Chapter 4... redux

I just wrapped up my first draft of chapter four. It's by far the most disconnected draft I've written thus far, but at the same time it's a complex time in the chronology of my dissertation. One element of commemoration is on the decline and is being replaced by another, different type. At this point I think it's best to set it aside for a while and come back to it with fresh eyes in a few months. That means I only have one more body chapter to draft out, chapter five, which covers the time period 1987-present. Things to discuss in chapter 5:

The Enniskillen bombing in 1987 as a watershed
The revival of interest in the Great War in Ireland as it pertains to:
Government involvement - especially the refurbishment and opening of Islandbridge
Local advocacy groups
Wrap up the ISSLT stuff (quickly)
Easing of North/South relations, e.g. Sinn Fein mayor of Belfast and R.D. ceremonies
Opening of the Somme Centre in the North
Rise of historical scholarship on the subject
Relative "boom" in using the Great War in Irish literature

Now that I write all of that out, perhaps chapter 5 will be just as disjointed as chapter 4 when I finish the first draft. I guess that's all part of the process. Nevertheless, it's nice to be moving on and I'm even keeping to my original timetable for completion (for the most part). After I get these 5 body drafts done I think I'll write the introduction, which I have yet to do, but I pretty much know everything that's going to go in there.

Ambling along

Chapter four is coming together a bit better now. I kind of had an epiphany the other day. I was struggling over how to structure this chapter because I've spent the previous three charting the establishment of the culture of commemoration surrounding WWI in Ireland and this chapter covers almost fifty years and looks at the fragmentation and decline of that culture. One of the problems was that a number of the lenses that I used for the first three chapters changed and no longer carried the same weight that they did in the interwar period. This means that I have to switch my focus to the new media and cultural forms that replace them. But before getting there I figured it would be prudent to bring the subjects from chapters 1-3 up to speed as quickly as possible. So right now I'm trying to compile a condensed chronology for chapters 1-3 in the period 1939-1986. Once I complete that I think it should be a bit easier to get into some of the newer cultural forms relating to the memory of WWI in Ireland. We'll see how it goes.

I've also realized that I'm running a bit thin on sources for this section so I'm going to need to remedy that situation at some point.

Finally, I got the new issue of Perspectives today (the monthly publication of the American Historical Association) and there was an interesting article about the commodification of history PhDs. Today when people ask me/assume that I'm going to teach with my degree I tell them that that is the ideal, but probably won't happen. The article does a good example of explaining why. One of the most salient problems is that universities operate on a business model that isn't really conducive toward retaining permanant full-time faculty. The serious over-supply of history PhDs is only part of the problem. So while a teaching job is still the ideal and I'll try my darnest to get one, I'll be realistic, not hold my breath, and actively pursue employment outside of the academy as well.

Chapter X initial draft

I have to call it "Chapter X" because I'm not sure what number it will be. Does the introduction count as chapter 1? If so it'd probably be chapter 3, if not, chapter 2. Today I finished a first draft of Chapter X. Of course, this is a first draft in the most basic sense. It's basically a 48 page recitation of the evidence I plan to use for the chapter organized in chrono-thematic fashion. The structure is rudimentary at best, and there is no analysis yet, but still it feels like a pretty big accomplishment and a solid departure point for crafting the chapter further. I know what direction I want to take the chapter, it's just a matter of doing it now and getting some constructive feedback along the way. At present, I plan to put this one on the shelf and work on its compatriot chapter - same time period, different thematic focus. Once I have evidence drafts of both chapters done I'll go back and do some more of the analysis and plug in the secondary works.

On Sunday I was reading a chapter in an edited collection that helped me to re-think some of the theoretical aspects of the project, particularly those relating to memory, and the ways in which the Irish experience differs from other areas, namely Britain. While thinking about these things I also thought about how to frame Chapter X, which was something that I was struggling with because it does not deal with memory in the traditional sense of commemoration and remembrance events. What clicked was that those rituals were aimed at the men who died during the war, but a different memory landscape existed for those who survived and returned. It's here that the subject of Chapter X, the British Legion's approach to housing and employment issues, fits into the memory rhetoric.

