Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

The nineteenth century was a period of enormous change in Ireland and has left a legacy that still affects Irish people today. It saw the shaping of a political nation, the trauma of the Famine, the restructuring of the economic system and the emergence of a new pattern of land holding. Ireland: a social, cultural and literary history, 1791-1891 synthesizes the enormous amount of published research on the period and provides the reader for the first time with a concise but comprehensive overview of the social and cultural patterns of the century. It traces the ways in which traditional forms of peasant life were modified not only by economic change but also by the administrative reforms of government, the expansion of access to education and the rise of a newly confident institutional religion. It explores the experience of women, the lives of emigrants and the perils of the urban environment. It sets the patterns of popular culture alongside those of high culture, especially the visual arts, intellectual life and that dominant discourse of the period about the Irish, Celticism. The book also pays particular attention to the literature of the century, for too long under the shadow of the later Irish literary revival, seeing it in contemporary political terms and challenging the ways in which it has been subsequently categorized.

Table of contents provided by Syndetics

• Introduction (p. 9)
• 1 Radical climax, 1791-1800 (p. 12)
• 2 The shaping of politics, 1801-47 (p. 21)
• 3 Ordering peasants, 1801-45 (p. 29)
• 4 Crafting Celts, 1760-1893 (p. 41)
• 5 Whig and emancipation literature, 1800-29 (p. 49)
• 6 A religious education, 1801-84 (p. 65)
• 7 Tory journalism and romantic nationalism, 1825-72 (p. 78)
• 8 Catastrophe, 1801-51 (p. 94)
• 9 Dispersal and reinvention, 1815-91 (p. 104)
• 10 Origin of Fenian species, 1850-78 (p. 113)
• 11 Loved land, lost leader, loyal legion, 1879-91 (p. 124)
• 12 Urban refinement and wretchedness, 1801-91 (p. 136)
• 13 From plough to parlour, 1801-91 (p. 149)
• 14 Curious canon, 1801-91 (p. 157)
• Conclusion (p. 166)
• Bibliography (p. 169)
• Index (p. 219)

Reviews provided by Syndetics

CHOICE Review

Murphy (De Paul Univ.) sets himself a formidable task. In the brief space of 167 pages, he attempts to discuss the major social, cultural, literary, and political developments of a notoriously crowded period in Ireland's history. He constructs his narrative around a synthesis of the most recent scholarship in these areas. The result is an immensely useful survey of a broad range of subjects, which include religion, the visual arts, the Famine, secret societies, Celticism, gender, emigration, education, and many other matters. Murphy is a literary scholar, and his lucid analyses of various 19th-century writers will be particularly welcome to readers with a limited background in this area. A 49-page, up-to-date bibliography that is subdivided into various categories gives the book added value and helps justify its hefty price tag. Murphy's survey will find an appreciative audience among beginning students of Irish history and professionals alike. ^BSumming Up: Highly recommended. Undergraduates of all levels, graduate students, and faculty. G. Owens Huron University College

Author notes provided by Syndetics

James H. Murphy teaches English at De Paul University, Chicago.