New Histories

Tom Dunne, ‘New Histories: Beyond ‘Revisionism’, pp.1-12. Analyses the political and social position of contemporary Irish historians where the aged preoccupations with the nationalist rhetoric is being replaced with a need to investigate previously undervalued areas of life - e.g. women’s history or local history, thereby placing Irish history beyond the boundaries of revisionism; evaluates the contributions made by Irish historians such as Ciaran Brady’s views on the limitations on the pragmatic school, Ann Rigney’s illustrations of the shaping force of narrative technique, W. J. McCormack’s theories on Irish cultural history and Seamus Deane’s charges of a conspiracy to distort the past; challenges cultural studies to co-operate and historians to reassess their general principles and conduct.

Kevin Whelan, ‘The Power of Place’, pp.13-20. Debates the advantages and disadvantages of the fast expanding heritage industry in Ireland which has less to do with historical understanding than it has with making money; states the ecological price already paid for the Irish tourist industry such as the drop in water quality, chemical farming, random afforestation, damaged bogs and the loss of archaeological sites as well as stressing the consequential dislocation of the Irish people in an alien landscape; laudates the growing interest in local history which provides worthy information on a sub-national level, alluding to regional case studies carried out by Jim Donnelly, Bill Crawford and Kevin O’Neill.

Cliona Murphy, ‘Women’s History, Feminist History, or Gender History?’, pp.21-25. Pinpoints the narrow context within which Irish history has been studied to date, namely, nationalist history and welcomes the substantial efforts made by women historians such as Gerda Lerner, Joan Kelly and Joan Scott to place women in an historical context; marks the scope of their investigation which covers politically active women (e.g. suffrage and labour movements), hidden women (e.g. prostitutes, nuns, domestic servants) and the investigation of teaching and writing procedures of history; realises the necessity of co-operation between traditional historians and women historians if they are to achieve a true understanding of Irish history.

Catherine B. Shannon, ‘Recovering the Voices of the Women of the North’, pp.27-33. Examines the circumstances surrounding the marginalisation of women in Northern Irish history, the ‘women free’ texts published by leading male historians such as Roy Foster and Joseph Lee and the pigeon-holing cliché of women as ‘Mother Ireland’ or ‘Britannia’; realises the importance of oral historical research in women’s history and gathers informative accounts from women living with the Troubles, their role in Northern political life and the factors affecting their political allegiance; applauds the ground-breaking articles from women historians such as Monica McWilliams, Hazel Morrissey, Carmel Roulston and Margaret Ward.

Peter Woodman, ‘Irish Archaeology Today: A Poverty Amongst Riches’, pp.34-39. Enquires into the surveys and excavations carried out in Irish Archaeology, drawing attention to the rapid rate at which archaeological sites, both urban and rural, are being destroyed and emphasising the importance of communicating archaeological record at both a national and individual level; evaluates the publications presently committed to archaeological information such as The Illustrated Archaeology of Ireland, The Archaeology of Ulster and Origins of Early Christian Ireland, ultimately finding them lacking in fresh ideas and approaches; affirms the exigency of re-evaluating data, not just collecting, recording and admiring.

Breandan Ó Buachalla, ‘Irish Jacobite Poetry’, pp.40-49. Charts the impact of Jacobite history on Irish political poetry finding collusion between the inherent values, rhetoric and ideologies; presumes the themes of restoration and liberation which can be found in the ‘aisling’ style poems, are indicative of the links between the exiled Stuart court and the displaced elites of Ireland; refers to the poetry of Aogan Ó Rathaille, Tadhg Ó Neachtain and Sean Clarach Mac Donaill.

Kevin Barry, ‘Anthology as History: The Field Day Anthology of Irish Literature’, pp.50-55. Delineates the role of the anthology as offering a realistic impression of historical Ireland with the aid of critical analysis carried out by writers such as Luke Gibbons and W.J. McCormack, original introductory essays to Robert Emmet, Oscar Wilde, George Bernard Shaw and Samuel Beckett and a selection of women’s writing; appreciates this collection for the diversity in theme and approach and for the unlimited language content which includes Latin, Gaelic, Norman-French and several English Variations.

Brian Walker, ‘1641, 1689, 1690 And All That: The Unionist Sense of History’, pp.56-64. Questions the accepted view of a continuous sense of unionist history which celebrates the 1641 Rebellion in Ireland, the 1689 Siege of Derry and the Battle of the Boyne in 1690; deems this view as selective and incomplete as it ignores periods of harmonious co-existence which Northern Ireland enjoyed at intermittent periods since the seventeenth century as well as the turbulent relationship between the Presbyterians and the Church of Ireland in the Nineteenth century; also fails to include a European context which sheds light on similar grievances experienced and solved abroad; refers to the writings of Thomas Witherow, Thomas Macknight and Lord Ernest Hamilton.

