Partition and its aftermath: Poetry and history in Northern Ireland

Abstract

This essay examines the impact of partition on poetry with specific reference to the partition of Ireland. It analyzes poetic representations of and reactions to “the Irish Troubles” and the creation of Northern Ireland in the context of narratives of divisive nationhood that include, among other partitions, the creation of Israel in the Middle East, and Pakistan in South Asia. Through an analysis of selected texts ranging from those by W.B. Yeats to Paul Muldoon and Ciaran Carson, the essay argues that the prolonged cultural trauma created by partition impels poetry towards a dual function that can be characterized as partly agonistic and partly ameliorative. This is complicated in the case of poets from Northern Ireland by their sense of alienation from their divided society, culture, community, and nation.

Keywords:

• political partition
• Irish poetry
• the Irish Troubles
• Northern Irish poets