The Impact of Literature on Ireland in the early 20th Century

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The Impact of Literature on Ireland in the early 20th Century

The importance of literature on Ireland in the early years of the Twentieth Century can be measured in a number of ways. First, the literary revival, or at least its intentions was to allow Ireland the chance to establish its own literary identity entirely distinct from the predominant British literature at the time.

This had the effect of Ireland being, in a sense, the first post-colonial nation, insofar as Joyce, Yeats, Synge, O’ Casey, and others would all choose to write in the language that was imposed upon them rather than Gaelic - the traditional language of Ireland. Moreover, they would make it their own, using Irish vernacular and social realism to describe a world entirely distinct from how the Irish were usually portrayed - namely, as caricatures; either of the romanticised Celt, or else as the simian figure of ridicule and the butt of the joke. Secondly, the effects of literature were arguably more profound, especially concerning the fostering of a new nationalism in the theatre, which, in some ways, may have contributed to the republican uprising of 1916 and the eventual creation of the Irish Free State in 1922.

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The effects of the Abbey Theatre

The effects of the Abbey Theatre in particular are profound. Set up by W. B. Yeats, Lady Gregory and E. Martyn in 1899, the theatre was different from other theatres in Ireland, insofar as the agenda was primarily focused on Irish affairs, and provided an ideal nursery for developing playwrights, such as Sean O’ Casey, J. M. Synge, and many others. In particular, the initial effects of these plays on the Easter Rising of 1916 may have precipitated the whole affair, and the establishment of Irish identity remains inextricably linked to the nationalistic pride ...

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