More than 30 years ago, in 1988, Sandra Zagarell coined the term
“narrative of community” to identify a genre that takes as its subject
the everyday life of communities and the endeavours to maintain the
community as an entity. According to her, this form represents a
coherent response to the social, economic, cultural, and demographic
changes caused by factors such as industralisation, urbanisation or the
spread of capitalism. In addition to Zagarell's concept of narrative of community as literary
form, we will also read excerpts from Anderson's Imagined Communities. Thus, we will approach selected texts from different perspectives
to reflect on the notion and impact of different forms of narratives.
Beginning with stories published in the 19th century, we will read and
discuss Irish narratives of community not only with regard to form, but
also in regards to their historical and cultural context. Furthermore,
we will also explore connections between, for instance, gender and
genre, because female writers played a central role in the development
of this literary form. Continuing with early 20th-century narratives and
concluding with Donal Ryan’s The Spinning Heart (2012), we
will eventually also discuss if Zagarell’s concept of narrative of
community still applies to contemporary narratives written and published
in a gobalised world and a transnational context.
In this class, we will mostly focus on short story cycles published
between 1900 and 2012 and will thus try to trace developments in
different eras, taking into account specific events in Irish history as
well as societal developments that are connected to notions of identity
and thus to local, regional and national communities.
Please note: This seminar requires you to read – you should be willing
to read (and reflect on) all assigned texts (one or two short stories
per week; some academic articles). Besides, our meetings will rely on
your active participation.
- Dozent/in: Alessandra Boller