Graham Walker, ‘Old History: Protestant Ulster in Lee’s Ireland’, pp.65-71. Castigates Professor Lee’s presentation of ‘Protestant supremacy’ in his publication Ireland 1912-1985, considering his theories biased and his statements irresponsible, serving only to reinforce prejudices and close the Northern Ireland debate; challenges his claims by offering evidence of the harassment of Southern Protestants and dealing with the censorship laws in the Free State thereby providing a more productive and historically accurate view of the Ulster Protestants; alludes to studies carried out by Sarah Nelson, Steve Bruce, Marianne Elliott and D.H. Akenson.

Peter McDonald, ‘The Fate of ‘Identity’: John Hewitt, W.R. Rodgers and Louis MacNeice’, pp.72-86. Inspects the countenance of the work of these three poets, all born in Northern Ireland and reaching maturity in the generation of the 1930’s and views their individual treatment of themes of exploration, solidarity, survival and the failure of ideals; investigates the ability of poetry to transcend the ideas encircling it and how effectively this can aid our understanding of Northern Ireland culture; adverts to Hewitt’s 1968 Collected Poems, Rodger’s characterisation of the Irish in ‘Radio Portraits’ and Rodger’s and MacNeice’s joint failure, The Character of Ireland.

Cormac Ó Grada, ‘Making History in Ireland in the 1940’s and 1950’s: The Saga of the Great Famine’, pp.87-107. Traces the evolution of De Valera’s suggested project, The Great Famine: Studies in Irish History, which was originally to be published as a centenary tribute to the famine epoch, however it was finally published at the end of 1956; points out the ‘lackadaisical editing’ and lack of continuity between chapters while indicating De Valera’s own disappointment with the final product, then preferring Cecil Woodham Smith’s The Great Hunger; notes the crude condition of Irish historiography in the 1940’s and admires Dr. Kevin Nowlan’s committed efforts which led to the final publication of what was ultimately, just a version of Irish history.

Terry Eagleton, ‘Emily Brönte and the Great Hunger’, pp.108-119. Cogitates on the significance of Heathcliff in Brönte’s Wuthering Heights in terms of Anglo-Irish relations, Heathcliff representing crushed revolutionary ideals and the gentry equating with the averted catastrophe; ruminates on England’s cultivation of a civilised superstructure with Ireland as a ‘biological timebomb’, ready to demystify the materialism of that civility; refers to Lacanian theories on merging identities in order to present the ‘primordial trauma’ which results from England’s fundamental misperceptions of the Irish race.

Politics

Neal Ascherson, ‘The Left and Eastern Europe’, pp.121-27. Deliberates the variation in content of the terms ‘Left’ and ‘Right’ through the ages demonstrating their eventual absurdity when National Socialist Germany is dubbed ‘Rightist’; discusses the consequences for Socialist Eastern Europe with the introduction of a new Capitalist economy whose hypocrisy is becoming obvious; suggests a third possible form of government, between Capitalism and Communism, a self-managing society, democratically controlled by workers in a free market, i.e. Guild Socialism.

Poetry

Tom Mac Intyre, ‘Pangur Eile’, pp.129-30 [poem].

Catherine Phil MacCarthy, ‘Four Poems’: ‘Stone Circle’; ‘The Pond Beyond the Black Field’; ‘New Moon’; ‘Hunger’,, pp.131-34.

Michael Longley, ‘Six Poems’: ‘Water-colour’ (ded. Jeffrey Morgan); ‘Carr’s Loney’ (ded. Tom Carr); ‘Massive Lovers’ (after Hokusai); ‘Sheelagh-na-Gig’; ‘Icicle’; ‘Wind-Farmer’, pp.135-36.

John Goodby, ‘A Jail Journal’, pp.137-38 [poem]. .

John A. Murphy, ‘A Contented Man’, pp.139-41, review of Garret Fitzgerald, All in a Life: an Autobiography (Dublin: Gill and Macmillan 1991). Esteems Fitzgerald’s autobiography for the informative recounting of the 70’s and 80’s including his relations with the Catholic Church and his involvement in the pro-life amendment in 1983.

Steven G. Ellis, ‘The Shock of the New’, pp.141-43, review of Mary O’Dowd, Power, Politics and Land: Early/Modern Sligo 1568-1688 (Belfast: Inst. of Irish Studies, Queens 1991). Appreciates the presentation of changes Sligo/Ireland experienced in the early seventeenth century as it metamorphosed from a Gaelic community into an English-style county, however, is disappointed with the inept treatment of the establishment of the Protestant community, thus failing to provide an adequate view into the British involvement.

