The subject of Ireland: Introduction to special issue on contemporary Ireland

Abstract

The contributors to this issue have chosen to interrogate Irish identity by tackling historical, linguistic, literary, and social aspects of the Irish experience. All are careful not to essentialize the experience of being Irish, nor to make sweeping claims about capitalism, neoliberalism, colonialism, or Roman Catholicism. Their writings, however, shed light on the power of psychoanalysis to puncture grand narratives and to offer a critical lens to unconceal the ways in which a society may resist change, despite the ostensible progress that is represented by rapid economic, educational, technological, and capitalist advancement. In their introduction, the editors offer some details on the sociohistorical and cultural context of contemporary Ireland, and present summaries of the individual contributions, indicating how they have approached the issue of the subject of Ireland, individually and collectively.