The Irish folklore of the Otherworld is rich in its many manifestations of supernatural beings and personages. This is represented in many different genres of folklore such as folktales legends ballads memorates beliefs and belief statements and exists within the context of rich literary historical and imaginative parallels. This book presents a new reading of Irish religious belief and legend in a meaningful sociohistorical context examining popular belief and narratives of sinful women and unbaptised children as a way of understanding a particular worldview in Irish society. Blending postmodern approaches with traditional methodologies the author reviews the representation of women sin and repentance in Irish folklore. The author suggests new ways of seeing this legend material indicating strong links between the Irish and the French specifically Breton religious tradition and tracing the nature of this interrelationship through the postTridentine Counter Reformation Roman Catholic Church and its teachings. In this way aspects of Irelands popular religious and cultural inheritance are examined.