David Johnson, ‘Sinking Cork’, pp.143-45, review of Andy Bielenberg, Cork’s Industrial Revolution 1780-1800: Development or Decline? (Cork: Univ. Press 1991). Values Bielenberg’s study of the ‘failure’ of industrialisation in Ireland during the nineteenth century, noting his treatment of the absence of necessary raw materials, the decline in population and the economic crisis, factors which added considerably to the difficulties Irish industry experienced in competition with the new manufacturing market.

Renée Prendergast, ‘A Civilising Mission’, pp.145-47, review of T.A. Boylan and T.P. Foley, Political Economy and Colonial Ireland (London: Routledge, [n.d.] ). Acclaims this well written, insightful production which succeeds in providing thorough coverage of the proliferation of political economy in Ireland during the early nineteenth century, attending to the establishment of the Whately Chair at TCD in 1832, the integration of economic skills at elementary schools and the Barrington lectures.

Joanna Bourke, ‘Strangers in a Strange Land’, pp.147-49, review of John O’Brien and Pauric Travers (eds.), The Irish Emigrant Experience in Australia (Dublin: Poolbeg Press 1991); Eric Richards (ed.), Poor Australian Immigrants in the Nineteenth Century. Visible Immigrants: Two (Canberra: Highland Press 1991). Observes that both books developed from conference proceedings, Traver’s and O’Brien’s edition originated at the ‘Australia and Ireland: the Emigrant Experience’ conferences in Dublin, in 1987, and Richards draws from the workshop held in 1990 entitled ‘Poor Australian Immigrants; both are largely due to the efforts of the pioneers on migration, Oliver MacDonagh, Eric Richards and David Fitzpatrick.

Ged Martin, ‘Parnell Syndicated’, pp.150-53, review of Edward Byrne, Frank Callanan (ed.), Parnell: A Memoir, series ‘Essays and Texts in Cultural History, No.5 (Dublin: Lilliput Press 1991); D. George Boyce and Alan O’Day (eds.), Parnell in Perspective (London: Routledge 1991); Donal McCartney (ed.), Parnell: The Politics of Power (Dublin: Wolfhound Press 1991); J.B. Lyons, ‘What Did I Die Off?’: The Deaths of Parnell, Wilde, Synge and Other Literary Pathologies (Dublin: Lilliput Press 1991). Ascertains Byrne’s memoir as specious from lack of detailed accounts; Enjoys the varied approach in McCartney’s collection which includes personal tributes from the contributors; Notes such subscriptions as Paul Bew on Davitt, Liam Kennedy on Parnell’s economics and James Loughlin on Parnell’s press relations which can be found in Boyce and O’Day’s symposium; Feels Lyon’s perspective is more clinical than the others under review, as he theorises on Parnell’s death as a result of a heart attack and heavy smoking and an ensuing cover-up by the medical profession.

Eunan O’Halpin, ‘Defending the Realm?’, pp.153-56, review of John D. Brewer, The Royal Irish Constabulary: an oral history (Belfast: Inst. of Irish Studies, Queens 1990); Elizabeth A Muenger, The British military dilemma in Ireland: Occupation politics, 1886-1914 (Dublin: Gill and Macmillan 1991). Welcomes Brewer’s book which casts light on the personal experiences of former RIC men, Catholic and Protestant although faults his lack of indication of the interviewers part in piloting the participants memories; Criticises Muenger’s obscure and haphazard treatment of the political and social attitudes of the army and police at the turn of the twentieth century.

James D. Young, ‘Socialist Landlord’, pp.156-58, review of Richard Pankhurst, William Thompson (1775-1833): Pioneer Socialist (London: Pluto Press, [n.d.] ). Young is dissatisfied with the absence of informative biographical material on Thompson as well as the dearth of suggestions as to how or why this Irish socialist might have been prompted toward social criticism; also criticises Pankhurst’s failure to incorporate the Irish background against which most of Thompson’s major books were set.

John Darby, ‘Institutions and Conflict’, pp.158-61, review of John Brewer with Kathleen Magee, Inside the RUC (Oxford: Clarendon Press 1991); Bill Rolston (ed.), The Media and Northern Ireland (London: Macmillan 1991). Praises Magee and Brewer’s sociological investigation of routine policing in Northern Ireland, encompassing issues of coping with community division, occupational culture and the extra hardships facing policewomen; Flaws Rolsten’s edition for several significant shortcomings, a deficiency of contributions from Northern Ireland TV Broadcasters, his disregard for the underground press and localised media and for insufficient address allotted to the Unionists complaints against the media.

