From rebel yells to the Dropkick Murphys, Irish Studies Assistant Professor Ann Morrison Spinney teaches Ireland's tumultuous history through music. Read more about Professor Spinney.
Image from the Boston Herald.
Professor James Smith appeared on the RTÉ Radio 1 show "Today with Pat Kenny" on Tuesday, April 22nd to discuss his recent book Ireland's Magdalen Laundries and the Nation's Architecture of Containment. Listen to the show for the rest of this week here. (At the bottom of the right hand menu click Tuesday. The interview occurs about an hour and fourteen minutes into the show.)
Ely Janis successfully defended his doctoral dissertation, entitled "The Land League in the United States and Ireland: Nationalism, Gender, and Ethnicity in the Gilded Age" on February 6th. Congratulations, Dr. Janis!
Congratulations to Adam Chill, who graduated from the history PhD program this past December. Adam's dissertation, “The Boundaries of Britishness: Nationalism, Ethnicity, and Boxing in Britain, 1770-1830” examines the flexibility of British identity and its ability to include those of Irish, African and Jewish origins through the sport of boxing.
Nadia Smith received her PhD from Boston College in 2003 and is now working as an adjunct professor in the history department. She has just published Dorothy Macardle: a Life (Dublin: Woodfield Press, 2007).
She is also the author of A 'Manly Study'? Irish Women Historians, 1868-1949 (Basingstoke and New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2006).
The University of Notre Dame Press has just published Associate Professor of English and Irish Studies Jim Smith’s Ireland’s Magdalen Laundries and the Nation’s Architecture of Containment. The Magdalen laundries were workhouses in which many Irish women and girls were effectively imprisoned because they were perceived to be a threat to the moral fiber of society. Originating in the eighteenth century, they were operated by various orders of the Catholic Church from the post-famine period until the last laundry closed in 1996. The Magdalen laundries have become an important issue in Irish culture, especially with the 2002 release of the film “The Magdalene Sisters.” Focusing on the ten Catholic Magdalen laundries operating between 1922 and 1996, Smith’s book offers the first history of these institutions in the twentieth century. Because the religious orders have not opened their archival records, Smith argues that Ireland's Magdalen institutions continue to exist in the public mind primarily at the level of story (cultural representation and survivor testimony) rather than history (archival history and documentation). Copies can be obtained from the press at http://www3.undpress.nd.edu/main.php. Read an Irish Times review of Professor Smith's book here.
Burns Library’s Thompson Room
5pm, Monday, October 22, 2007
The Center for Irish Programs/Burns Library Special Presentation
Ecumenism in Ulster: Evaluating the Role of the Church of Ireland, and the Roman Catholic Church, during “The Troubles” in Northern Ireland
Dr. Daithí Ó Corráin, Trinity College Dublin, is our guest scholar presenter. Ó Corráin holds a BA and a Ph.D. degree in history from TCD, as well as a postgraduate diploma in computer science from University College Cork.
He has been, since November 2003, a Research Fellow at Trinity College where, together with Professor Eunan O’Halpin, Ó Corráin has been engaged in a monumental project which will be published by Yale University Press. The first volume of this study, entitled The Dead of the Irish Revolution, 1916-1921, will appear in 2008.
Dr. Ó Corráin is also the author of a number of journal articles, chapters in books, and a highly acclaimed monograph published by the University of Manchester Press, entitled Rendering to God and Caesar: The Irish Churches and the Two States in Ireland, 1949-1973. Oxford University Professor Roy Foster has hailed this study as a pioneering work which utilizes both oral and documentary sources not previously employed in studies which have examined the relations between the Church of Ireland and the Catholic Church, and the governments of the Republic and of Northern Ireland.
Presentation and Q&A – 5pm
Reception in Burns Foyer – 6pm
Please do us the kindness of telephoning either Catherine at the Center (617-552-4847), or Lori at the Burns Library (617-552-3282) by 3pm Monday, October 15, 2007 if you do plan to attend. The seating capacity in the Thompson Room can be moderately expanded if we have sufficient advance notice.
