History, Myth and Memory in Irish Literature and Culture

Transcription

1 History, Myth and Memory in Irish Literature and Culture Module Convenors: Dr. Graham Price and Mr. Charlie Solan This interdisciplinary course shall examine the varying, and often contradictory, narration of Ireland s national tale and the various mediums that were to convey this tale through the centuries. The course of Irish history is full of invasions, and eventual integration of the various invaders in the fabric of the national identity. However, Ireland s relationship with its nearest neighbours has been so simple. Since the 1100 s Ireland has been invaded by forces from the British mainland, but often these forces became more Irish than the Irish themselves. However, this was to change particularly following the Battle of the Boyne (1609) and the Act of Union (18901). The country s history and culture has, inevitably, been written and interpreted by various peoples down through the centuries native- Irish, Anglo- Irish and English being the main examples Ireland s sense of selfhood has been rendered unstable and fluid. This module shall examine the various versions of Irishness that have emerged during the period of colonialism and postcolonialism. The key questions to be asked are: Who created these various versions of Irishness and what might they have had to gain from doing so? Specific emphasis will be placed on historical and literary texts of the various periods and how they have helped shape (however provisionally) a sense of a coherent Irish identity. Reference will also be made to songs as the medium of music and the oral tradition have also played a significant role of the moulding of Irish identity. Some of the central issues that will be raised by this module will be: The role of storytelling in the construction of a sense of Irishness, how certain historical moments in Irish history are privileged with narration while others are neglected, and the part played by literature in Irish cultural politics during the 19 th and 20 th century. In addition to offering lectures on these and other aspects of Irish Studies, field trips will be organised to places of cultural interest such as Kilmainham Gaol and the Irish Writers Centre in order that our students may gain firsthand experience of places of historical and cultural significance in Ireland. This

2 course will particularly be of interest with the run- up to the 100 year anniversary of Irish Independence, which will take place in 2016 and the public discourse that will surround it. Learning Outcomes By the end of the module the students will: 1. Become familiar with a wide range of Irish texts from various genres (history, drama, prose, poetry). 2. Become capable of applying critical theories to these texts. 3. Have learned how to critically consider and (in some cases) challenge arguments concerning Ireland and Irishness. 4. Have gained an appreciation of the richness and complexity of the Irish cultural tradition. 5. Become familiar with the notion of Ireland s national tale as being a series of unstable micro- narratives as opposed to a single grand- narrative. Course Outline Lecture 1 Celtic Ireland The first lecture of this course would examine the reality of Ireland s Celtic history and debunk many of the myths surrounding Celtic life that exist in the modern conceptualisation of this period. It will interrogate our understanding of this period and in doing do highlight the influence of Christianity and how it subsumed, rather than defeated, paganism. By highlighting the reality of Celtic life in Ireland questions around the notion of nationhood and cohesive, singular Irish culture, which has been the bedrock of so much of Irish literature. These questions will be answered in more depth during the subsequent lectures, which will be dealing with the Revival Period of Irish literature and the subsequent expression of Irish Modernity. Text Celtic Mythology by Proinsias MacCana

3 Lecture 2 (1100 s s) This lecture will provide a brief over view of the various entities that invaded the country and how the culture of these invaders was adapted in the narrative of Irish history. In particular it will trace the relationship with its nearest neighbours, the England, and how history of these two countries is inextricably intertwined. It will touch on some key events such as the Battle of the Boyne and the 1798 Rebellion. Lecture 3 (1800 s s) The 19 th Century was a pivotal century in the events of Irish history and development of Irish Culture. In reaction to the 1798 Rebellion the Act of Union was introduced, which brought to an end the life of the Parliament and brought the island of Ireland under the direct rule of London. By the middle of the 19 th century events such as the Great Irish Potato famine, combined with the subsequent mass emigration, had decimated the Irish population and would irrevocably alter the course of Irish history and the Irish psyche. Selected readings including extracts from speeches by Wolfe Tone and Robert Emmet. There is also a large amount of music and songs surviving from this period. Lecture 4 Staging the Nation: Irish Revival Drama Looking specifically at William Butler Yeats s Cathleen ni Houlihan (1902) and John Millington Synge s Riders to the Sea (1904), we shall examine how two of Ireland s most influential writers mined the Irish past for the purposes of creating a sense of a modern, authentic Ireland in their plays. Attention will be paid to the following: The depiction of Irish reality, the portrayal of male heroics and the role of women in these two provocative plays. Texts: William Butler Yeats: Cathleen Ni Houlihan and John Millington Synge s Riders to the Sea (any edition) Lecture 5 William Butler Yeats: National Poet, National Tale Taking the poems Easter 1916 and Nineteen Hundred and Nineteen as representative examples, this lecture will examine the treatment of history and violence in Yeats s poems. Yeats was a poet who felt very keenly the responsibility literature had to depict momentous events in responsible and ethical ways and these two pieces demonstrate how he grappled

4 with the need to balance public commemoration and personal trauma in his historic representations. Texts: William Butler Yeats: Easter 1916 and Nineteen Hundred and Nineteen Lecture 6 Revival vs. Counter Revival: James Joyce s Dubliners Looking at three stories from James Joyce s short story collection, Dubliners, we shall consider James Joyce s enigmatic attitude towards the Irish Revival. Joyce s representation of Ireland combines cold realism with clear affection and this lecture shall consider the ways that Joyce, far from being antagonistic towards the Revival, actually uses many of their icons and tropes but in subtly different ways. Texts: James Joyce: Dubliners ( A Little Cloud, A Mother, The Dead ) Lecture 7 The Irish Counter- Tradition?: Samuel Beckett s Waiting for Godot Samuel Beckett s groundbreaking play, Waiting for Godot shall be discussed as a work that opens Irishness out to more overtly European influences while still maintaining links with Beckett s country of birth. How Waiting for Godot deconstructs stable notions of an Irish dramatic tradition shall also be a major concern. Text: Samuel Beckett: Waiting for Godot Lecture 8 Irish Masculinity in Crisis: John McGahern s Amongst Women Amongst Women is one of the most important novels by possibly the most significant Irish prose writer since Beckett. This lecture shall consider the ways that John McGahern remembers Irish history from the 1920s- 60s from the perspective of the 1990s: An era that saw the election of Ireland s first female president and an increasing liberalisation of attitudes concerning gender and sexuality. The themes of female empowerment, undermining of patriarchy, and the disillusionment with nationalism in the wake of the Irish

5 War if Independence and Civil War shall be important topics for discussion during the analysis of this rich and nuanced text. Text: John McGahern: Amongst Women Proposed Scoring 4000 word essay at the end of course: 75% Cumulative mark for 4 ( ) word written responses: 25% (A question will be put forward every two weeks, which students can reply to via .) Field Trips: Newgrange Dublinia Theatre Trip (play tbc) Viking Tour of Dublin Guinness Brewery Kilmainham Jail Irish Writers Museum