Irish Romanticism, Rhetoric, and Writing

From 1800 to 1830, Irish writers and orators gave new visibility to Irish literature in English. This landmark study explores the diverse ways they did so, providing insights of consequence not only for the field of Irish literature, but also for wider histories of rhetoric and the Romantic period.

From 1800 to 1830, Irish writers and orators gave a new visibility and viability to Irish literature in English. This groundbreaking survey of Irish literature of the period provides an enlightening and accessible account covering both well-known authors like Maria Edgeworth, Lady Morgan, Charles Maturin, and Thomas Moore, and a cacophony of less well-known voices. Figures from barristers to politicians, from ideologues to academics, and from hacks to ascetics together created a rowdy and flamboyant debate about the nature of Irish genius. Frequently rejected by British and Irish observers alike as overly florid and suspiciously sentimental, Irish writing in the Romantic period gives a fascinating window into debates about the role and nature of oratory in an increasingly democratising society. This is a landmark study not only in the field of Irish literature, but also in wider histories of rhetoric and the Romantic period.