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First Quarterly Issue of Trasna Released
With poems and stories by Libby Hart, Stephen O’Connor, Mike Gallagher, S. C. Flynn, Marie O’Shea and Shane Leavy. Read Issue #1 here.
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Patrick Kavanagh: a Reader’s Experience
by Richard Hayes For generations of Irish readers—for this one certainly—the poetry of Patrick Kavanagh is inextricably associated with Soundings, the anthology of prescribed poetry for the Leaving Certificate English curriculum that was a staple of Irish secondary education from the end of the 1960s until the mid-1990s. Edited with sensitivity and skill by the late Augustine (“Gus”) Martin, then professor of English at University College Dublin, Soundings presented the poetry curriculum for the final exam with unashamed emphasis on the texts of the poems, without recourse to illustrations or photographs or that patronising commentary that seems to dominate textbooks now. Martin in his introduction to the book speaks of…
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‘A Morning Walk’ from “Intimate City: Dublin Essays” by Peter Sirr
Featured in today’s Irish Times is a collection of essays by prize-winning poet, Peter Sirr: “Intimate City: Dublin Essays.” This week, Trasna is pleased to present ‘A morning walk,’ one of the essays from this brilliant collection. Sirr’s essays explore Dublin’s past and present; travel its narrow lanes; meditate on its earliest map; and contemplate the impact a place can have on those who live there. In one of his essays ‘Shirts for Books,’ Sirr discusses the loss of a landmark bookshop: “The death of a bookshop always hits hard. There are never that many of them to begin with and they are rarely replaced, so that one more opportunity…
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ELIZABETH BOWEN and MOLLY KEANE
by Thomas McCarthy The month of November, with its decreasing hours of daylight and lengthening nights, offers an opportunity to turn inwards. It is traditionally a month in Ireland when we remember those who have passed on, indeed the 1st and 2nd of November are known respectively as All Saints and All Souls days. On Trasna, our focus this month will be on Irish writers who have passed on and who are remembered by contemporary writers and scholars. Here, poet Thomas McCarthy explores the novels of Elizabeth Bowen and Molly Keane, in a piece that discusses literature and the world of the Anglo-Irish, and also the importance of friendship . …
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Introducing John McGahern
by Dr. Richard Hayes The month of November, with its decreasing hours of daylight and lengthening nights, offers an opportunity to turn inwards. It is traditionally a month in Ireland when we remember those who have passed on, indeed the 1st and 2nd of November are known respectively as All Saints and All Souls days. On Trasna, our focus this month will be on Irish writers who have passed on and who are remembered by contemporary writers and scholars. In this article, Dr. Richard Hayes considers the output of the writer John McGahern, (1934 – 2006), and argues that McGahern is the greatest novelist since Joyce, with an importance not…
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The belated discovery of a role model: Nessa O’Mahony on Eavan Boland
The month of November, with its decreasing hours of daylight and lengthening nights, offers an opportunity to turn inwards. It is traditionally a month in Ireland when we remember those who have passed on, indeed the 1st and 2nd of November are known respectively as All Saints and All Souls days. On Trasna our focus this month will be on Irish writers who have passed on and who are remembered by contemporary writers and scholars. Our first post this month is by poet Nessa O’Mahony who writes of the influence of the poet Eavan Boland (1944 – 2020) on her own development as a writer, which led to her subsequently…
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Rathcroghan, the Irish Otherworld, & the Home of Halloween
Daniel Curley Throughout October, Trasna will focus on the Celtic festival of Samhain, better known to Americans as Halloween. The holiday originated in Ireland and celebrates that time of year when the veil between this world and the next grows thin, and life seems more mysterious. In the medieval village of Tulsk, in County Roscommon is the Rathcroghan Visitor Center. The Center is located in the heart of a rich archeological landscape. This week we feature an essay by archeologist Daniel Curley who explains its connection to Halloween. Rathcroghan, the Irish Otherworld, & the Home of Halloween The Rathcroghan archaeological landscape, Co. Roscommon, Ireland is a collection of 240 identified archaeological sites contained within a 6.5km (725ha) area…
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“Beginning Again”
Catherine Drea In this photo essay, Beginning Again, contemplative photographer, writer and award-winning blogger, Catherine Drea reflects on the experience of being in lockdown during COVID-19. Her place is rural County Waterford in south-east Ireland and her reflections and stunning photographs show us the art of paying attention, always with an eye for beauty but alert too for changes that are a cause of concern. Travel as we understood it might have changed, but we learn how the “simplicity of wandering on foot can also delight the soul.” More of Catherine Drea’s work can be seen on her blog, Foxglove Lane, and on her Instagram gallery. Foxgloves In the dreamtime of last winter, I…
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John Lawlor, Philip Conway, Boston University and the continuity of a proud Irish athletic tradition
Dr. Tom Hunt For the month of July here on Trasna, we have been highlighting some of the literary and artistic events cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The other significant arena of cancellations due to COVID-19 is, of course, sport. Today we present an article by Irish sports historian, Dr. Tom Hunt, who focuses on the early history and impact of athletic scholarships from Boston-area universities, on the world of Irish athletics. Irish athletics was rescued from international oblivion by the USA scholarship system. The trail began in London in 1948 with the superb performance of Jimmy Reardon in the 400m at the Olympic Games which alerted USA officials to…
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“Petting Zoo” and Other Offerings
E. R. Murray For the month of July, here on Trasna, we will be highlighting some of the literary and artistic events cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Featured this week is the West Cork Literary Festival, an annual, weeklong celebration of writing workshops offered by some of the finest Irish and international writers. This year’s festival was scheduled to begin today, July 10th. Many of the varied workshops are now offered online. Among this year’s talented, festival writers is Elizabeth Rose Murray. She is currently co-presenting a weeklong workshop for teenage writers from her home in west Cork. Her debut novel, The Book of Learning – Nine Lives Trilogy 1, was chosen as the 2016…
