Irish-American Performativity of Irishness in Popular Culture, 1945-2000
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Diasporic Ethnicity: Irish-American Performativity of Irishness in Popular Culture, 1945-2000 Stephanie Rains Submitted for the award of PhD., November 2003 Diasporic Ethnicity: Irish-American Performativity of Irishness in Popular Culture, 1945-2000 Stephanie Rains, BA., Hdip. Submitted for the qualification of PhD. Supervised by Professor Farrel Corcoran, School of Communications, Dublin City University Submitted November 2003 I hereby certify that this material, which I now submit for assessment on the programme of study leading to the award of PhD, is entirely my own work and has not been taken from the work of others save and to the extent that such work has been cited and acknowledged within the text of my work. Signed .(Candidate) ID No 98971042 For Daragh Table of Contents Abstract .... Acknowledgements Introduction .... Chapter One Mapping Identities Theorising The Insh-Amencan Diaspora . Chapter Two Memory and History The Insh-Amencan Genealogy ‘Industry’ . Chapter Three Hentage and Consumption Insh-Amencan Tounsm and Matenal Culture . Chapter Four “John Wayne Seeks Maureen O’Hara” Representations of Gender and Sexuality within Insh-Amenca . Chapter Five Politics and Capital Insh-Amencan Ideological and Economic Involvement with Ireland .... Conclusion .... Bibliography Illustrations List Chapter Two Memory and History The Insh-Amencan Genealogy ‘Industry’ Figure 1 65 Figure 2 67 Figure 3 72 Figure 4 73 Figure 5 89 Figure 6 87 Figure 7 88 Figure 8 95 Chapter Three Heritage and Consumption Insh-Amencan Tounsm and Matenal Culture Figure 9 107 Figure 10 110 Figure 11 117 Figure 12 122 Figure 13 127 Figure 14 128 Figure 15 131 Figure 16 133 Figure 17 134 Figure 18 134 Figure 19 136 Figure 20 137 Figure 21 137 Figure 22 139 Figure 23 140 Figure 24 141 Figure 25 141 Figure 26 143 Figure 27 144 Figure 28 144 Illustrations List cont Chapter Four “John Wayne Seeks Maureen O’Hara” Representations of Gender and Sexuality within Insh-Amenca Figure 29 158 Figure 30 161 Figure 31 162 Figure 32 164 Figure 33 165 Figure 34 166 Figure 35 167 Figure 36 168 Figure 37 178 Figure 38 181 Figure 39 183 Figure 40 187 Figure 41 188 Conclusion Figure 42 250 i Abstract Stephanie Rams, Diasporic Ethnicity Irish-American Performativity of Iris hness in Popular Culture, 1945-2000 This thesis examines the ways in which the later-generation Insh-Amencan diaspora have engaged with and performed their ethnic identity in the latter half of the twentieth century It particularly focuses upon the ways in which this identity is negotiated and formed through an interaction with Ireland itself, rather than within an entirely American context The thesis concentrates upon Insh-Amencan popular culture and practices, arguing that it is through these texts that the complex processes of later-generation ethnic identification and performance can best be analysed The thesis uses a wide vanety of cultural texts for this analysis, including films, novels, news media, tounst practices, family history research and political activism These texts are examined predominantly within the theoretical framework of discourse analysis, arguing that they should be understood as both reflecting and informing a wider cultural discourse of diasponc ethnicity and identity within the United States To further highlight the ways in which this occurs, the thesis also discusses the ways in which different academic disciplines, such as history, Irish studies, anthropology and diaspora studies itself, have approached the subject of diasporic identity The thesis goes on to argue that a multidisciplinary approach is essential to understanding the complex processes of identity construction involved m the formation of a diaspora such as iater-generation Insh-Amenca 1 Acknowledgements The practical considerations of undertaking a PhD (particularly, perhaps, in the humanities) are all too easily overlooked except by those struggling with them, to whom they can become all-consuming My first acknowledgements must therefore go to those funding organisations whose generosity has made this project possible The Dublin City University School of Humanities, as well as the HEA Government of Ireland Scholarship, both provided early sources of funding which were much appreciated The Dublin City University Educational Trust Research Scholarship, however, has provided the unusually generous financial support which has allowed me to undertake this thesis, for which I am extremely grateful Several different libraries and archives have been essential to my research on this thesis over a number of years, and the assistance and support of their staff has been invaluable I would like to thank the staff of Dublin City University Library, Trinity