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    Ar an gCoigríoch: Migration and Identity in Twentieth-Century and Contemporary Irish -Language Literature


    Ni Dhonnchadha, Aisling (2012) Ar an gCoigríoch: Migration and Identity in Twentieth-Century and Contemporary Irish -Language Literature. The Irish Review, 44. pp. 60-74. ISSN 07907850

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    Abstract

    Journeys abound in modern and contemporary Irish-language writing, whether the focus of the narrative is internal migration, emigration, return migration or simply a modern travel experience. This should not be surprising, as there is a close relationship between physical dislocation and the processes of linguistic minoritisation which made modern Irish-language discourse in general a discourse of cultural displacement. What may be surprising, however, is the range of perspectives on migration represented by Irish-language authors and the wide range of genres employed to represent Irish emigrant and diasporic experience. Drawing on a selection of materials from the anthology Ar an gCoigrioch: Dlolaim Litriochta ar Sceal na hlmirce, 1 this essay will demonstrate how Irish-language literature on migration represents a rich diversity of individual voices and experiences. While there is evidence to support Kerby Miller's contention that the dominant perception of emigration among western Irish-speaking communities in the post-famine period was that of involuntary exile, 2 many Irish-language autobiographical and fictional accounts complicate this interpretation. Migration and emigration are presented as being perceived and experienced differently depending on individuals' particular positions within families or communities. Attitudes towards emigration in Irishspeaking communities vary over time and are influenced by political developments, the destination of the migrant, the permanency or otherwise of the migrant experience and the individual response to personal or family circumstances. This essay will draw on a number of key texts to explore how migration and emigration have been imagined, experienced and analysed by twentieth-century Irish-language authors. The essay will focus in particular on various aspects of the relationship between linguistic, cultural, regional and national identity.

    Item Type: Article
    Keywords: Migration and Identity; Twentieth-Century and Contemporary Irish; Language Literature;
    Academic Unit: Faculty of Arts,Celtic Studies and Philosophy > School of Celtic Studies > Nua-Ghaeilge (Modern Irish)
    Item ID: 4646
    Depositing User: Aisling Ni Dhonnchadha
    Date Deposited: 09 Dec 2013 14:06
    Journal or Publication Title: The Irish Review
    Publisher: Cork University Press
    Refereed: Yes
    URI:
      Use Licence: This item is available under a Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial Share Alike Licence (CC BY-NC-SA). Details of this licence are available here

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