Languages of the Night: Minor Languages and the Literary Imagination in Twentieth-Century Ireland and Europe PDF
Preview Languages of the Night: Minor Languages and the Literary Imagination in Twentieth-Century Ireland and Europe
LANGUAGES OF THE NIGHT This page intentionally left blank BARRY MCCREA Languages of the Night Minor Languages and the Literary Imagination in Twentieth-Century Ireland and Europe NEW HAVEN AND LONDON Copyright © 2015 by Barry McCrea. All rights reserved. This book may not be reproduced, in whole or in part, including illustrations, in any form (beyond that copying permitted by Sections 107 and 108 of the U.S. Copyright Law and except by reviewers for the public press), without written permission from the publishers. Yale University Press books may be purchased in quantity for educational, business, or promotional use. For informa- tion, please e-mail [email protected] (U.S. offi ce) or [email protected] (U.K. offi ce). Set in Janson Oldstyle and Futura Bold types by Newgen North America. Printed in the United States of America. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data McCrea, Barry, 1974– Languages of the night : minor languages and the literary imagination in twentieth-century Ireland and Europe / Barry McCrea. pages cm Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-0-300-18515-7 (hardback) 1. Linguistic minorities—Europe—Cross-cultural studies. 2. Experimental poetry—20th century—History and criticism—Great Britain. 3. Experimental poetry—20th century—History and criticism—Europe. I. Title. P120.L34M337 2015 401'.9—dc23 2014028310 A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. This paper meets the requirements of ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992 (Permanence of Paper). 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 For Ronan McCrea and Caitríona Ní Dhúill This page intentionally left blank Parlavo a un popolo di morti. Morto alloro rifi uto e chiedo oblio. —Umberto Saba, “Epigrafe” I spoke to a people who were dead. Dead, I spurn the laurel and ask oblivion. (Translation by George Hochfi eld and Leonard Nathan in Songbook: The Selected Poems of Umberto Saba) Is í an bán-martra do dhuine, an tan scaras, as son Dé, re gach rud a charas. This is white martyrdom to a person: to renounce everything one loves for God. —Early Irish Sermon This page intentionally left blank CONTENTS Preface xi Acknowledgments xvii Introduction: The Great Silence in Carrowliam Beg 1 one Language of the Dead: The Irish Language in the Twentieth Century 20 two The Queer Linguistic Utopia of Pier Paolo Pasolini 47 three Seán Ó Ríordáin’s Private Language 74 four The Great Silence in Combray: Proust and Patois 121 Notes 147 Index 171
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