Literary Visions of Multicultural Ireland ― The Immigrant in Contemporary Irish Literature

This pioneering collection of essays deals with the topic of how Irish literature responds to the presence of non-Irish immigrants in Celtic-Tiger and post-Celtic-Tiger Ireland. The book assembles an international group of 18 leading and prestigious academics in the field of Irish studies from both sides of the Atlantic, including Declan Kiberd, Anne Fogarty and Maureen T. Reddy, amongst others.

Key areas of discussion are: what does it mean to be 'multicultural' and what are the implications of this condition for contemporary Irish writers? How has literature in Ireland responded to inward migration? Have Irish writers reflected in their work (either explicitly or implicitly) the existence of migrant communities in Ireland? If so, are elements of Irish traditional culture and community maintained or transformed? What is the social and political efficacy of these intercultural artistic visions?

Writers discussed include Hugo Hamilton, Roddy Doyle, Colum McCann, Eilis Ni Dhuibhne, Dermot Bolger, Chris Binchy, Michael O'Loughlin, Emer Martin, and Kate O'Riordan.

Pilar Villar-Argaiz is a Senior Lecturer in British and Irish Literature at the University of Granada, Spain.