Doomed volunteers: two great political plays from Ireland

Autores

  • Heinz Kosok University of Wuppertal

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5007/2175-8026.2010n58p77

Resumo

Seamus Byrne's Design for a Headstone (1950) and Brian Friel's Volunteers (1975) are some of the most controversial plays in the canon of Irish drama, exceptional in their explicit political implications. Loosely based on the role of the IRA in the Republic, they achieve a high degree of universality in their discussion of such provocative issues as political radicalism, internment, hunger strike, the role of the Church in society, passive resistance vs. active rebellion, justice vs. humanity, and loyalty vs. betrayal. In their tragic endings, both plays reveal a deep pessimism on the part of their authors.

Biografia do Autor

Heinz Kosok, University of Wuppertal

Heinz Kosok is Professor Emeritus of English and American Literature in the University of Wuppertal, Germany. From 1982 to 1985 he acted as Chairman of the International Association for the Study of Irish Literatures, and from 1989 to 1992 he was President of the German Association of University Teachers of English. He has lectured in many countries, including Brazil, and has published widely on English, American and Irish literature. His books include O'Casey the Dramatist (Colin Smythe, 1985), Plays and Playwrights from Ireland in International Perspective  (WVT, 1995), The Theatre of War: The First World War in British and Irish Drama (Palgrave Macmillan, 2007), andExplorations in Irish Literature (WVT 2008).

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Publicado

2010-01-01

Edição

n. 58 (2010)

Seção

Artigos

Licença

A revista Ilha do Desterro publica artigos e resenhas inéditos, referentes as áreas de Inglês, Literaturas em Língua Inglesa e Estudos Culturais. Publica volumes mistos e/ou temáticos, com artigos e resenhas em inglês e português. 

Autores mantém os direitos autorais e concedem à revista o direito de primeira publicação, com o trabalho simultaneamente licenciado sob a Licença Creative Commons Attribution que permite o compartilhamento do trabalho com reconhecimento da autoria e publicação inicial nesta revista.


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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.