Gaelic Culture and Literature; From Cú Chulainn (Cuchulainn) to the Cultural Revival and Beyond

COURSE OBJECTIVE

Gaelic literature is the oldest vernacular literature in Western Europe; the first three lectures in this module will introduce the student to early Gaelic narrative literature and gives insights into the culture(s) which created it. Students read and interpret a selection of texts in translation, including tales of Cú Chulainn and the Ulster Cycle and wonder tales of the Otherworld, and develop skills in engaging critically with this literature. Tracing the vicissitudes of the Irish language and its culture from the seventeenth century onwards, the remaining lectures of this module will explore the emergence and development of modern Gaelic literature from the period of the Cultural Revival in the late-nineteenth century and examine recorded Irish folklore and the oral storytelling tradition in the twentieth century. Through reading selections of Gaelic prose and poetry in translation, students gain insights into the rapid changes within Gaelic culture from the nineteenth century as represented in folklore and literature. While demonstrating an intimate awareness of formal and thematic developments in a broad range of world literatures, contemporary Gaelic prose and poetry engages closely with earlier sources within the Gaelic literary, oral and cultural traditions. The course develops students’ understanding of the dynamic interplay between the traditional and the contemporary within Gaelic literature.

A knowledge of the Irish language is not a prerequisite for the course; all classes are through English. Introductory classes in the Irish language will be provided to interested students.

COURSE OUTLINE

1. Understanding the origins: An introduction to the sources and methods of interpretation of Old and Middle Irish literature.
2. The reflexivity between sociohistorical context and literature: Tales of the Ulaid (Táin Bó Cúailnge).
3. Tales of the monastery and beyond: Early Irish hagiographies and voyage tales.
4. Mise Éire: Literature, language, and the Gaelic Revival.
5. Rural Reflections: The role of the island autobiography.
6. Abducted by the Fairies: Exploring Ireland’s National Folklore Collection.
7. Modern-Irish poetry in translation.

GENERAL BIBLIOGRAPHY:

Students are required to purchase the basic textbook Gantz, J., Early Irish Myths and Sagas, Oxford: Penguin Classics [ISBN: 978-0140443974] – c. $8-10.

Basic Texts

Barron, W.R.J. & Burgess, G.S., 2002. The Voyage of Saint Brendan: Representative versions of the legend in English translation with indexes of themes and motifs from the stories Ní Bhrolcháin, M., 2009. An Introduction to Early Irish Literature

Further Reading

• Caerwyn Williams, J.E. & Ford, P., 1992. The Irish Literary Tradition
• Carney, J., 1967. Medieval Irish Lyrics Cross, T.P. & Slover, C.H., 1936. Ancient Irish Tales
• Cross, T.P., 1952. Motif-Index of Early Irish Literature
• Dillon, M., 1948. Early Irish Literature
• Gantz, J., 1981. Early Irish Myths and Sagas
• Greene, D. & O’Connor F., 1967. A Golden Treasury of Irish Poetry
• Koch, J.T. & Carey, J., 2004. The Celtic Heroic Age
• Mallory, J.P., 1992. Aspects of the Táin
• McCone, K., 1990. Pagan Past and Christian Present in Early Irish Literature
• McCone, K., 2000. Echtrae Chonnlai and the Beginnings of Vernacular Narrative Writing in Ireland
• Murphy, G., 1956. Early Irish Lyrics: eighth to twelfth century
• Welch, R., 1996. The Oxford Companion to Irish Literature
• Wooding, J., 2000. The Otherworld Voyage in Early Irish Literature: An Anthology of Criticism

GENERAL BIBLIOGRAPHY: PART II

There is no textbook required for purchase for Part II of this course.

Basic Texts

• Ní Dhomhnaill, N., [trans Muldoon, P.] 1992. The Astrakhan Cloak.
• Ó Eochaidh, S., Mac Neill, M. and Ó Catháin, S. 1977. Fairy Legends from Donegal/Síscéalta ó Thír Chonaill.
• Ó Súilleabháin, M., [trans Llwelyn, M. & Thomson, G.] 1933. Twenty Years A-Growing.
• Pearse, P., Short Stories, available digitally at: https://celt.ucc.ie/pearsefic.html

Further Reading

• DeBharduin, O., 2021. Why the Moon Travels.
• Ó Conaire, P., 1986. The Finest Stories of Pádraic Ó Conaire. Dublin: Poolbeg.
• Ó Duilearga, S., 1999. ‘Irish Tales and Story-Tellers’ in Dundes, Alan (ed.) 1999. International folkloristics: classic contributions by the founders of folklore. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, pp. 153-176.
• Ó Giolláin, D. 2012. ‘Ireland’ in Bendix, R. & Hasan-Rokem, Galit (eds.) A Companion to Folklore. Malden, MA: Wiley-Blackwell, pp. 409-425.
• Ó Giolláin, D., 2000. Locating Irish folklore: Tradition, Modernity, Identity, Cork: Cork University Press.
• O’Leary, P., 1994. The Prose Literature of the Gaelic Revival 1881-1921. Pennsylvania: The Pennsylvania State University Press.
• O'Leary, P., 2004. Gaelic Prose in the Irish Free State 1922-1939, Dublin: University College Dublin Press.

REQUIREMENTS FOR CREDITS 

• Attendance at all lectures and participation in seminars.
• Project using archival material from duchas.ie
• One essay of 1,500 words on a subject of your choice, subject to the agreement of the Course Professor (those seeking graduate credit must write a 3,000-word paper).