James Joyce in Tom Stoppard’s play Travesties declared that “As an artist, naturally I attach no importance to the swings and roundabout of political history”. Nevertheless, political discourse in fiction has always been a complex and intricate issue. Perspectives regarding the boundaries to which political discourse should be apparent in literature vary widely among various writers. While some writers try to distance themselves from the political turmoil, others use literature as a means to convey the political problems that matter to them deeply. The present paper explores the interface between literature and politics over a span of a century, in modernist, post-modernist and metamodernist Irish drama, in particular the plays of James Joyce, Flan O’Brien, Frank McGuinness and Owen McCafferty (Exiles (1918), Faustus Kelly (1943), Observing the Sons of Ulster Marching towards the Somme (1986) and Quietly (1986). These four English-language writers of Irish descent are all united by the concern of Irish History and Politics. A comparative study of these four authors allows to explore the variance in political discourse. Despite the similarities, the difference in the authors’ position is apparent in the manner in which these issues are rendered: While Joyce and O’Brien tend to be ironic and sarcastic, McGuiness and McCafferty give a more personal outlook, which awakens some empathy towards their characters. Moreover, McGuiness and McCafferty are more deeply and openly involved in the history of Ireland.

The presented study is a part of the Fundamental Research project (FR-24-7246) funded and supported by the Shota Rustaveli National Science Foundation of Georgia.

Authors:
Tamar Gelashvili, Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University, Georgia

About the Presenter(s)
Dr Tamar Gelashvili is currently an assistant professor at Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University, Tbilisi, Georgia.

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