Northern Irish Literature

Pre-1920s

Before the creation of Northern Ireland in 1921, there was still a strong and distinct literary tradition in the region. Many texts originating in the north of Ireland (or Ulster) during this period were written in Latin, English, Irish, and Scots. The Ulster Plantation (1609) saw Scottish people colonise Ulster (particularly Counties Antrim, Derry, and Down) which led to the great number of texts produced in this region being written in Scots.

This region of Ireland had also produced several important texts in Irish Literature. The Ulster Cycle (or Úlaid) is a text that documents one of the four cycles of Irish mythology, here focusing on the mythology of the province of Ulster. This text was of great importance during the Gaelic Revival (1870-1910) which saw a renewed interest in Irish mysticism.

1920-1967: establishment of Northern Ireland

The Government of Ireland Act of 1921 established Northern Ireland as a country within the United Kingdom comprising six of the counties of Ireland (Antrim, Armagh, Derry, Down, Fermanagh, and Tyrone). The literature of early Northern Ireland is typically defined by its focus on landscapes and everyday life. The poetry of Louis MacNeice is a good example. His work frequently used Northern Irish landscapes and examined life in towns such as Carrickfergus. One other major Northern Irish writer in this period was C.S Lewis, whose Chronicles of Narnia (1950-1956) series was a combination of his religious beliefs and interest in mythology.

During this time, a new generation of working-class Catholic youth began to enter university, including Seamus Heaney and Stephen Rea. This group began to lead a new civil rights movement that aimed to end religious discrimination in housing, jobs, and policing. As protests and counter-protests increased across Northern Ireland, so did swift police intervention. These clashes would escalate throughout 1967-1968, leading to the outbreak of a conflict called the Troubles.

1968-1998: Troubles narratives

Narratives around the Troubles are at the centre of Northern Irish Literature. The conflict, which lasted from 1968 until 1998, affected all aspects of Northern Irish culture. This was then reflected in the literature that the country produced at this time, to the point that a whole genre known as Troubles Narratives was created. These narratives focused on many different aspects of the conflict, including the place of women, masculinity, violence, and class.

Not all of the literature produced in Northern Ireland during this period focused on the Troubles. Much of poet Seamus Heaney's works instead centred around rural landscapes and life in Ireland, such as 'Digging' (1966), 'Harvest Bow' (1979), and 'Blackberry Picking' (1966). During the late twentieth century, Seamus Heaney's fame and importance grew rapidly both in Northern Ireland and the wider world, culminating with the poet winning the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1995. Heaney did receive criticism from his contemporaries in Northern Ireland for not addressing the conflict other than in his 1975 poem, 'Whatever you say, say nothing'.

In the 1990s, Northern Irish literature developed once more as young people who were born and grew up during the conflict began to write and publish their own work. This is notably seen in Robert McLiam Wilson's Eureka Street (1996): the novel is set during a ceasefire in 1994 and followed the lives of different working-class people around Belfast. McLiam Wilson's novel criticised his contemporaries who did not use their position as writers to criticise the violence, notably seen in the novel's parody of Seamus Heaney.

1999-present: post-Troubles narratives

Following the creation of the Good Friday Agreement in 1998, a new era of Northern Irish literature began, as many works began to focus on themes of sexuality, gender relations, and class. Many novels are set in contemporary Belfast, or wider Northern Ireland, and centre around the effects that the Troubles still have on Northern Irish society.

While other novels such as Jan Carson's The Fire Starters (2019) or Anna Burns' The Milkman (2018) still focus on the Troubles, the way the conflict is presented has subtly changed to become more removed from the violence than previous works.

Northern Irish literature: authors

C.S Lewis (1898-1963)

Clive Staples Lewis was a Northern Irish writer and academic who was born in Belfast. As a child, Lewis was extremely close with his brother and the two invented a imaginary kingdom named Boxen, this would influence Lewis in his later writing. While at Oxford University, Lewis was part of a group called the Inklings, it was here that he met his friend J.R.R Tolkien. Lewis began The Chronicles of Narnia series in 1939, with much of the series being published during the 1950s. Lewis was also a dedicated Christian, whose faith was the basis for much of his work.

Notable Works: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (1950), Prince Caspian (1951).

Robert McLiam Wilson (1966-present)

Robert McLiam Wilson is an author and humorist who was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland. McLiam Wilson grew up in Belfast during The Troubles and channelled this into his writings, much of which centred around the experiences of working-class Catholics in the city. As a teenager, McLiam Wilson became homeless after his mother discovered he was dating a Protestant girl.

McLiam Wilson's background, therefore, left him disillusioned with Northern Irish culture, and in particular Northern Irish writing, which he viewed as being both politically evasive and indulgent in nationalism. McLiam Wilson's work, therefore, engages in the conflict in a different way to his contemporaries: he relies on humour to interrogate violence and masculinity in Northern Ireland.

Notable Works: Ripely Bogle (1989), Manfred's Pain (1992), Eureka Street (1996).

Anna Burns (1962-Present)

Anna Burns is a Northern Irish author, who was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Burns grew up in a working-class, Catholic neighbourhood in Belfast and much of her writing reflects this. Her most famous novel, The Milkman (2018) recounts the story of a teenage girl growing up in Belfast during the Troubles. In 2018 Burns won the Man Booker Prize for this novel.

Notable Works: The Milkman (2018).

Northern Irish playwrights

Brian Friel (1929-2015)

Brian Friel was a Northern Irish playwright and teacher who was born in Omagh, County Tyrone. Friel's plays examined life in Ireland and Northern Ireland through the lens of history, family, and nationality. In 1980, Friel, alongside his friend, actor Stephen Rea, established the Field Day Theatre Company in Derry, Northern Ireland. Field Day was created as a response to the political climate of Northern Ireland at the time, and Friel's play Translations (1981) was the first production of the company.

Notable Plays: Translations (1981), Dancing at Lughnasa (1990), The Home Place (2005).

Northern Irish poets

Louis MacNeice (1907-1963)

Louis MacNeice was a Northern Irish poet known for his relaxed tone and depiction of Irish landscapes. MacNeice was associated with a group of left-wing poets and writers known as MacSpaunday, although he himself was never a member of any political party. While he lived most of his life in England, MacNeice returned to Ireland frequently and the country is a regular feature of his poetry. His poetry often appeared on the radio and was known for its humorous tone.

Notable Poems: 'Meeting Point' (1939).

Seamus Heaney (1939-2013)

Seamus Heaney was an Irish poet known for his depictions of Irish life and landscapes. He was widely regarded as the major Irish poet of his generation for his portrayal of 'Irishness'. Heaney's work discussed themes of history, mythology, landscape, and tradition. His work also examined the importance of place and identity. In 1995 he won the Nobel Prize for Literature due to his 'works of lyrical beauty'.

Notable Poems: 'Punishment' (1975), 'Out of the Bag' (2001), 'The Tollund Man' (1972).