I recently attended a presentation by Dr. Heather Laird on the topic of Irish writer, John McGahern. Dr. Laird discussed McGahern’s work in the context of the post revolutionary Catholic Ireland of his youth and the subsequent more evolved Ireland of the neo-liberal period. This period followed Ireland’s move from Eamon de Valera’s economic policy of protectionism to the encouragement of free trade as endorsed by T.K.Whitiker and Sean LemassĀ in the 1960s. Dr Laird argued that McGahern was at odds both with the entrenched Catholicism of the post revolutionary period and with the later neo-liberal period, in which Ireland continued to be staunchly conservative in its policies, apart from its avowal of free trade. McGahern also saw this period as one of sexual repression. He escaped from Ireland’s conservatism when he emigrated to England in the 60s. This followed his dismissal from his teaching post in Dublin, following the publication of his novel, The Dark, which was banned for its sexual content. However, following his success as an author, he returned to Leitrim in the mid 70s, where he bought a small farm, near his old home. McGahern farmed for pleasure and supported the farm from his writing. Continue reading
Loving Leitrim
10 Thursday Apr 2014
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