Saturday, August 4, 2007, 7:30 PM
$16 in advance/$20 at the gate
For full event details, click here.
Playful, rhythmic, inventive, musical and expressive, Sean-nós dance is a solo percussive dance form originating from Ireland. Sean-nós means ”old-style“ in the Irish language. Historically performed in informal settings by male dancers, the “old style” is looser and more improvisational than the newer Irish step dance styles that have prevailed since the early 1900s. In the 20th Century, sean-nós dance experienced a serious decline, and the art form nearly disappeared. But in recent years, a handful of influential dancers have brought the steps and traditions back to life, and now, sean-nós dance is flourishing. A sean-nós dance revival is sweeping Ireland and spreading to American dance communities as well.
Many viewers of sean-nós dance comment, “That’s the way my grandfather used to dance.” This once male-dominated style is now seeing a surge in women’s participation — as students, teachers, scholars, and performers. Shannon Dunne (Washington, D.C.), Alicia Guinn (Seattle, WA), Kieran Jordan (Boston, MA) and Maldon Meehan (Portland, OR) are four American women who are actively building sean-nós dance communities in their respective regions of the country. These four women will join the 2007 Icons Festival to explore and present the fascinating trends and techniques of Irish sean-nós dance.
“American Women In Sean-nós Dance,” produced by Kieran Jordan, will feature workshops, panel discussions, demonstrations, and performances in sean-nós dance. The event will take place in or adjacent to the Irish cottage, an actual Irish cottage built on the grounds of the Irish Cultural Centre of New England. Live music will be provided by Tina Lech, Shannon Heaton, and other Irish musical greats. There will be informal dance performances by a few special guests, plus step dancers from the audience will have opportunities to perform a step or two. Don't miss this weekend in Massachusetts!
Jill Bender, a PhD student in History and Irish Studies, has been appointed a Graduate Fellow of the American Academy of Political and Social Science. This program recognizes the very best graduate students for their achievements in analyzing social problems and for their promise of becoming tomorrow's outstanding social scientists.
Irish Studies faculty member James Smith was promoted to a tenured position, Associate Professor of English, this spring. Well done, Jim!
Sara is the first-ever major in Irish Studies at Boston College. The university currently offers only a minor in Irish Studies, so Sara designed her own interdisciplinary program which was approved by the college of Arts and Sciences; then she jumped right in and took two semesters of Irish language along with her first-year core courses. A member of the Honors program, Sara is also an accomplished flautist and has performed with the Irish Music Program, as well as participating in many of the sessions around the Boston area. Somehow she finds time to help out as the undergraduate assistant in Connolly House, where her drive and initiative have made her a valued member of our team.
Mark Doyle, a recent graduate of the History PhD program and Irish Studies alum, has been awarded a Mellon Postdoctoral Fellowship at the Penn Humanities Forum at the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Doyle will continue to focus on the topic of his dissertation, "Fighting Like the Devil for the Sake of God: Protestants, Catholics and the Origins of Violence in Belfast, 1850-1870." To read more about this fellowship program, please click here.
Mark was also awarded a Harry Frank Guggenheim Fellowship for his dissertation.
Rebecca Troeger is a PhD candidate in the English department and Irish Studies Program at Boston College, and was the recipient of the 2006-2007 Dalsimer Fellowship in Irish Studies. Her research interests include the performance of culture in modern Irish Literature, especially the use and representation of music. Becky earned her BA from Colby College and her MA from Boston College.
Boston College PhD candidate Anthony Daly successfully defended his dissertation, "What We Strike Down There We Shake Here": Irish Issues and the Shaping of English Radical Politics, 1847-74. Daly, who specializes in the history of 19th century Britain and Ireland, accepted a position as Assistant Professor in the History Department of the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts in North Adams, where he will teach courses on Modern World Civilizations, Modern Britain, 20th Century Europe, Modern France, and a seminar in 19th Century Empires. In addition to his doctorate, Anthony also earned his master's degree from Boston College, after receiving a bachelor of arts from the University of Toronto, St. Michael's College.
