ABSTRACT
In what ways might one seek out perspectives on emigration in literature on Ireland? Two broad types of literature are worth examining. First there is the largely autobiographical work which contains direct, personal accounts of emigration. There are a number of important examples of this up to the 1950sPatrick Gallagher and Mici MacGabhann have written about temporary and
For later periods, Donal Foley, John Healy and Breandán O hEithir offer differing reflections on the emigrants of the 1940s and 1950s.5 Second, there is general fiction by writers at home and abroad which reflects either directly or indirectly on emigration as a reality of life in Ireland. These range from the novels and short stories of Patrick MacGill, Liam O’Flaherty, Sean O Faoláin and the plays of Brian Friel or J.B.Keane to the poetry of Patrick Kavanagh.6 Because the process of emigration is such an emotional experience for most people, creative literature often captures and expresses the critical elements in what might be called a crisis for many individuals and families. Another collection of writing, not by Irish writers but by natives of the host society, also provides interesting perspectives on the Irish emigrant, particularly on the large-scale Irish emigration to America in the nineteenth century. In the final analysis, so extensive is the range of literature contained in short stories, novels, plays and poetry that it is impossible to cover it adequately in a single chapter such as this; the best that can be attempted is a fairly cursory review of trends evident in a limited sample.