Is it better to get the evidence drafts done and go back and touch them up or to complete an evidence draft of each chapter and then go back and doctor the whole thing? If I get in a real rhythm with the evidence drafts that might be the way to go. Any thoughts on the writing process are welcome. Also, any thoughts about at what point is it prudent to have my adviser take a look? Would feedback at this time be too vague, or is it worth a conversation just to make sure things are on the right track?

Don't Mess With... Cork?

Cork is rebel country. The People's Republic of Cork. I gotta get me one of them t-shirts. It should come as no surprise that a large number of men from Cork enlisted in the British Army during the First World War given Cork's role as Ireland's "second city." Furthermore, it is also not surprising that there is little information here on the men who served in the British Army. At least little that I've found so far. The strength of Republicanism in Cork would probably prevent veterans with weak political allegiances from vocalizing their past service for fear of reprisal, especially in the early 1920s.

Oh well. Such is life. I spent two days at the Cork City and County Archive and have about 7 pages worth of typed notes to show for it. None of which is very meaty. I did get an idea for another project based on one of the sources there, but that does me little good for the current undertaking. Instead of wasting more time at the CCCA, I'm moving on and by moving on I mean going back to newspapers. This time I'll head to the Cork County Library because I can get more time on the microfilm readers. It's about a 15-20 minute walk from where I'm staying, so it's probably a little bit closer than the city library. Plus you don't have to pay to use their computers there. What library makes people pay to use their computers? Isn't that the point of the library, to get those basic services for free? (Ok, so libraries serve a much broader and significant purpose, but you know what I mean.)

On the bright side, the weather here in Cork was much improved over yesterday when all it did was rain whenever I set foot outside with 20mph winds to boot. I think tomorrow is going to be crappy too, but I believe things should shape up a bit on Saturday when I go see Christy Moore perform. Now THAT will definitely be a good time.

I've got the remainder of this week to do research here and next week as well. I have a feeling that unless I find a real gold mine next week when I go to the Boole Library, I won't need to come back to Cork in the future - at least for research purposes. It's a shame. It's a nice city. I like it much better than Dublin. I'd rather work here, but the sources, or lack thereof I should say, makes such a proposition unrealistic.


On to another subject: sports. I've never really been a soccer fan. It's been growing on me since the last World Cup, but I can only get into "good" games. Some soccer games are like watching the 1995 New Jersey Devils, and that's just plain painful. Yes they won the Cup, but they set the NHL back 10 years in the process. See, nothing good comes from New Jersey. Anyway, like I mentioned before the European Cup, or Euro 2008, or whatever it's called is going on now. I've watched a handful of games and the number one thing that stick out to me are the announcers. It's no secret that I hate most sports announcers in the States. Outside of Mickey Redmond, I'm hard pressed to find someone I actually like. CBC is good for hockey because the commentators don't talk over the entire game. The same is true of soccer in Europe. The commentators basically tell you who has the ball. That's it. There is NO discussion of players' personal history, trade history, or any other hogwash your typical American commentator spouts off. There are no stupid graphics or sound clips of the player shown simultaneously with the game. No. It's just the game. The commentators respect the audience enough to let them watch in peace. It's a welcome change to the CONSTANT banter of sports commentary in the States. Since I watch a lot of hockey, I can say that the various teams on Versus are atrocious. The same is true of ESPN's coverage of lacrosse - professional and college. Most of that is due to the verbal vomiting of Quint Kessenich. For lax, I understand why they do it - not a lot of people are familiar with the sport and the players. But for those that ARE familiar, it's like running your ears over a cheese grater. Sportscasters pandering to the lowest common denominator gets really old, really quickly.

