batch.motif.celtic-irish-heroic-romances-of-ireland-leahy-gutenberg-l337-l414
---
record_id: batch.motif.celtic-irish-heroic-romances-of-ireland-leahy-gutenberg-l337-l414
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/heroic-romances-of-ireland-leahy.md
passage_locator:
label: A. H. LEAHY / IN TWO VOLUMES / VOL. I / PREFACE; lines 337-414
start: '337'
end: '414'
translation: Heroic Romances of Ireland
notes: Generated from OpenAI Batch run motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority;
human review required.
canonical_text:
quote: |-
All the elves of Troom seem dead,
All their mighty deeds are fled;
For their Hound, who hounds surpassed,
Elves have bound in slumber fast.
summary: The preface describes the contents of the first volume, explains editorial
and translation methods for prose, verse, and rhetoric, discusses omitted and
included versions, and gives a short verse excerpt as an example of Irish metre
rendered in English.
language: English
quote_policy: quoted
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: The collection is presented as an attempt to render old Irish romances for
English readers in corresponding English literary forms.
category: other
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: The first part contains five named stories, described as being told in a characteristic
mixture of prose and verse.
category: other
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:3
text: The passage notes multiple versions for some tales, including two versions
of the Courtship of Etain and two independent versions underlying the Sick-bed
of Cuchulain.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:4
text: A full translation of the Glenn Masain version of the Death of the Sons of
Usnach was omitted, but an extract was added to the Book of Leinster version for
comparison.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:5
text: The translator states that the prose is nearly literal, with adjustments made
for English idiom, and that nothing was added except to fill a lacuna in one Etain
version.
category: other
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:6
text: The passage discusses verse translation practices, including stanza form,
syllable counts, rhyme patterns, and selective reproduction of Irish metres.
category: other
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- ev:7
- id: obs:7
text: The quoted metrical example says that the elves of Troom seem dead, their
deeds are gone, and their Hound has been bound in deep slumber by elves.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: elves of Troom
description: A collective group in the metrical example, described as seeming dead
and as having mighty deeds that are fled.
role_refs:
- role:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: their Hound
description: A hound associated with the elves, described as surpassing other hounds
and being bound in slumber.
role_refs:
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
roles:
- id: role:1
label: collective supernatural group in verse example
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: The example names elves of Troom and attributes past deeds to them.
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: role:2
label: exceptional bound hound
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: The example calls the figure a Hound who surpassed hounds and says he was
bound in slumber.
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: slumber binding
literal_form: a hound bound in slumber
associated_figures:
- fig:2
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: sym:2
label: elves
literal_form: elves of Troom
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Metrical example of elves and the Hound
summary: In the quoted example used to illustrate metre, the elves of Troom appear
diminished or dead, their deeds are gone, and their Hound is bound in slumber.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: supernatural hound bound in sleep
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The only narrative-like image in the passage is the metrical example in which
an exceptional Hound is bound in slumber by elves.
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
confidence: low
cautions: This is a short metrical illustration in a preface, not a full narrative
episode; the surrounding passage does not explain the story context.
comparison_claims: []
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: 337-340
quote_or_summary: The collection is described as an attempt to give English readers
old romances in English literary forms corresponding to Irish forms.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/heroic-romances-of-ireland-leahy.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary supplied.
- id: ev:2
type: summary
locator: 341-346
quote_or_summary: The first part contains five named stories, including Courtship
of Etain, Boar of Mac Datho, Sick-bed of Cuchulain, Death of the Sons of Usnach,
and Combat at the Ford.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/heroic-romances-of-ireland-leahy.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary supplied.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: 346-349
quote_or_summary: The passage states that two versions of Courtship of Etain are
given and that Sick-bed of Cuchulain consists of two independent versions.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/heroic-romances-of-ireland-leahy.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary supplied.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: 349-355
quote_or_summary: The Glenn Masain version of Death of the Sons of Usnach is not
fully translated, but an extract is added for comparison with the Book of Leinster
version.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/heroic-romances-of-ireland-leahy.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary supplied.
- id: ev:5
type: summary
locator: 355-368
quote_or_summary: The prose translation is described as nearly literal but adjusted
for English idiom; nothing is added except to fill a lacuna in the Leabhar na
h-Uidhri Etain.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/heroic-romances-of-ireland-leahy.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary supplied.
- id: ev:6
type: summary
locator: 368-389
quote_or_summary: The passage explains practices for verse and rhetoric translations,
including literal renderings in notes and a general use of four-line stanzas.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/heroic-romances-of-ireland-leahy.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary supplied.
- id: ev:7
type: summary
locator: 390-407
quote_or_summary: The preface describes Irish verse metres, rhyme systems, and when
these are reproduced or not reproduced in English.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/heroic-romances-of-ireland-leahy.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary supplied.
- id: ev:8
type: quote
locator: 409-414
quote_or_summary: All the elves of Troom seem dead, / All their mighty deeds are
fled; / For their Hound, who hounds surpassed, / Elves have bound in slumber fast.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/heroic-romances-of-ireland-leahy.md
rights_note: Public domain source; brief quotation from public domain text.
confidence:
extraction: medium
motif_candidates: low
comparison_claims: high
notes: Most of the passage is editorial preface rather than mythic narrative. The
only motif-like content is a short verse example, so motif identification is necessarily
tentative.
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 taxonomy motif family was assigned because the passage does not clearly support one from the available list.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:celtic-irish-heroic-romances-of-ireland-leahy-gutenberg__l337-l414
passage_sha256=aaf9e822b306fecb5a9d9bc0117938b486107b21fee9dcb54e1ea44e9d842032