Countess Cathleen and self-sacrifice

Hello! :)

Currently I'm writing a paper about Yeats in the time from the late 1890s until 1920. During my research about a play of his, namely the "Countess Cathleen" I came about an interessting topic/idea, I would like to share.

In "The Countess Cathleen" Yeats views the sellf-sacrifice of the eponymous "heroine" as rather useless, I think. First of all, the behaviour of the peseants does not change and they remain dependant on an authoritiy, in this case Cathleen as a mother-figure, who protects them from the "merchants". (Which is in fact another interessting line of thought to follow, when Yeats's view on the middleclass and the idealized peasants is concerned.) Second, the needed help is only a few more days away! Therefore Cathleen's selling her soul becomes futile.
This is an important insight, when dealing with Yeats's works and keeping in mind that Ireland was always shaken by violence in her struggle for freedom.

A text presenting, imho, the total antagonism to Cathleen is the Irish Airman in "An Irish Airman Forsees His Death". He does not give his life for his countrymen, as he knows: "No likely end could bring them loss/Or leave them happier than before."
He also does not sacrifice himself, rather the contrary!! His death is his last deed of self-fulfillment: "Nor law, nor duty bade me fight,/ Nor public men, nor cheering crowds,/ A lonely impulse of delight/ Drove to this tumult in the clouds."

I just found this fascinating, but I'mm sure, when searching Yeats Oeuvre, you will come across even more fascinating correlations like this.

Enjoy!! :p
Greetings,
P.

Cathleens selling her soul is supposed to be the ultimate of how much she wants to help her tenents. desperate times call for desperate measures. Even if aid is a few days away, once you have panic you'll try anything.
Its been a very very long time since i read this play, about nine years, so i'm trying to remember is setting.... If it was the famine, which i think it was, then her actions are understandable as the chaos that was Ireland at the time was insane, even the mention of aid didnt calm the panic. (as for the aid that did come...it was maize from america, that americans feed there horses at the time...)