Manchester University Press
14 Being Irish and male in Britain
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Abstract
This chapter sets out to explore the question of being Irish in Britain. It addresses national or ethnic difference in producing simplistic positive stereotypes of the Irish. The chapter attempts to unpack the meanings that underpin notions of Irish difference. It maps the shifting images of Irish men and masculinities within a British context of local and global change. The chapter explores changing self-representations, social practices and cultural journeys among Irish men. It focuses on the health, accommodation and social care needs of older Irish men in the city of Birmingham. The city of Birmingham became a major destination for Irish emigrants after the Second World War when the British economy was in the process of expanding. In British race and ethnic relations literature, Irish immigrants in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries were represented as one of the main recipients of British colonial exploitation.
Abstract
This chapter sets out to explore the question of being Irish in Britain. It addresses national or ethnic difference in producing simplistic positive stereotypes of the Irish. The chapter attempts to unpack the meanings that underpin notions of Irish difference. It maps the shifting images of Irish men and masculinities within a British context of local and global change. The chapter explores changing self-representations, social practices and cultural journeys among Irish men. It focuses on the health, accommodation and social care needs of older Irish men in the city of Birmingham. The city of Birmingham became a major destination for Irish emigrants after the Second World War when the British economy was in the process of expanding. In British race and ethnic relations literature, Irish immigrants in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries were represented as one of the main recipients of British colonial exploitation.
Chapters in this book
- Front matter i
- Dedication v
- Contents vii
- List of figures and tables ix
- Acknowledgements x
- Notes on contributors xi
- 1 Introduction 1
- 2 Irishness and nationalisms 10
- 3 Where is Ireland in the worlds of capitalism? 22
- 4 Just another bubble economy? 34
- 5 A Catholic vision of Ireland 44
- 6 The Irish political elite 54
- 7 The Irish family – different or not? 65
- 8 Single women in story and society 76
- 9 The Irish body 88
- 10 Sexual abuse and the Catholic Church 99
- 11 The difference between Irish and American Catholicism 110
- 12 Postcolonial legacies and the Irish psyche 121
- 13 Thinking about Ireland and the Irish diaspora 133
- 14 Being Irish and male in Britain 144
- 15 The new Irish and the Irish nation 155
- 16 Conflict and reconciliation in Northern Ireland 166
- 17 Irish language, Irish nation 177
- 18 The difference of Irish music 188
- 19 The GAA and the sporting Irish 199
- 20 Feeling at home in contemporary Ireland 211
- 21 Searching for and explaining difference 222
- 22 A new vision of Irish studies 230
- 23 Irish studies between the past and the future 241
- Index 251
Chapters in this book
- Front matter i
- Dedication v
- Contents vii
- List of figures and tables ix
- Acknowledgements x
- Notes on contributors xi
- 1 Introduction 1
- 2 Irishness and nationalisms 10
- 3 Where is Ireland in the worlds of capitalism? 22
- 4 Just another bubble economy? 34
- 5 A Catholic vision of Ireland 44
- 6 The Irish political elite 54
- 7 The Irish family – different or not? 65
- 8 Single women in story and society 76
- 9 The Irish body 88
- 10 Sexual abuse and the Catholic Church 99
- 11 The difference between Irish and American Catholicism 110
- 12 Postcolonial legacies and the Irish psyche 121
- 13 Thinking about Ireland and the Irish diaspora 133
- 14 Being Irish and male in Britain 144
- 15 The new Irish and the Irish nation 155
- 16 Conflict and reconciliation in Northern Ireland 166
- 17 Irish language, Irish nation 177
- 18 The difference of Irish music 188
- 19 The GAA and the sporting Irish 199
- 20 Feeling at home in contemporary Ireland 211
- 21 Searching for and explaining difference 222
- 22 A new vision of Irish studies 230
- 23 Irish studies between the past and the future 241
- Index 251
