Ep. 16 - Panel 3B - Part 3 - Irish poetry and elusive audience (as Gaeilge) - Shane Grant (MIC)

NPPSH Conference

Fiosraíonn an páipéar seo an idirghabháil atá idir filí na gceantar Gaeltachta seo i gCiarraí agus an pobal léitheoireachta. Is gníomh imeallach é an fhilíocht in aon teanga – gan trácht ar mhionteanga a bhfuil dúshláin éagsúla roimpi. I measc an chomhthéacs dúshlánach seo, tá líon suntasach filí ag cumadh na filíochta i ndá cheantar Gaeltachta i gCiarraí. Léiríonn na filí amhras ar leith go bhfuil aon phobal léitheoireachta acu agus deir cuid acu nach mbíonn siad ag cuimhneamh ar an bpobal léitheoireachta ina gcleachtas cruthaitheachta. In ainneoin seo, tá na filí an-ghníomhnach i bhfoilsiú saothar filíochta. Téann an dearcadh seo i gcoinne theoiricí móra na cruthaitheachta a leagann béim ar thábhacht an chomhthéacs agus ar thábhacht na hidirghabhála leis an bpobal léitheoireachta maidir le cruthú chiall an ghníomh chruthaithigh. (Ó Crualaoich 1992, Glăveanu 2016 & Sternberg 2016). Muna bhfuil na filí ag cuimhneamh ar an bpobal léitheoireachta – conas go mbeidh pobal ann dóibh? Cén ról atá ag na filí seo sna pobail Ghaeltachta mar sin? Féachann an páipéar ar cheist an easpa pobail léitheoireachta agus ar an tost indíreach a ghintear as an saothrú pearsanta seo. Mar a d’aithin an file Paddy Bushe ‘Aon ealaíontóir a dhéanann dearúd ar phobal, bíonn sé ag labhairt leis féin’. Chuige sin, díreofar ar thuairimí pearsanta na bhfilí a nochtadh in agallaimh agus déanfar anailís téacslárnach mar thaca don bplé. This paper seeks to tell the story of a group of active, contemporary Irish language poets of the south and west Kerry Gaeltacht areas of Corca Dhuibhne and Uíbh Ráthach. These poets demonstrate a meta-awareness of being a relatively unheard voice, they deem their work to be generally unread and as a result present with a sense of doubt as to whether an audience even exists for their poetry. Despite this, the poets continue to publish material and engage in public readings and performances. Marginalisation forms part of each of the poets’ lives due to several factors, from writing in a minority language, being based physically on the edge of Europe, engaging in poetry, a creative mode that tends to have a limited audience even in majority languages, along with finding refuge in isolation as an important part of the creative process. The paper will highlight a range of thoughts and ideologies pertaining to this sense of indirect silence and lack of audience, drawing on material from interviews with several of the poets. It aims to provide an interpretation of this phenomenon of writing for an audience, whom does not appear to be present, with a particular focus on the poets’ feelings and outlook to this regard. Tá Shane Grant mar mhac léinn PhD le Roinn na Gaeilge i gColáiste Mhuire Gan Smál, Luimneach. Cáilíodh é mar bhunmhúinteoir i 2016 agus bronnadh ‘Comhaltacht Taighde’ air sa bhliain 2017. Baineann a chuid taighde le filí comhaimseartha na Gaeilge i ndá cheantar Gaeltachta i gCiarraí; Corca Dhuibhne agus Uíbh Ráthach faoi stiúir an Dr. Róisín Ní Ghairbhí. Féachann an taighde ar conas a ghintear, a chothaítear agus a chleachtaítear an chruthaitheacht sa Ghaeilge ag díriú ar na ceantair seo mar chás-staidéar. Tá spéis ar leith ag aige i bhfilíocht chomhaimseartha na Gaeilge, sa tsochtheangeolaíocht, i bhfoghlaim an tarna teanga, i bpleanáil teanga agus i bhforbairt pobail Ghaeltachta. Shane Grant is a PhD student with the Irish Department in Mary Immaculate College, Limerick. Shane graduated as a primary school teacher in 2016 following his completion of the Bachelor of Education (B.ED) programme. He was awarded a Departmental Assistantship with the college in 2017 to undertake his postgraduate studies under the supervision of Dr. Róisín Ní Ghairbhí. His research is concerned with the practices and fostering of a group of Irish poets linked to the West Kerry Gaeltacht of Corca Dhuibhne and South Kerry Gaeltacht of Uíbh Ráthach.