NUI MAYNOOTH Ollscoil na hiireann Mi Nuad THE SOCIAL AND CULTURAL POLITICS OF HEROIC MASCULINITY IN TWENTIETH CENTURY IRELAND: IMAGING MICHAEL COLLINS by DAMIEN ROBERT CARBERRY THESIS FOR THE DEGREE OF PH.D. DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF IRELAND MAYNOOTH SUPERVISOR OF RESEARCH: Dr. Dympna McLoughlin JANUARY 2007 The social and cultural politics of heroic masculinity in twentieth century Ireland: imaging Michael Collins. by Damien Robert Carberry Sum m ary This thesis examines the socially and culturally defined character of masculinities through a case study of the heroic legacy of Michael Collins. Utilising a multi­ disciplinary methodology the study investigates; both biographical and prominent written historical material, Neil Jordan’s movie, Collins’ contribution to the Treaty debates of 1921-22, his private correspondence with Kitty Kiernan and a selection of remembrance rhetoric pertaining to him over the course of the twentieth century. This treatise interprets Michael Collins from a different perspective than previous analyses. The methodology is fashioned by a desire to develop a more substantial and comprehensive body of material that addresses the histories of masculinities in Ireland. Priority is given to determining the influence of socially and culturally defined expectations of masculinities on conceptualisations and perceptions of the heroic image and conversely for the influence and relevance this image has for the historical identity of Michael Collins. The dissertation addresses the complex and socially determined political nature of that composition, where politics is understood firstly as the social and cultural intricacies that influence gender configuration, and secondly as the ideology of political power. In six chapters, an outline, contextualisation and examination of the selected sources are undertaken incorporating the use of contemporary theories of masculinities and comparative histories of masculinities studies. The application of prominent inter­ disciplinary theoretical and comparative material that informs the composite nature of masculinities is also employed. These are discussed and set in context in the specific methodologies of the relevant chapters. Careful consideration is directed towards discovering definable male characteristics that appear so obvious as to render their gendered significance invisible to conventional historical analysis. I dedicate this thesis to my parents Robert and Ann for a lifetime of unconditional love. Contents Page Acknowledgments..................................... i Introduction ............................................................................................................................................ 1 Chapter one: Literature review .......................................................................... 6 Chapter two: Written images of heroic masculinities: biographies, history and Michael Collins........................................................................................................... 25 Chapter three: Imaging the masculine medium in Neil Jordan’s Michael Collins 71 Chapter four: Public man, emotional politics: Michael Collins, principled masculinities and the Treaty debates of 1921-22 ........................................... 114 Chapter five: Private man, emotional masculinities: the letters of Michael Collins and Kitty Kiernan ........................................................................................................ 143 Chapter six: Imaging masculinities in the rhetoric and discourse of Michael Collins Commemoration .......................................................................................................... 191 C o n clu sio n ............................................................................................................................................ 234 Bibliography 236 Acknowledgments There are many people I would like to thank for their help along this journey, some in an academic capacity and others for their friendship and support in my undertaking of this project and others for both. Top of the list are Deirdre and Gabrial McAlister for being in my life; Deirdre for your love, constant encouragement; academically for the invaluable proof reading of the various drafts; Gabrial for her love, patience and understanding. Thanks to Professor Vincent Comerford, head of the Department of History, NUI Maynooth, for his encouragement, advice, support and professionalism in relation to this project. To; my supervisor Dr. Dympna McLoughlin for her backing and guidance with this thesis; my very good friends, Paul Connell and Ken Crotty whose intellectual commentary, but more particularly their warm friendship are treasured assets. A very special word of thanks to Dr. Fergus Campbell whose interest in the masculinities dimension of this project sustained my own moments of doubt and provided inspiration and encouragement as to its merits. To; Professor Colm Lennon for his assistance with the latter stages of the project, Dr. Chris Morash, Department of English, NUI Maynooth, for his help with the movie chapter; Professor Peter Hart for direction on sources and for insight on Michael Collins; Dr. Terence Dooley for a copy of an original unpublished script for Jordan’s movie; Chrissy Osborne, for kindly agreeing to meet and talk and for rare photographs of Michael Collins and his family; Nora Owen for her lengthy interview and a copy of The West Cork People; Dr. Georgina Laragy who has been there in times of need; Bill Martin of the Collins 22 Society for all his help; Teresa McAlister for her proof reading; Ann Donoghue and Catherine Heslin at the Department of History NUI Maynooth, for putting up with my numerous intrusions. Thanks to the staff at the following libraries for their assistance and professional courtesy; John Paul library NUI Maynooth; National Library of Ireland. Thanks you to the staff at the National Archives of Ireland for their assistance and accommodation of requests to photograph files and documents. A very special acknowledgment and appreciation to my brothers Edwin and Ronan, and my sisters Aine and Veronica for their love and belief in me. Introduction This thesis examines the socially and culturally defined character of masculinities through a case study of the heroic legacy of Michael Collins. Utilising a multi­ disciplinary methodology the study analyses both biographical and prominent written historical material, Neil Jordan’s movie, Collins’s contribution to the Treaty debates of 1921-22, his private correspondence with Kitty Kiernan and a selection of remembrance rhetoric pertaining to him over the course of the twentieth century. Definitions and understandings of manhood, manliness, maleness, masculinity and/or terms used to describe activities, behaviours and practices associated with men in any given society are contested arenas of delineation. These cultural and social characterisations are not without ambiguity nor do they go unchallenged. They are fluid and interchangeable and conditional through association with distinctive cultural and social interpretations that underpin their meaning. The current theoretical premise acknowledges the multiplicities of masculinities that exist within any given society, being contingent upon time, space, place, class and race. There is in effect no one true fixed definition of masculinity applicable to all men and all situations.1 Under these conditions, developing methodologies of analysis becomes the greatest challenge facing the researcher of gender histories. In the Irish context an area that offers a wealth of unexplored analytical material is the associated arena of politics, militarism and the nation-state. The treatise interprets Michael Collins from a different perspective than previous work. The methodology is fashioned by a desire to develop a more substantial and comprehensive body of material that addresses the histories of masculinities in Ireland. Some men feature prominently in the Irish historical record, both in terms of historical characters and the historians who write about them. Paradoxically, there is an absence of studies that addresses the issue of men as men. Under these conditions men as gendered beings are invisible to themselves. Addressing this anomaly involves considering and exploring what motivates men to act, behave and perform these roles. Moreover, in order to understand the nature of Irish masculinities we need to understand 1 See R. W. Connell, Masculinities (Cambridge, 1995), for a theoretical discussion and a selection of case studies on this issue. 1 how it has influenced Irish history. This involves examining the changing nature of masculinities within the larger context of social, political, economic and religious events that have characterised Irish history. Equally, advancing a more comprehensive understanding of Irish history necessitates the development a paradigm that explores how men have defined their identities through the evolution of these same social, political, economic and religious experiences and events. The thesis gives priority to determining the influence of these socially and culturally defined expectations of masculinities on conceptualisations and perceptions of the heroic image and conversely for the influence and relevance this image has for the historical identity of Michael Collins. The dissertation addresses the complex and socially determined political nature of that composition, where politics is understood firstly as