Richard Kirkland, ‘Criticism in the Interregnum’, pp.161-65, review of John Wilson Foster, Colonial Consequences: Essays in Irish Literature and Culture (Dublin: Lilliput Press 1991); Tom Paulin, Minotaur: Poetry and the Nation State (London: Faber 1992). Compares both authors on the grounds of similar social backgrounds, deeming Minataur a diverse and bold publication on Protestant historical identity which includes writers such as Emily Dickenson and Zbigniew Herbert while finding Fosters book ambiguous in parts as he examines the views of the ‘intellectual class’ of both the coloniser and the colonised.

Ian Duhig, ‘Pictures carried with Singing’, pp.165-70, review of Frank Ormsby (ed.), The Collected Poems of John Hewitt, Belfast: Blackstaff Press, [n/d/] ); Paul Durcan, Crazy about Women (Dublin: National Gallery of Ireland, [n.d.] ). Gives high praise to Ormsby’s adept research and judgement in Hewitt’s Collected Poems which is comprised of 38 ‘Selected Unpublished Poems 1928-76’, 140 ‘Uncollected Poems 1928-86’, and over 400 pages dedicated to the main canon; Highlights the similarities between the writings of Durcan and Hewitt, discussing Durcan’s self- editing techniques as well as the varied tones and moods in his collection, believing Crazy about Women to be Durcan at his best.

M. A. G[earóid] Ó Tuathaigh, ‘A Limited Regionalism’, pp.170-73, review of Gerald Dawe and Wilson Foster, eds., The Poet’s Place: Ulster Literature and Society. Essays in honour of John Hewitt 1907-1987. (Belfast: IIS/QUB 1991). Remarks on the worthy cultural commentary provided in Eve Patten’s ‘Samuel Ferguson: a tourist in Antrim’, and Foster’s own inspection of the scientific element of civic culture in Belfast, esteeming the overall variety of perspective and broad coverage of this handsome production.

Kate Newmann, ‘All Sorts of Untils’, pp.173-75, review of Medbh Mc Guckian, Marconi’s Cottage (Dublin: Gallery Press 1991); Paula Meehan, The Man Who Was Marked by Winter (Dublin: Gallery Press 1991). Highly esteems the poetic talent of McGuckian, crediting her ability to ‘fuse the tangible with the intangible’ and remarking on the surreal yet conventional quality which pervades Marconi’s Cottage; describes Meehan as a ‘seer’, complimenting the wild and exotic pulse of her poems.

Peter Denman, ‘Poet’s Staying Power’, pp.175-79, review of Gerald Dawe, How’s the Poetry Going? Literary Politics and Ireland Today (Belfast: Lagan Press 1991); Peter McDonald, Louis MacNeice: The Poet in his Contexts (Oxford: Clarendon Press 1991); Antoinette Quinn, Patrick Kavanagh: Born-Again Romanic (Dublin: Gill and Macmillan 1991). Considers Dawe to be one of the most attentive and captivating of contemporary literary journalists, commending his articulate critical approach to Irish literary circles, his indept perceptions on Louis MacNeice and his proffering of brief glances into his own literary community; Appreciates the juxtaposition of Kavanagh and MacNeice as close contemporaries, noting McDonald’s chapter on MacNeice’s undergraduate writings and Quinn’s valuable insight into Kavanagh’s literary career.

John Goodby, ‘History is What Hurts’, pp.179-85, review of Ian Duhig, The Bradford Count (Newcastle-upon-Tyne: Bloodaxe 1991); Gerald Dawe, Sunday School (Oldcastle: Gallery 1991); Eavan Boland, Outside History (Manchester: Carcanet 1991); Brendan Kennelly, The Book of Judas (Newcastle-upon-Tyne: Bloodaxe 1991). Applauds Duhig’s collection, noting his partiality towards new historicism and his committed treatment of issues such as racism, sexual/colonial politics, nationalism, religion and language; Judges Dawe’s publication to consist of sour nostalgia and bordering on cliché; Compliments Boland’s efforts at reconciling women in myth with women in history; Appreciates the humorous and radical nature of Judas, but condemns the repetitious, self-centred and uncontrolled narrative;

Eamonn Hughes, ‘All Peculiar People’, pp.185-87, review of Maurice Craig, The Elephant and the Polish Question (Dublin: Lilliput Press 1990); John Boyd, The Middle of my Journey (Belfast: Blackstaff Press 1990); Max Wright, Told in Gath (Belfast: Blackstaff Press 1990). Deems Craig’s book to be of ‘intermittent interest’ due to the random nature of the narrative; driticises Boyd for merely recording public working life although he redeems the book with an insight into the intellectual life in Belfast from the 30’s to the 50’s; Enjoys Wright’s relaxed pace as well as the humour in both the text and texture of this publication.