College Dublin Library, the National Library of Ireland, the Pearse Street Library, the Irish Film Archive, the Bobst Library of New York University and New York Public Library I would also like to thank Brian, Damien and Gary from DCU Computer Services, whose assistance with printing this document went well beyond the call of duty My fnends and colleagues within DCU have frequently provided the less tangible but equally necessary forms of moral and intellectual support which have been essential to my day-to-day life Thanks are due to all those in the Department of Communications, particularly but not exclusively, Barry Cannon, Maeve Connolly, Debbie Ging, Peadar Kirby, Stephanie McBride, Des McGuinness, Barbara O’Connor and Brian Trench Luke Gibbons, formerly of this parish, must receive special gratitude - above all else, perhaps, for his inspirational undergraduate teaching Most of all, of course, I would like to thank Farrel Corcoran, for his patient and endlessly supportive supervision of the project, as well as his personal kindness and support He has been a calming and cheenng influence throughout my research, and has never failed in his generosity of time and thought I would also like to thank my colleagues from the Department of Humanities at Dundalk Institute of Technology, who provided fnendship and advice during my first experiences of teaching, and have continued to supply both ever since Especial thanks are due to Sarah Cross, Eibhlis Farrel, Fiona Fearon, Mark Fearon, Peter 2 Fuller, Paula Gilligan, Cathal Kearney, Jeneen Naji, Fiachra O’Cuinneagain, Caroline O’Sullivan and Siobhan Tuite, as well as the Department’s students Many individuals have provided the affection and encouragement which, over the years, have enabled me to persevere with this unlikely way to live a life I would like to thank Stuart Murray for his enduring friendship, along with Valene and the boys, especially Lucas, of course I owe a special debt to Katy Mullin, both for her contribution to my sanity under the ‘other country’ rule, and of course for her particularly expert insights into cosmopolitanism Maeve Connolly has been wonderful company on and off campus, both at DCU and DKIT, and I’d like to thank her particularly for her ability to put up with me in our office on all those mornings when I hadn’t had my coffee yet Further advice, support and essential distractions have been generously provided by Ray Ryan and Diane Negra I’m especially grateful for Nick Daly’s spirited encouragement and support Thanks are also particularly due to my parents, Ann and Tony, who have never once asked when I was going to get a proper job Most of all, however, I owe a debt of gratitude to Daragh Moller, to whom this thesis is dedicated His friendship, encouragement, and affection are things I’ve come to rely on immensely over the years, as has his faith in me, which has always exceeded my own 3 Introduction The Insh-Amencan ‘Return’ This project was originally conceived as an examination of the points of intersection between representations of Ireland within the film and tourism industries as they appealed to a broad range of markets in Britain, mainland Europe and the United States Intrigued by the extent to which Ireland’s predominant presentation in tourist marketing rested on pastoral, traditional and intensely ‘welcoming’ images which were often strikingly related to the long-standing basis of filmic representations of the country, I planned to interrogate the extent to which the two industries had developed what I perceived to be an interdependent narrative of Inshness As I began my research, however, I began to notice that within the details of both filmic and touristic representation of Ireland and Inshness, there appeared to exist a recurring figure, that of the Insh-Amencan in Ireland Furthermore, there seemed to be recurring themes and forms of representation which were particular to texts in which this character appeared These included a strong emphasis upon the issues of identity, ethnicity and memory, as well as notably filmic narrative formats in tourist texts which did not deploy such devices when dealing with other visitors to Ireland These parti cul an ties were noticeably increased when the depicted Insh-Amencan, as was very often the case, was of second, third, or even later-generation birth in the United States, and therefore had no personal knowledge of Ireland prior to their visit In attempting to interrogate this recurnng figure of the Insh-Amencan in Ireland, I gradually became convinced of its importance in the definitions and performances of Inshness in global popular culture This seemed an area particularly worthy of attention, given the extraordinary degree of interest in Irish culture and identity around the world, but especially in the United States, dunng the 1990s