Cirrus@Austlit

Irish literature offers a unique insight into Ireland's struggle for cultural and national identity, canvassing the relationship between nation and narration, an understanding of which is vital to all nations. What constitutes 'literature' and what is 'Irish'? What should and should not be included in a canon of a national literature, and by whom? As a group of writings written largely in a non-native language and often written outside the country during a period of prolonged colonial subjugation, this is a complex and contested category of writing. The unit begins with an examination of key texts from earlier periods; from the seminal work of St Patrick in the fifth century to the influence of Celtic mythology and Pagan literature, leading to the emergence of early Christian literature. The latter part of the unit focuses on the late eighteenth to late twentieth centuries. It includes a variety of important figures, such as W.B. Yeats, James Joyce, Flann O'Brien, Julia O'Faolain, and Seamus Heaney, across a range of narrative forms. Students critically examine texts from this exceptional body of work, asking what role writers have played and continue to play in understanding the idea of 'Ireland'.