A good research day

Today I went back to the National Archive of Ireland. I got there right as it opened and had a pretty productive day. I talked with the archivist a bit when I first got there to try to orient myself. She was really helpful while at the same time admitting that there was probably very little there of direct relevance to my dissertation. This is a common thing, and I'm becoming used to this as an initial response. Upon doing some digging, I think that there will be at least 3-4 sources that will be very useful, but that is still to be determined. What probably saved me was a purchase I made at the National Museum on Sunday, a book by Brian Hanley called A Guide To Irish Military Heritage. I had been informed of the existence of the book before I left, but was fortunate to find it when I did. The files I was hoping would pan out - the Bureau of Military History - will probably have scant relevance for my diss, but one of the sources suggested in Hanley's book proved quite useful and interesting today. There was a committee put together in 1927-1928 to determine the grievances of British ex-servicemen in Ireland; it was called the Committee on Claims of British Ex-servicemen. The files give a good picture of the types of problems many former British soldiers experienced in post-Independence Ireland as well as what efforts the British Legion took to try to help these men. Since my focus is on the memory of the Great War in Ireland I began to think about how relevant these sources were. It seems to me that to read the position of ex-servicement as a "site" (a la Pierre Nora, not necessarily a physical site, but one that provides a common understanding for a group) of memory/remembrance would be one way to make use of these sources. In essence, the status of veterans constitutes an access point into assessing the legacy of the war in Ireland. Even better, the National Archive allows limited use of digital cameras and I was able to photograph 3 full jackets of files in the allotted half hour. Hopefully tomorrow will be just as productive. I believe there is a different archivist on duty tomorrow, so perhaps I can talk them into letting me use the camera all day. That would make things go faster and allow me to get more done. The federal government also kept records of the British Legion's annual request to use the city's parks for their Remembrance Day ceremonies. These files contain some interesting pieces of information as well. Hopefully I'll be able to get that stuff photographed this week as well. Toward the end of the day, I was looking for more stuff and found some references for the Connaught Rangers that may be helpful. Tomorrow I'll look at the rest of the list (I only got through "C") and perhaps some more stuff will turn up. All-in-all it was a productive day. I felt like a real historian today. Today's investigations have provoked more questions that I may or may not find answers to. We'll see.

On a separate note, I need to say that I hate phones. I bought a calling card that supposedly allows me to call the States from Ireland. Since the apartment I'm staying in lacks a landline phone, I've had to try to use it on pay phones. It has not worked yet. This annoys me. I think it might be the pay phone and if I had a regular land line it would be fine, but this is an unanticipated headache.

New York Blackout: Dublin Style

Saturday and Sunday were a busy couple of days. I got up on time Saturday, no thanks to my alarm clock, and got to the Dublin City Archive about 15 minutes after it opened. Not bad. I continued going through their online newspaper collections, but that hit a snag when I lost the use of my email. I forgot that Loyola was doing maintenance to their servers on Saturday, and so the process of emailing files to myself came to a halt for the day since I couldn't access email. Once I realized what happened, I spent some time going through city council minute books. There really wasn't much there and I was hoping for more. Oh well. By the end of the day I had begun to go through some newspapers on microfilm. On Monday, I'll finishing emailing myself the documents I have left and hit the microfilm hard. Luckily the library is open until 8pm during the week so I should be able to get a good deal done. We'll see. The whole process is over-whelming because I have so much to see, so little time, copies are so expensive, and the use of my digital camera is prohibited.

