by the sea.
role_refs:
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: Finn
description: Father of Cairell; angered by Cairell's death and by Goll's spear-cast
at Osgar; orders watch over the ways to Goll's cave.
role_refs:
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: Osgar
description: Former comrade of Goll who goes to see him; Goll throws a spear at
him and crushes his shield.
role_refs:
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: Goll's wife
description: Comes to a rock to speak to Goll, urges him to come to her, and later
keens and laments him.
role_refs:
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:7
- id: fig:6
name_or_label: Conan
description: Brother of Goll; angered by Goll's death and speaks of vengeance against
Finn's side.
role_refs:
- role:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- ev:9
- id: fig:7
name_or_label: Garraidh
description: A figure Conan asks to accompany him to Finn; he says he is not willing
to go.
role_refs:
- role:8
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: fig:8
name_or_label: Aodh
description: A constant lover of Goll's wife, said by Goll to have come from Spain
asking for her.
role_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: fig:9
name_or_label: Oisin
description: Finn's great son, named by Conan as someone whose life he will take.
role_refs:
- role:9
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: fig:10
name_or_label: Caoilte
description: Named by Conan as someone whose life he will take.
role_refs:
- role:9
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: fig:11
name_or_label: Daire of the Songs
description: Named by Conan as someone whose life he will take.
role_refs:
- role:9
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
roles:
- id: role:1
label: killer of Finn's son
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: Goll kills Cairell, son of Finn, after a quarrel and fight.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:2
label: besieged dying warrior
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: Goll remains in the cave area without food or drink while Finn's men watch
the approaches, and he dies after twelve days.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:7
- id: role:3
label: slain son
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: Cairell is Finn's son and is found dead after fighting Goll.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:4
label: grieving father and avenger
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: Finn grieves Cairell's death and orders men to watch the ways to Goll's cave.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- id: role:5
label: misrecognized comrade
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: Osgar visits Goll as a former comrade, but Goll thinks he comes as an enemy.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: role:6
label: lamenting wife
assigned_to:
- fig:5
basis: Goll's wife pleads with him to come to her and later keens and laments him.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:7
- id: role:7
label: vengeful brother
assigned_to:
- fig:6
basis: Conan is angered by Goll's death and threatens vengeance for him.
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: role:8
label: reluctant companion
assigned_to:
- fig:7
basis: Garraidh says he is not willing to go with Conan to seek satisfaction from
Finn.
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: role:9
label: named targets of vengeance
assigned_to:
- fig:9
- fig:10
- fig:11
basis: Conan names Oisin, Caoilte, and Daire of the Songs as people whose lives
he will take.
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: sea cave refuge
literal_form: A cave in a point stretching out into the sea where Goll withdraws.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs:
- cave
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: sym:2
label: sea and salt water
literal_form: The sea near the strand, the waste sea, and salt water surrounding
Goll's place of suffering.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs:
- water
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:5
- id: sym:3
label: crushed shield
literal_form: Osgar's shield, struck and crushed by Goll's spear-cast.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:4
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: sym:4
label: rock of speech and lament
literal_form: A rock from which Goll's wife can speak with him; Goll later lies
on the rocks before dying.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:7
- id: sym:5
label: cairn and inscribed stone
literal_form: A cairn of stones and a stone with old writing associated with Conan's
burial tradition.
associated_figures:
- fig:6
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Cairell killed by Goll
summary: Goll and Cairell quarrel and fight in the sea near the strand; Cairell
dies, and Finn grieves and grows angry.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: scene:2
label: Goll in the sea cave
summary: Goll withdraws to a cave by the sea. Osgar visits him, Goll throws a spear
at Osgar, and Finn orders the approaches to the cave watched.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:3
- fig:4
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- id: scene:3
label: Refusal of the wife's plea
summary: Goll's wife speaks to him from a rock, offering nourishment and healing,
but Goll refuses to leave or take her advice.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:5
- fig:8
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: scene:4
label: Goll's death and lament
summary: Goll lies on the rocks, dies after twelve days, and his wife keens and
laments him.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:5
symbol_refs:
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: scene:5
label: Conan's anger after Goll's death
summary: Conan asks Garraidh to seek satisfaction from Finn and speaks of killing
several of Finn's people for Goll's sake.
figure_refs:
- fig:3
- fig:6
- fig:7
- fig:9
- fig:10
- fig:11
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: scene:6
label: Local traditions of Conan's burial
summary: The passage says Conan's end is unknown, then reports Connacht and Munster
claims about where he is buried.
figure_refs:
- fig:6
symbol_refs:
- sym:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: Kinsman's death triggers feud and revenge threats
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: Cairell's death produces Finn's anger against Goll, and Goll's death produces
Conan's threats of vengeance against Finn's side.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- ev:8
confidence: high
cautions: The passage presents feud escalation within the narrative but does not
explicitly generalize it as a broader traditional motif.
