Irish Anglican Literature and Drama

This book discusses key works by important writers from Church of Ireland backgrounds (from Farquhar and Swift to Beckett and Bardwell), in order to demonstrate that writers from this Irish subculture have a unique socio-political viewpoint which is imperfectly understood. The Anglican Ascendancy was historically referred to as a middle nation between Ireland and Britain, and this book is an examination of the various ways in which Irish Anglican writers have signalled their Irish/British hybridity. British elements in their work are pointed out, but so are manifestations of their proud Irishness and what Elizabeth Bowen called her community's subtle anti-Englishness. Crucially, this book discusses several writers often excluded from the truly Irish canon, including (among others) Laurence Sterne, Elizabeth Griffith, and C.S. Lewis.

refines our understanding of the Irishness and (qualified) Britishness of writers from Church of Ireland backgrounds highlights and explores the work of important women writers who are often excluded or unjustly marginalised in studies devoted to Irish literary history examines the work of celebrated writers whose work is frequently regarded as part of the English canon and ignored in studies devoted to Irish literary history

Autorentext

David Clare is Lecturer in Drama and Theatre Studies at Mary Immaculate College, University of Limerick, Ireland. He previously held two IRC-funded postdoctoral fellowships at NUI Galway, Ireland. His books include the monograph Bernard Shaw's Irish Outlook (2016) and the edited collection The Gate Theatre, Dublin: Inspiration and Craft (2018).

Zusammenfassung
"The compact nature of this work is suitable for scholars and readers who already have a basis in Irish studies ... . it is Clare's research and cogent writing style that shine through, further solidifying this work as an important contribution to the ongoing scholarship concerning the necessary inclusion of Anglo-Irish writers in the canon, largely thanks to the 'strength of the Irish identities of these same writers' ... ." (Aileen R. Ruane, SHAW The Journal of Bernard Shaw Studies, Vol. 42 (1), 2022)
"David Clare's book on the Irish Anglican tradition in writing and theatre history is a concise, accessible, and effectively argued work ... . this excellent and concise study equips us with an insightful account of the historical and cultural ambiguities that imbue our present." (Mike Griffin, Estudios Irlandeses, Vol. 17, 2022)

Inhalt

1. Introduction.- 2. Elizabeth Griffith: Celebrating and Extending the Irish Anglican Dramatic Tradition.- 3. The Portraits of the English in the Work of Dion Boucicault, Bram Stoker, and Erskine Childers.- 4. Charlotte Brooke's Impact on Ascendancy Women Writers from Maria Edgeworth to Lady Gregory.- 5. C.S. Lewis and the Irish Literary Canon.- 6. Gradations of Class Among Irish Anglicans in Leland Bardwell's Girl on a Bicycle.