When I finally got home from the archive I started going through the Irish Times website on my laptop. Now having American appliances in Europe can be a challenge. Most expensive items have power come with power converters (the box on the cable). I bought a separate converter for the trip as well, and have a number of different plug adapters that do not convert current. So because of all this, I have a Ireland:UK adapter followed by a UK:US adapter, which I plug my laptop into. The plug on my laptop is a little loose so for added stability, I removed the UK:US adapter and plugged my UK:US converter into the IE/UK adapter. Sound confusing?
It is. I figure that the two converters back to back shouldn't be a problem, right? Wrong. After a while I heard a big pop and the lights go out. My converter had blown. Fortunately, the fuse in the IE:UK adapter didn't blow (that happened on Friday to my first adapter. The second one is much higher quality), but the surge completely knocked out the power in the entire apartment. This was probably around 7-8pm. We try to flip the circuit breakers and nothing happens. After several trips to reception and an offer to switch apartments, we all decide to stay the night without power. Everyone I'm sharing with is here for at least two weeks and had no interest in packing in the dark. Reception said they'd have someone come out and fix the power today (Sunday). In the meantime, the lack of power provided everyone an opportunity to talk and we did so until the wee hours of the morning.

apartment. The proposed solution didn't work. So I decided to go be a tourist for a bit instead of sitting around all day waiting for a fix. I got onCome Sunday morning, the folks from reception come and fidget with the buttons in the the bus and went downtown. I planned to buy an alarm clock - the time delay issue was related to current variations, my engineer roommate speculated - which I did. Then I set out down the River Liffey (picture above) to the National Museum of Ireland. There was an exhibit about Irish militarism I wanted to see. The exhibit was interesting and had some displays I could probably use for my diss. I bought some books at the museum bookstore as well as the official literature on the Soldier Chiefs exhibit. From the national museum I set out for the Irish National War Memorial at Islandbridge.

After a 15-20 minute walk I finally arrived at the park. It consists of a number of open spaces, a few sports pitches, and the main memorial area. The center of the memorial area had a large stone monument with two poppy wreathes laid on it. To the east and west of the main area were fountains and additional stone work that led into a memorial garden at each end. Straight ahead was the main cenotaph. The stone work on the wall behind the cenotaph bore an inscription dedicating the memorial to those who died in the war. I've included pictures of the center monument with the cenotaph in the back ground as well as an image of the western memorial garden. The park in general was very relaxing and pleasant, quite the antithesis of the conflict it commemorates. I'm sure that was the idea. It was nice to see that there were a fair number of people using the park. I'm sure it would be an even greater destination for families and other events if it were more centrally located.


When I left the park I made my way back through Dublin. I went past Kilmainhaim Jail, where the '16 rebels were shot, but I didn't go in or take any pictures. I made my way past the Guinness Storehouse on the way across town to the bus stop. It wasn't too long before a bus came and I was back to UCD. Upon entering the apartment I tried the light switch and the power had, in fact, not been restored. My walking for the day was not done yet. Poop. I went down to reception and was given a key for a new apartment. Fortunately, it was in the same building on the ground floor so it wasn't a laborious move. I got myself re-settled in the new place and had some dinner consisting of Peanut Butter & Jelly - my first food since breakfast - and some carrots. All things considered it was a busy day, but I got a lot done and saw a lot of the city. The sore knees and ankles are a small price to pay in the end. Tomorrow I'll head back to the Dublin City Archive, and perhaps try to persuade them to let me use my camera. We'll see. More to come.

A Tarnished Memory

The First World War remains one of the most important events in European history. Recent events in France help illustrate this. In a despicable act, vandals desecrated the graves of Muslim soldiers who died fighting in the French army. This act suggests at least two things to me. The memory of WWI continues to be active in France, and it can be used to draw attention to contemporary issues, even if they're heinous. The other thing this story describes is the state's role in protecting the memory of the war. The vandalism, therefore, is not just a hate crime, which is bad enough, it is an affront to the nation writ large. The memory of historical events is woven into the fabric of a nation-state's historical narrative. Various hot-button topic often constitute some of the most salient memory terrain. It's also important to remember that the big events only constitute part of a society's memory spectrum. In Ireland, the memory of the Great Famine, the Easter Rising, the Black and Tans, and the Troubles in the North are some of the major elements of Irish collective memory. But just as important as these memories are, other major events have their own memory legacy, such as the Great War. France is not the only nation that has had subversives make political or other statements through the prism of the Great War, and it certainly won't be the last. How this has been done in the past and what it means in and to that society remain questions that need to be answered.

