A new National Library of Ireland exhibition celebrating the life and work of Seamus Heaney gives an overview of the poet laureate's life and work. When Seamus Heaney was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1995, the Swedish Academy noted the “lyrical beauty and ethical depth” of his work. His poems, though often suffused with allusions to Dante, Homer, and the other … [Read more...] about Listen Now Again
History Archives
The American Revolution and Ireland
The Irish involvement in the American Revolution is often lost in the stories dominated by tales of the wisdom of the Founding Fathers. Now, a new exhibition at Philadelphia’s Museum of the American Revolution seeks to change that. Called “Cost of Revolution: The Life and Death of an Irish Soldier,” this special exhibition follows the untold story of Richard Mansergh St. … [Read more...] about The American Revolution and Ireland
Wild Irish Women: Marie-Louise O’Murphy
a.k.a. Marie-Louise O’Murphy de Boisfailly, Morphy, Morphi, Mademoiselle de Murph, La Belle Morphise, Louison, Madame la Countess de Beaufranchet d’Ayat, Mme Lenormand de la Gravière Flaghac, O’Murphy Lenormand, Mme Dumont, “Murphy,” and… Our Lady of the Potatoes En quels terms en êtes-vous avec la vielle coquette? In English: What terms are you on with the old … [Read more...] about Wild Irish Women: Marie-Louise O’Murphy
The Adventures of Irish Poets in America
What did the famed poets and writers get up to when they crossed the Atlantic? Dublin-born THOMAS MOORE (1779-1852) is still recognized as Ireland’s National Bard; he was once as famous a romantic poet as his best friend Lord Byron. While studying law in London in 1801 he published, anonymously, a book of naughty verses, The Poetical Works of the Late Thomas Little. The … [Read more...] about The Adventures of Irish Poets in America
Wild Irish Women: Chicago May
“How hard Ireland was on the women who could not fit in – the wild ones, the ones who had to get out, seeming emigrants but actual exiles.”– Nuala O’Faolain Chicago May wasn’t from Chicago and, in fact, spent little time there, but the name somehow suited her. May Duignan was born in 1871 in the remote county of Longford in the ancient world that was 19th-century Ireland. Her … [Read more...] about Wild Irish Women: Chicago May