LIT3043 – Spring 2027 – Bourus

This course traces Irish dramatic art created as a reaction to British Colonialism and the Irish Revolution, from the late 19th Century and the 'Easter Rising', through the guerrilla wars with the British in the 20th century ‘The Troubles’, to the present day. Irish stories have always been rich in studying the human condition under the tremendous strain of violence and political upheaval, and yet they remain, as they always have, filled with a sense of humor and that uniquely Irish combination of irony and fatalism. We'll read and discuss plays by Irish writers from Oscar Wilde to Lady Augusta Gregory and W.B. Yeats, to Marina Carr and Martin McDonough. Weekly activities include table-readings, participating in group assignments, and developing skills in critical analysis through classroom discussions, films, and lectures.