Pamela Louderback, Day 21

Spent a bit of the day checking out the interdisciplinary Conference on "Ireland and Modernity" hosted by the Institute of Irish Studies (which shares space in the Institute of Governance building) and held primarily outside my office door and down the hall - very conveniently situated, indeed!

Those affiliated with the conference are seeking to 'further the remit of current debates within Irish Studies on the subject of modernity' -- and I was not even aware of the raging debate. Anyway, speakers/sessions at the conference dealt with the topic of ‘Ireland and Modernity’ from an interdisciplary approach with a diverse number of subtopics and departments being represented.  Their aim -- to broaden the purview of recent critical discussions to incorporate a range of temporally, ethnographically and generically diverse cultural texts.  In other words, there was alot of lively debate over how best to describe a modern Ireland, and what that might/does look like.   

A number of key questions regarding the formative yet equivocal influence of modernity upon Irish literature, culture and art were addressed.  I can only imagine that Dr. Malone would have been quite pleased to be present.  For example, is it possible to speak of Irish modernity in terms of a chronological progression from Enlightenment to the ‘End of History’?  The cultural contexts and all the aspects forewith were very interesting as well.   One discussion on the different versions or phases of modernity and whether they can simultaneously co-exist within Ireland’s cultural landscape was particularly intriguing.   Additionally, a presentation on how different sections of the Irish population has experienced cultural modernity piqued my research interests.  If only I had three years -- not three months!!! 

And does the notion of Irish modernity require being replaced with a more pluralistic and malleable vision of Irish modernities?   I think not, but I'm a foreigner in a strange and wonderful land that has - I must confess - changed markedly since last I strode it's Emerald shores.  Ultimately, I was extremely elated (from a purely research-based perspective) over the immense examination (from a multitude of learned colleagues/ perspectives)  of modernity (and what exactly that meant) within Irish studies, and how they have shaped Irish cultural and artistic production over the last four hundred years.  

Between sessions, I kept popping into my office to network with contacts (St. Mary's University College and Falls Road) Irish-Medium education individuals to set up meetings.  My calendar is filling up quite rapidly - good thing I brought comfortable walking shoes!   And finally, I spent the last two hours checking flights and accompanying timelines for buses/trains to Swansea University (Wales) where I will be spending Thanksgiving holiday -- and buses/trains/flights from there to Bristol and fiinally Limerick (Republic of Ireland) where I will be attending an international law school educators conference in two weeks time.  I finally received my Ulster bank debit card so that helps defray the cost of all of this travel - which, by the way, is adding up very quickly!  I just may have to resort to Ramen noodles as a staple in my diet. 

Tomorrow, I am off to Ballymena for coffee and Christmas shopping with some of the staff at the School of Law.  More on that later...