Prose - Athair

Exam Structure, Rules, and Timing for Ceist 2

Prescribed prose appears under Ceist 2 on Paper 2 and carries 30 marks. The marking scheme divides this into Eolas (25) marks for content and textual discussion, and Gaeilge (5) marks for language accuracy and style. You should spend roughly 20 to 25 minutes on this question and write between 350 and 450 words (about a page and a half). Do not over-write here; Ceist 4 carries 40 marks, so budgeting your time is essential.

The 2027 Question Choice and Rules

Under the adjusted Assessment Arrangements for 2027, Ceist 2 offers four question options:

• Ceist 2A (a) agus (b): Two questions set on two different designated texts.
• Ceist 2B (a) agus (b): Two questions set on optional texts.
• You must answer one question only.

Strict administrative rules apply to where this text fits on Paper 2:

1. Answer either 2A or 2B. Never attempt both, and never mix designated and optional material in one answer.
2. Because Athair is a designated prose text, you cannot offer it as an optional text under 2B.
3. Athair is not on the Litríocht Bhreise list, so you cannot use it for Ceist 4 (40 marks). Ceist 4 must be answered on one of the additional prescribed prose texts or additional poems.
4. Because only two designated prose texts appear on the paper under 2A, you cannot prepare Athair in isolation. You must have an alternative prescribed text ready.

Plot, Conflict, and Character Dynamics

The narrative unfolds entirely inside a traditional rural household, seen through the hypervigilant eyes of the son using insint sa chéad phearsa (first-person narration). The catalyst for the conflict arrives when the son tells his father that he is gay (nuair a d'inis an mac dá athair gur fear aerach é). This disclosure shatters the expectations of an older, conservative generation.

An tAthair

The father is an austere patriarch who imposes his will through emotional withdrawal. His coldness (fuarchúis) is not casual indifference; it is an active punishment. By withholding words, he denies his son the chance to explain himself, argue, or reach any resolution. He embodies an older era (an tseanré) that suppresses vulnerability and treats homosexuality as an intolerable disruption to family honour. Yet because we view him only through the narrator's fearful perspective, his stony silence may also disguise deep private confusion and grief.

An Mac

The son is a sensitive, reflective young man caught in an agonizing double-bind. Having shown the courage to speak his truth, he now endures domestic isolation (uaigneas domhain). He scrutinises every glance, breath, and movement his father makes across the kitchen table. He resents his father's cold tyranny, but still craves parental warmth and validation (grá agus aitheantas).

The Core Conflict

The story portrays coimhlint na nglúnta (generational conflict) and easpa cumarsáide (total breakdown of communication). The narrative closes with a críoch oscailte (open ending). There is no emotional outburst, no apology, and no reconciliation; father and son remain trapped in mutual alienation.

Tagairtí don Scéal: Textual Evidence Bank

Every marking scheme requires tagairtí cruinne téagartha (precise, substantial references) to award top-band content marks. Never invent violence that is not in the story, and never invent quotations. If you cannot recall an exact phrase, use the formula Léirítear é seo nuair a... and describe the specific incident accurately in your own Irish.

Learn these core moments and their Irish citations:

• An suíomh: Tá an scéal suite i dteach tuaithe traidisiúnta, agus tarlaíonn an chuid is mó den aicsean faoi dhíon an tí sin. (The story is set in a traditional rural house, and most of the action takes place under that roof.)
• An nochtadh: Nuair a d'inis an mac dá athair gur fear aerach é, níor thosaigh an t-athair ag béiceach ach thit sé ina thost iomlán. (When the son told his father that he was gay, the father did not start shouting but fell into complete silence.)
• Ag am béilí: Ag am béilí, ní labhraíonn an t-athair oiread agus focal amháin leis an mac agus seachnaíonn sé teagmháil súl trasna an bhoird. (At mealtimes, the father does not speak so much as one word to the son and avoids eye contact across the table.)
• Gníomhartha an tí: Feictear an teannas go soiléir i ngnáthghníomhartha an tí, mar shampla an chaoi a ngearrann an t-athair an t-arán gan breathnú ar a mhac. (The tension is seen clearly in ordinary household chores, such as the way the father cuts the bread without looking at his son.)
• Obair laethúil: Oibríonn an bheirt acu le chéile i dtost iomlán, rud a chruthaíonn atmaisféar dochreidte gruama eatarthu. (The two of them work together in complete silence, which creates an extraordinarily gloomy atmosphere between them.)
• An chríoch oscailte: Ag deireadh an scéil, fágtar an caidreamh gan réiteach agus leanann an tost céanna ar aghaidh gan aon dóchas soiléir. (At the end of the story, the relationship is left unresolved and the same silence continues without any clear hope.)

Cineálacha Ceisteanna: Five Question Shapes and Opening Sentences

Leaving Certificate examiners use different prompt patterns for Ceist 2. Do not write a pre-learned generic summary. Identify the question type and open your answer by answering the prompt immediately.

1. Statement Discussion (Déan plé ar an ráiteas sin)

Open by stating your position using the prompt's own keywords:

• Aontaím go mór leis an ráiteas seo mar feicimid go soiléir sa scéal gurb é an tost an t-arm is cumhachtaí atá ag an athair. (I strongly agree with this statement because we see clearly in the story that silence is the most powerful weapon the father has.)

2. Character Portrait (Cén sórt duine é an t-athair nó an mac?)

Name two or three specific character traits in your opening sentence, then devote a body paragraph to each trait supported by a narrative scene:

• Is carachtar údarásach, dúnárasach agus coimeádach é an t-athair a rialaíonn an teach trí mheán an chiúnais. (The father is an authoritative, reserved, and conservative character who rules the house by means of silence.)

