Female Texts and Voices of the Northern Irish Conflict, 1969-1998
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Georgia Southern University Digital Commons@Georgia Southern Electronic Theses and Dissertations Graduate Studies, Jack N. Averitt College of Spring 2009 Troubling Women: Female Texts and Voices of the Northern Irish Conflict, 1969-1998 Kelly M. Twilley Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/etd Recommended Citation Twilley, Kelly M., "Troubling Women: Female Texts and Voices of the Northern Irish Conflict, 1969-1998" (2009). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 181. https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/etd/181 This thesis (open access) is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate Studies, Jack N. Averitt College of at Digital Commons@Georgia Southern. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons@Georgia Southern. For more information, please contact [email protected]. TROUBLING WOMEN: FEMALE TEXTSAND VOICES OF THE NORTHERN IRISH CONFLICT, 1969-1998 by KELLY TWILLEY (Under the Direction of Howard Keeley) ABSTRACT This thesis explores the bloody conflict in Northern Ireland between the Irish nationalist community, those desiring a united Ireland, and the Ulster loyalist community, those longing to remain a part of the UK, known as the Troubles (1969-1998). More specifically, this thesis centers on the strong and courageous women who played undeniably significant roles throughout the conflict. Some women campaigned for better and equal rights for women, some protested for political justice, some picked up guns to fight, and still others advocated for peace. Using the real women of history as a guide, it will create a lens through which to study these women as they are represented in literature, art, and film. INDEX WORDS: Northern Ireland, the Troubles, Feminist criticism, Women, Gender studies TROUBLING WOMEN: FEMALE TEXTSAND VOICES OF THE NORTHERN IRISH CONFLICT, 1969-1998 by KELLY TWILLEY B.A., Columbus State University, 2006 A Thesis Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of Georgia Southern University in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree MASTER OF ARTS IN ENGLISH STATESBORO, GA 2009 iii © 2009 KELLY TWILLEY All Rights Reserved iv TROUBLING WOMEN: FEMALE TEXTS AND VOICES OF THE NORTHER IRISH CONFLICT, 1969-1998 by KELLY TWILLEY Major Professor: Howard Keeley Committee: Joe Pellegrino Steve Engel Electronic Version Approved: May 2009 v DEDICATION Firstly, I would like to dedicate this thesis to Tim, Julie, and Kim. Without my family’s love and support for so many years, I would not have achieved my goals. I sincerely hope that every time my family looks upon this work, they will be proud. I also want to dedicate this thesis to Brandon, the brother I never had, and all the times he made me laugh and encouraged me. And finally, I want to dedicate this thesis to Steven, the one who appeared right when I needed him and always stands beside me. I love you all. vi ACKNOWLEDEMENTS Firstly, I would like to thank my committee members, Dr. Pellegrino and Dr. Engel, and my thesis advisor, Dr. Keeley, for guiding me through this long, tedious, but rewarding process. Without you, I would still be on the introduction. I would also like to thank all the Irish women who took the time to share their Troubles experiences with me. Without their opinions and experiences, I would not know what it means to be woman in Ireland. They also made me aware that no two women had the same experience. I hope that my thesis will give credit to these brave and courageous women, and not simply give credit, but give these women a voice in a time of political violence. vii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGMENTS………………………………………………………………. vi LIST OF FIGURES …………………………………………………………………… viii INTRODUCTION ...……………………………………………………………………...1 CHAPTER 1 TIMES OF VIOLENCE: IRISH WOMEN, CONFLICT, AND THE BODY... ..... 23 2 REEL TIMES: “REAL” WOMEN AND THE CRYIG GAME ………………... 62 3 RIGHTING THE TIMES: WOMEN’S POLITICALS ACTIVISM BEYOND THE GUN……………………………………………………………..88 EPILOGUE …………………………………………………………………………….115 WORKS CITED ……………………………………………………………………….123 viii LIST OF FIGURES Page Figure I.A: “Petrol Bomber” Bogside Mural (2004) .......................................................22 Figure I.B: “Bloody Sunday” Bogside Mural (1997) .......................................................22 Figure 1.A: Constance Markievicz in Uniform: Studio Portrait, c. (1915) ......................59 Figure 1.B: Tischbein, Goethe in the Roman Campagna (1786) .....................................59 Figure 1.C: “Republican Paramilitary Mural: Women and Violence” (2008) .................60 Figure 1.D: “Stop Strip-Searches” Troubled Images (1984) ............................................60 