ENG32810 Irish Poetry, Global Diplomacy

Academic Year 2024/2025

To what extent might we think of the poet as a diplomat? Do poets help define diplomacy, go beyond, or break the rules of the construct? This module analyses five Irish poets who have forged strong international engagements during key historical and political moments. Each poet demonstrates skills of diplomacy in their writing, particularly through collaboration and innovation, in the face of major world problems (colonialism, war, gender inequality and religious intolerance). This course will analyse the processes of diplomacy as they interact with the development of form (poetry and prose). Key questions: How does the poet utilise partiality to move towards resolution? How does form offer freedom from ideological stalemate?

This module will examine the writings of key modern Irish poets specifically in terms of how their work is part of a web of international engagement that guides readers towards solutions. In historical order we will explore a selection individual poets’ works within their historical and geographical context. The first half of the course will focus on close readings of individual poems. In the second part of the course we will look at key themes relating to diplomacy, across all five poets.