3. Two Themes (Luaigh dhá théama agus déan plé orthu)

Name both themes straight away, dedicating one focused paragraph to each without straying into mere plot summary:

• Is iad easpa cumarsáide agus coimhlint na nglúnta an dá phríomhthéama a sheasann amach sa ghearrscéal seo. (Lack of communication and generational conflict are the two main themes that stand out in this short story.)

4. Suitability of the Title (An bhfuil an teideal oiriúnach?)

Provide two firm reasons why the title fits the dynamic, along with a qualification regarding the son:

• Tá an teideal 'Athair' thar a bheith oiriúnach mar is é údarás an athar agus a thost croílár an scéil ar fad. (The title 'Athair' is exceptionally suitable because the father's authority and his silence are the core of the entire story.)

5. Personal Response (Ar thaitin an scéal leat? / Ar chuaigh sé i bhfeidhm ort?)

Ground your personal response entirely in the craftsmanship and social relevance of the text:

• Chuaigh an scéal go mór i bhfeidhm orm mar is léiriú réalaíoch cumhachtach é ar an dochar a dhéanann fuarchúis teaghlaigh. (The story made a great impression on me because it is a realistic and powerful depiction of the damage caused by familial coldness.)

Stair Litríocht na Gaeilge: Mícheál Ó Conghaile in Literary Context

At Higher Level a short sub-question may be attached asking for information about the author and about the background and context of the work. There is no separate published mark for it; it forms part of your 25 content marks. Answer it in one tight paragraph of four or five facts rather than letting it dominate your essay.

Learn off this exact factual paragraph in Irish: Rugadh Mícheál Ó Conghaile ar Inis Treabhair, oileán amach ó chósta Chonamara, sa bhliain 1962, agus is ball d'Aosdána é. (Mícheál Ó Conghaile was born on Inis Treabhair, an island off the coast of Connemara, in 1962, and is a member of Aosdána.) Sa bhliain 1985, bhunaigh sé an comhlacht ceannródaíoch foilsitheoireachta Cló Iar-Chonnacht i gConamara. (In 1985, he founded the pioneering publishing house Cló Iar-Chonnacht in Connemara.) D'fhoilsigh sé an cnuasach gearrscéalta An Fear a Phléasc sa bhliain 1997, cnuasach ina bhfuil an scéal Athair le fáil. (He published the short story collection An Fear a Phléasc in 1997, the collection in which the story Athair is found.) Scríobh sé an scéal seo tráth nach raibh ach ceithre bliana caite ó rinneadh an homaighnéasacht dleathach in Éirinn (1993). (He wrote this story at a time when only four years had passed since homosexuality was made legal in Ireland in 1993.) Is údar nua-aimseartha é a dhiúltaigh do shean-íomhánna rómánsúla den Ghaeltacht chun fadhbanna sóisialta agus síceolaíochta an lae inniu a chur os ár gcomhair. (He is a modern author who rejected old romantic images of the Gaeltacht in order to place contemporary social and psychological problems before us.)

Grammar, Linking Phrases, and Cross-Paper Reuse

To safeguard your 5 language marks, take care with the genitive case of essential recurring nouns:

Master these three natural idioms:

• Bhí náire ar an athair. (The father was ashamed.)
• Goilleann an tost go mór ar an mac. (The silence deeply affects the son.)
• D'iompaigh sé a chúl ar a mhac. (He turned his back on his son.)

Frásaí Léirmheasa (Linking Phrases)

• Ar an gcéad dul síos (First of all)
• Ina theannta sin / Chomh maith leis sin (Furthermore / In addition)
• Rud eile a sheasann amach ná... (Another thing that stands out is...)
• Is léir ó thús deireadh an scéil go... (It is clear from start to finish of the story that...)
• Léiríonn an t-údar go cumasach... (The author skilfully shows...)
• Mar shampla, nuair a... (For example, when...)
• Mar thoradh air sin (As a result of that)
• Chuaigh an radharc seo go mór i bhfeidhm orm (This scene made a big impression on me)
• Mar fhocal scoir (In conclusion)

Reusing Vocabulary on Paper 1 and in the Oral

The syllabus demands integration between the literature course and general topics (comhtháthú idir an litríocht agus na topaicí). Phrases you master here—such as easpa cumarsáide sa teaghlach (lack of communication in the family), coimhlint na nglúnta (generational conflict), caoinfhulaingt agus glacadh le daoine (tolerance and accepting people), and brú ó thuairimí na gcomharsan (pressure from neighbours' opinions)—can be reused directly in Paper 1 essays, debates, and in your oral conversation when discussing changing social values.

Key terms

An chéad phearsa

First-person narration, told directly through the subjective experience and anxiety of the son.

An tost

The unbroken silence used deliberately by the father as a psychological weapon to assert authority.

Údarás an athar

The father's patriarchal authority and control over the household.

Fuarchúis

Emotional coldness and calculated detachment shown by the father towards his son.

Coimhlint na nglúnta

Generational conflict between the older conservative Ireland and the modern generation seeking personal freedom.

Easpa cumarsáide

Lack of communication, forming the central destructive force in the domestic relationship.

Críoch oscailte

An open, unresolved narrative ending where no easy reconciliation or closure takes place.

An tseanré

The older, traditional era characterised by social conformity, religious influence, and emotional suppression.

Tagairtí cruinne téagartha

Precise, substantial textual references required by the marking scheme to earn top-band content marks.

Cló Iar-Chonnacht

The prominent Irish-language publishing house founded by Mícheál Ó Conghaile in Connemara in 1985.