Just in time for St. Patty's

The front page story on the Irish Indo's site today stated that Ireland is implementing a new, lower legal limit for blood alcohol content for Irish drivers. As an American reading the story it seemed very timely, what with St. Patrick's day celebrations looming on the horizon this weekend and the city of Chicago preparing to dye the river green. This legislation is a subtle reminder that not all Irish folks are falling-over drunks. Granted those Irish that do drink consume more than the average American per sitting, but that doesn't mean they are all drunks. St. Patrick's day as a holiday is really an American invention. In Ireland, up until recently, it was always a solemn occasion that included a trip to Church. In America, we put green dye in already terrible American macro-brewed beer and claim to be Irish, if not for a few hours. Who, then, is more responsible? The Irish who are taking proactive measures to increase responsibility and accountability for people who drink in their country, or Americans (generally aged 18-30) that view St. Patrick's day as a time to get black-out drunk for the sake of "being Irish." The disconnect between Ireland and Irish-America is shocking at times. Unfortunately, without more Irish historians in America to dispel these myths, change is not on the horizon, unlike that pint of green beer this weekend....

The political use of WWI memory: An American case

Granted, one of my minor fields is American history, but I'll be the first to tell you that I find the subject dour and boring. Nevertheless, when I came across this article on CNN I had to pause for moment. It discusses the recent honoring of the last American WWI vet. As someone who studies the First World War and it's memory, I find this blatant use of the memory of the war for political ends to be deplorable. The entire gist of my dissertation is to challenge this sort of official, top-down politicization of WWI memory in Ireland. The most interesting aspect of this article, at least for me, was the desire of others outside the bounds of the government to have a proper memorial to the veterans of the First World War in the national mall. I'm not suggesting the Mr. Buckles should not be or is unworthy of being honored. That's not the case as at all. Furthermore, I think it's great that his story garners national attention. It's just the timing of the event I have a problem with. In the midst of an election year, where the Iraq war is a hot topic. To truly honor Mr. Buckles, the government should have honored him this past November. After all, in America Veteran's Day is on the 11th of November, which is Remembrance Day in Britain and Ireland, a day which derives its importance from the end of the First World War.

When to say "when"

Renowned Irish poet Seamus Heaney has a bone to pick. Currently, there is a proposal to build a new highway through one of Ireland's most important historical areas. The continued evolution of Ireland's economy and the need for greater access via automobile are the culprits of this cultural outrage for Heaney. I can't say that I blame him. This semester I'm TAing for an International Studies 101 course. The bulk of the material thus far has focused on the issue of globalization and positives and negatives associated with it. Economically, globalization tends to be a boon for most countries that can harness it. Socially and culturally, the outcome is much more mixed. As Mr. Heaney suggests, the development of the Irish economy is being done at the expense of Irish heritage. These are the sort of subtle attacks globalization makes on culture that make one group simply shrug while others throw up their arms in frustration. If the Irish government were smart, they would re-route the proposed road, but hire some historians to generate road markers along that stretch of road. Incorporating a few stopping points along with some historical information the Irish would be able to preserve and even promote their culture at the same time that they move forward in the global economy. There are plenty of roads in the States like this. I can recall driving through the Rocky Mountains coming home from Aspen a few summers ago, and in addition to the beautiful views, there were places to pull off, take pictures, and read information about the area. It seems like a minimal investment to protect the culture that makes Ireland such a wonderful place to begin with.