Figure 1.E: “Hunger Strike” Bogside Mural (2000) .........................................................61 Figure 2.A: “Bernadette” Bogside Mural (1996) ..............................................................86 Figure 2.B: “UFF East Belfast Brigade” (2008) ...............................................................86 Figure 2.C: “Women” Sinn Féin Department of Women's Affairs (1982).......................87 Figure 2.D: Margaret Skinnider dressed as a boy in a Fianna costume (1917) ...............87 Figure 3.A: “Civil Rights” Bogside Mural (2004) ..........................................................114 Figure 3.B: “Death of Innocence” Bogside Mural (1999) ..............................................114 1 Introduction Before beginning this project, I was inspired by the words of Tom Kelly, one of the three Bogside Artists. Since 1993, Kelly, his brother William, and their peer Kevin Hasson have created a suite of large public murals in the predominantly nationalist and Catholic Bogside district of Derry (also known as Londonderry), the second-largest city in Northern Ireland. The murals depict key events and personages of the Northern Irish Troubles. In fall 2006, Tom Kelly shared with a large and very attentive audience at Georgia Southern University an account of decades of systemic anti-nationalist and anti- Catholic discrimination in Northern Ireland in general and Derry in particular. Psychological and physical scarring caused by that discrimination inspired the Bogside Artists to use art in a programmatic attempt to bring together and even heal divided communities. Taking the Bogside Artists’ creed that the unexamined wound can only fester, this thesis offers female perspectives on the Troubles: the most common term for the bloody conflict that persisted in Northern Ireland between 1969 and 1998. 1 The primary antagonists were Irish nationalists, who desired a united Ireland, and Ulster loyalists, who sought to keep Northern Ireland part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (the UK). In the pages that follow, I record and analyze words written and spoken by—and about—strong and courageous women who played undeniably significant roles related to the Troubles. Some women campaigned for better and equal 1 Dating the Troubles remains controversial. Some identify 1966 as the first year, citing the formation then of the loyalist Ulster Volunteer Force (which shares a name with a prior organization). I deem the so-called Battle of the Bogside, 12-14 August 1969, the key founding event, for it marked a serious escalation in sectarian violence. I also hold that 1998 signals the end of the Troubles: in April that year the Belfast or Good Friday Agreement was signed. 2 rights for women; some protested for political justice; some picked up guns to fight; and still others advocated for peace. My use of real women’s narratives constitutes a relevant and compelling lens through which to study depictions of Northern Irish women in the art, movies, and (most especially) literature of the Troubles. Reflecting literary production between 1969 and1999, eight hundred novels now belong to the category of “Troubles fiction” (Magee 114). To begin my research, I traveled to Belfast, the capital of Northern Ireland (and the historical province of Ulster), for a four-week visit during June and July 2008. While there, I used the Linen Hall Library’s exclusive Northern Irish Political Collection to study historical accounts of the conflict, view posters and newspapers, and read relevant interviews. While my primary focus was adult women alive during the Troubles, I did not limit myself to specific ages or just one gender. Most special and irreplaceable about my experience in Belfast was face-to-face interviews with a variety of women of the Troubles. In the case of every woman interviewed, I made sure that she understood our conversation to be research for my master’s thesis. I also asked the interviewees’ permission to include their words and experiences in my work. Each woman graciously gave her consent. As their stories are not available in standard history books, I always expressed great appreciation for the women’s time and input. Out of concern to protect the privacy and security of the interviewees, this thesis uses fictitious names, not their real names. First, I spoke with Shelia Mahon, a forty-year-old Catholic who spent her entire life in the Catholic Falls neighborhood and witnessed much of the violence. I also discussed women’s involvement in the political sphere with Coleen Douglass, a woman 3 who marched during Bloody Sunday in Derry, a peaceful civil rights protest on January 30, 1972. The march turned tragically violent when the British Parachute Regiment opened fire on the crowd, causing fourteen