The Quiet Man

The Quiet Man

I’m going to talk to you about True Love and what we do when we think we have it, using the 1952 movie The Quiet Man as my backdrop. Most of you have no knowledge of this movie, because you most likely were not alive when it was made. I was four years old.

If you love romance movies, you will love this John Ford directed Irish classic staring John Wayne (Husband,) Maureen O’Hare (Wife,) Barry Fitzgerald (Town Crier,) and Ward Bond (Wife’s brother.) I know these names are all foreign to you?

A love affair turns into a marriage; and of course, there always is a glitch that gets into the relationship that brings about a conflict. It’s a simple movie. The problem here melts down into one thing a dowry due the husband.

In a small Irish town with customs going back centuries, the dowry must be paid to the husband. In this case, the husband doesn’t want it. The wife wants it, not for the money, but for principle.

The comic events that lead to if or when the dowry is paid makes a fine Romance Comedy. I assure you will laugh and cry. A fist fight between the husband and the wife’s brother over the dowry is a town funny event.

Irish culture is embedded into this fine film: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Quiet_Man