Branding National Identity

Despite the onset of globalization, nationalism remains one of the central ideas in European history. It seems, however, that the identity of those within the nation-state increasingly has less to political and economic boundaries and more with cultural boundaries. This story illustrates some of the unique ways that various peoples are trying to maintain their national identity. Scotland is attempting to place restrictions on what can be considered a Scottish kilt. Some of the motivations behind the proposal are surely economic, and this is probably an example of a non-tariff barrier of sorts. Nevertheless, the underlying problem is the way that faux kilts reflect on the real thing and the amount of pride vested in this cultural practice. As the story says, kilts as we now think of them came into being in the 18th century, and in fact, is an "invented tradition" in its own right. Hugh Trevor-Roper contributed a chapter on the invention of the modern kilt in Hobsbawm and Ranger's edited collection "The Invention of Tradition," a book that has been influential in the way people think about constructed nationalism.

The Power of Popular Culture

I was reading an article in the Irish Times today commenting on recent remarks by Glen Hansard, and Irish musician and actor recently known for his role in the film Once. What struck me in the article was a comment about the status of high culture in Ireland. The writers states:

>> "We do, as a nation, have a problem with high art. Public art has a terrible record of being vandalised."

Given my personal interest in Irish history this comment struck me because it echoes one of the central points of my dissertation - that popular cultural is the real barometer to measure Irish society against. It's not just political. It's not just that the IRA historically targeted governmental monuments to destroy because of what they represent. It's deeper. The Irish have had a contempt for the upper classes for so long and the number of elites has been so small, comparatively, that high culture only matters so much as that it correlates to British (or any other) culture. The popular is what truly represents the people of Ireland. The fact that class is understudied in Irish history has led scholars to assume the tension in Ireland ran solely along ethnic lines, like F. S. L. Lyons' "Culture and Anarchy." But ethnicity is only part of the issue. Were a lot of Irish elites non-Catholics of Anglo-Irish stock? Most likely. That fact, however, seems like a convenient excuse to divert a class issue into an ethnic one. Because most of the folks in Ireland come from modest means, it's only natural that they hold high art in contempt. By exploring the the popular aspects of culture helps to illustrate a more complex Irish history.

Music, Pop Culture, and Irish History

I was reading Tim Lacy's History and Education blog the other day and he had an interesting post about a class at UMass-Amherst that used the Grateful Dead as a lens for studying American Culture since the 1960s. I found this intriguing for a number of reasons: 1. I'm a huge DeadHead and would love to take that class, and 2. I'm continually interested in the role that music plays in a society's culture. I have two separate projects in mind along these lines for Ireland - neither of which I'll touch for a couple years because I'm sure the dissertation will get in the way.

The first project would be to investigate the Blues and R&B scene in Ireland, specifically the North, in the 1960s and 1970s. During a period where ethic/sectarian differences became extremely volatile, music provided a milieu for co-mingling, and relatively peacefully at that from some of the material I've read. It'd be interesting to contrast the trajectories and impact of two popular artists - Van Morrison and Rory Gallagher (Protestant and Catholic respectively) to examine this question.

The second project would be similar to the way that scholars tend to approach the 1960s in America by looking at Irish counter culture. I recently finished reading Christy Moore's book "One Voice." What struck me was the amount of anti-Government sentiment in Ireland during the 1960s, 70s, and 80s. I think that in many ways, Irish folk or ballad singers provided a steady challenge to the state's agenda because singers were common, played in pubs, which meant that they reached a wide array of people at little cost. It seems there was plenty of exposure to these artists throughout the island, and their liberal leanings must have had some reverberations throughout society writ large. With a government trying to dig itself out of a pre-modern nationalist agenda in the 20th Century, and a Church that often turned a blind eye to endemic social problems, i.e. both were conservative entities, that really left pub culture and balladeers as a sizable, relatively uncensored form of popular culture and opposition (film, literature, and published music were more susceptible to the censorship laws in Ireland).

These are just the germ of the ideas at this point. Any comments (if anyone reads this) are welcome.