- id: motif:2
label: Hero withdraws to liminal sea cave and dies under watch
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: Goll withdraws to a cave on a sea-point, Finn's men watch the approaches,
and Goll remains without food or drink until he dies.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:7
confidence: high
cautions: The cave and sea setting are literal; symbolic interpretation beyond refuge,
isolation, and death is not stated in the passage.
- id: motif:3
label: Lamenting wife offers healing to doomed warrior
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: Goll's wife asks him to come to her, offers nourishment from her breast and
healing, but he refuses and later dies while she laments him.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:6
- ev:7
confidence: high
cautions: The passage supports the pattern within this episode, but no explicit
ritual or supernatural healing is stated.
- id: motif:4
label: Heroic death followed by keening lament
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: After Goll dies, his wife keens him and makes a great lamentation for a renowned
warrior.
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
confidence: high
cautions: The passage gives the lament but not its full words beyond the preceding
plea.
- id: motif:5
label: Disputed grave and local burial memory
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The passage reports competing Connacht and Munster claims about Conan's burial
place, including a cairn and an inscribed stone.
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
confidence: medium
cautions: This concerns Conan rather than Goll and is presented as local report
after the main death episode.
comparison_claims: []
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: lines 13885-13891
quote_or_summary: Goll and Cairell, son of Finn, quarrel and fight in the sea near
the strand; Cairell is killed, and Finn is angry and grieving over his dead son.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/gods-and-fighting-men-gregory.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:2
type: summary
locator: lines 13892-13894
quote_or_summary: Goll goes away to a cave in a point stretching out into the sea,
intending to stay there until Finn's anger passes.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/gods-and-fighting-men-gregory.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: lines 13895-13902
quote_or_summary: Osgar visits Goll; Goll thinks he comes as an enemy and throws
a spear that crushes Osgar's shield. Finn, angered again, sends men to watch the
ways to the cave.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/gods-and-fighting-men-gregory.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: lines 13903-13906
quote_or_summary: Goll, knowing Finn is watching for his life, does not attempt
escape, but stays without food or drink and is blinded by blowing sand.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/gods-and-fighting-men-gregory.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:5
type: summary
locator: lines 13907-13917
quote_or_summary: Goll's wife comes to a rock where she can speak with him and calls
him to come to her, pitying him on the sea rocks without drink but salt water
and offering nourishment and healing.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/gods-and-fighting-men-gregory.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:6
type: summary
locator: lines 13918-13931
quote_or_summary: Goll refuses to leave, says he has never taken a woman's advice,
and tells his wife to remember her goods, hounds, and Aodh who came from Spain
asking for her.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/gods-and-fighting-men-gregory.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:7
type: summary
locator: lines 13932-13935
quote_or_summary: Goll lies down on the rocks and dies after twelve days; his wife
keens and laments her husband, described as second best of the Fianna of Ireland.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/gods-and-fighting-men-gregory.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:8
type: summary
locator: lines 13936-13951
quote_or_summary: Conan hears of Goll's death, asks Garraidh to seek satisfaction
from Finn, and declares he will kill Oisin, Osgar, Caoilte, and Daire of the Songs
for Goll's sake.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/gods-and-fighting-men-gregory.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:9
type: summary
locator: lines 13952-13960
quote_or_summary: The passage says Conan's end is not known, then reports a Connacht
claim of his burial under a cairn in Burren with an inscribed stone and a Munster
claim for another burial place.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/gods-and-fighting-men-gregory.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: high
notes: Literal extraction is straightforward from the supplied passage. Motif labels
are candidate descriptions only and are not tied to external comparative claims.
reviewer_status:
status: needs_review
reviewer: ''
reviewed_at: ''
notes: Machine-generated draft from OpenAI Batch; not human-reviewed.
extracted_by: openai_batch:gpt-5.5
extracted_at: '2026-04-28'
notes: |-
No comparison claims were added because the supplied passage does not itself support a comparison to another text, tradition, or named motif family.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:celtic-irish-gods-and-fighting-men-gregory-gutenberg__l13885-l13960
passage_sha256=195c678426c80ea1f53f3e9b9806192f0a2f2199352e207ec12a74909b4bf04d