This thesis examines the ways in which the ideology of Irish nationalism has influenced and shaped the works of five Irish poets from a Protestant background: Louis MacNeice, John Hewitt, Richard Murphy, Michael Longley and Derek Mahon. These poets began their careers during a time period in which the cultural framework for comprehending authentic Irish identity, place and history was largely yielded to the authority of the principles of nationalism. This made a considerable impact on the poets and the ways that they would be made to engage such themes in their poetry. Their works are often noted for expressing ambiguity, ambivalence and complexity with regard to the poets' relationship with their Protestant background. This thesis maintains that much of the conflict found within the poetry can be attributed to an internalisation of a number of precepts from the politicised cultural construct established by nationalism. The nationalist authority over the Irish identity-discourse has not been sufficiently explored or explicated in critical studies of these poets' works. This thesis is dedicated to examining the nuanced ways in which nationalism influenced the poets' understanding of the concepts of Irish identity, place and history. With respect to their individual biographies, contexts and backgrounds, detailed analyses will reveal the significant affect that the tenets of nationalism had on each writer's poetic output and career. The research will make clear the extent to which these five poets exemplify a particular paradigm of the Irish Protestant poetic psyche of the eras under review. The analyses will contribute a fresh perspective to critical understanding of the intricate, oftentimes complicated, relationship that these poets maintained with their community, culture and country of origin.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:720593 |
| Date | January 2017 |
| Creators | Sackett, James R. |
| Publisher | University of Aberdeen |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Source | http://digitool.abdn.ac.uk:80/webclient/DeliveryManager?pid=232373 |
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