Paul McCarthy writes:
I'm secretary and PRO of a local gaelic football club here in Boston called Christophers. The Christophers club is one of the oldest in existence in the Boston area with a long a prestiguous history. Up to now the existence of the club has relied heavily on Irish people immigrating to the Boston area, but due to the changing times with the booming Irish Economy fewer people are immigrating, thus forcing us as a club to adopt if we are to remain in existence.
The future of sustaining our Gaelic games here in the US is to try to get more Americans involved in the sport, and this is where I am seeking your help.
Is there any forum in Boston College through whom I can get the word out to anyone who is interested in joining our club as an officer or a player?
Here is a url that explains the history of the game:
http://www.gaa.ie/page/all_about_football.html
Please contact paul_mccarthy_@hotmail.com
Seminar: Irish Orientalism
April 13, 2007
Jenks Honors Library, 2:00 pm
Joseph Lennon earned his MA from the Boston College Irish Studies Program in 1996. Since then, he has published widely on Irish, Indian, and British literature and culture. His book, Irish Orientalism: A Literary and Intellectual History (Syracuse University Press, 2004), was awarded the Donald J. Murphy Prize for Distinguished First Book by the American Conference for Irish Studies (ACIS). Irish Orientalism has also drawn high praise from other eminent scholars; Edward Said calls is a “fascinating study” and Stephen Howe characterizes it as “undoubtedly the fullest, most detailed and perceptive analysis of these themes yet to have been attempted.” Lennon earned his MA from Boston College and his PhD at the University of Connecticut in 2000, and is currently Associate Professor of English at Manhattan College. He is also the poetry editor of The Recorder, the journal of the American Irish Historical Society.
''On Broadway," the Boston-Irish-American-themed independent movie, is playing on April 26th and 29th at the Boston Independent Film Festival. The cast includes Jamaica Plain's Joey McIntyre, who stars as a carpenter and playwright who stages a show in the back of a local Irish pub.
Joining McIntyre are ''Saturday Night Live" actor and Burlington native Amy Poehler (BC '93) and her husband, Will Arnett, of the late ''Arrested Development". The BC connections don't stop with Amy Poehler; director Dave McLaughlin is a 1995 grad, producer Kris Meyer and assistant director Greg Smith represent the classes of 91 and 95 respectively, and executive producers Henry and Donna Bertolon's son John is in his first year at BC.
The film, which is set in Jamaica Plain, will be shot by LA-based cinematographer and South Boston native Terrence Hayes.
Event listing & tickets
An article on the film from Boston College Magazine
Date: Monday, April 23, 2007
Location: Connolly House, 4:00 pm
Professor Jason Knirck of Central Washington University will speak on "The Role of Women in the Treaty Debates and Irish Civil War" on April 23, 2007 at Connolly House on BC's Chestnut Hill campus. He will be substituting for Professor Senia Paseta who has been compelled by personal circumstances to withdraw from this year's lecture series.
Professor Knirck is the author of Imagining Ireland's Independence: The Debates over the Anglo-Irish Treaty (Boulder: Rowman and Littlefield, 2006) and Women of the Dáil: Republicanism and the Anglo-Irish Treaty (Dublin: Irish Academic Press, 2006).
This Saturday sees the return of the Boston College Irish Studies Colloquium in Connolly House, with over thirty faculty from a dozen local colleges discussing literature, history, music and the visual arts. The colloquium has a broad focus with wide appeal: expect presentations on, for example, Yeats, Joyce, Bowen, Heaney, on recent historicism, the authenticity of modernism, and contemporary visual art. In addition, Vera Kreilkamp, editor of Éire-Ireland, will answer questions on publishing in Irish journals today, and John Paul Riquelme will bring along his second pass proofs of his forthcoming edition of A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. The main speaker is historian L. Perry Curtis Jr. More information from Joe Nugent, nugentjf@bc.edu, or by clicking on this link.
