I just read that figs are considered a "climacteric fruit," i.e. they respond to ethylene gas when ripening. That means we should be able to "finish up" almost ripe figs in a brown bag with a ripe apple or banana. But it seems like everyone says that will not work. 

Anyone care to shed some light on this?

Just a bump - it looks like everyone is stumped by this like I am ;-)

figs do not ripen after you remove them from the tree.
they slowly spoil... so, while they apear to get softer the taste does not get better.

Maybe that's the difference. Because some of the agricultural articles I read said that they do respond to ethylene, but I get it just makes them softer.

I have not tried the bag method, but give it a shot. I know that when they are picked they stop ripening under normal conditions.

Hi,
If almost ripe, you can leave them figs on a counter to get a bit more ripe. Some get better . Some may spoil . One or two days max in my experience.
If not ripe ... I wouldn't chance it. The reason is that the inside does develop really at the end of the ripening process unlike bananas and tomatoes .
Good luck if you decide to try it.

Gene
I can't say from personal experience that they will ripen after being picked with or without ethylene gas. However there is plenty of literature to support the fact that it is common practice to gash Sycamore figs while on the tree to force them to ripen. The gash will cause the damaged fruit to release ethylene and cause ripening.
Here's a link for this. https://hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/Hort_306/reading/Reading%2010-2.pdf
If any of this applicable to the common fig I don't know.

Also there is an old GardenWeb post that discusses ripening after being picked with differing opinions. However if you read down Bass (bonsaist) claims he had done this and attributes it to the ethylene gas.
http://forums.gardenweb.com/discussions/1891588/will-figs-continue-to-ripen
I think it's worth a try

On the different note this guy has his own technique to force ripening.

Thanks everyone. I am planning to try this with some almost ripe ones late in the season. I'll do a paper bag with a apple inside (to supply the ethylene). I'll post about it then

I have heard and seen this work. 

Take a needle (or a pin), dip the tip in olive oil...insert the tip into the base of the fig.  This will help the fig ripen over the next few days to a week. My dad and friends do this at the end of the season to get them to ripen quicker.

Anyone else seen this or done this?

I have put olive oil on a cutip and then rubbed about a drop on the eye of figs at the end of the season.  It worked really well for me.  I put it on the biggest figs in succession and they ripened in correspondance with the oil application, a couple of days.  And it seems to speed up the decay process altogether.  They spoil even faster.  But for me and my friend Daisy, who has a huge IBT, we thought it gave us a lot of figs we would not have seen ripen if we had not "rubbed their tummies with olive oil".  Its a practice we will continue to use, anything to get more figs ripe. ;-)   

Good to hear Jodi...basically the same result we have had.  Very cool!

If I was going to expose a fig to ethylene I'd do it while the fig was still on the tree.  I guess I'll have to find some.  :) 

Sounds like valuable info. Especially for late in the season when I seem to lots of late ripening ones. Looking forward to hearing about your experience. ;-)