Things You Didn’t Know About Ireland Part 4: Ireland’s Rich
Literary History
J.R.R. Tolkein and Roald Dahl may get a lot of credit in the
literary world, but Ireland has just as grand a literary history as anywhere
else in the U.K. So what if people don’t host annual dinners like they do for some Scottish
writers (we’re looking at you, Robert Burns)? This list of writers from Ireland
comprises of some literary megastars. Some you may have even thought we’re
English. Take, for example…
1. C.S. Lewis – JRR’s BFF was born in Belfast. He also went
by the nickname Jacksie even though it has zero resemblance to his actual name.
2. Oscar Wilde – This brilliant writer dabbled in a bit of
everything from comedic plays such as The
Importance of Being Ernest to fairy tales including The Happy Prince. In drastic contrast to both of these is his most
famous novel, the gothic The Picture of
Dorian Gray.
3. Jonathan Swift- The author of Gulliver’s Travels once suggested selling children as food to as a
form of population control. Don’t worry, the essay was a hyperbole meant to
express his anger at the mistreatment of the poor.
4. Cecila Ahern- Ahern isn’t in the history books yet, but
her father is. He was elected the Taoiseach (Prime Minister) of
Ireland in 1997. Cecilia was only 21 when her first novel, PS, I Love You was published. It became an international
best-seller and was even adapted into a movie starring Hilary Swank.
No comments:
Post a Comment