Jamisha Fletcher
Irish Literature in English
Dr. Martine van Elk
September 14, 2015
Thomas Davis: Repealer or Rebel?
In his essay titled “Moral and Physical Force: Violence in Irish Nationalism” Perry Curtis Jr. argues that Thomas Davis hides behind the guise of being a writer whose narrowing concern is the immediate and indefinite repealing of oppressive English legislature. Curtis claims that Davis is actually an agitator. That Davis is a rabble-rouser who uses violent language in his writings as a call to arms to his Irish readers, persuading them to revolt against their British tyrant.
Curtis opens his passage about Davis with the confession that there are still a number of ambiguities about the nature and importance of Irish nationalism. …show more content…
129)
It is clear from these two passages that Davis is certainly using persuasive techniques although exactly what impact Davis’s words had on both his peers and the proceeding generation of nationalists is up for debate. Curtis ends his argument by stating “John O’ Leary, one of the patron saints of the old Irish Republican Brotherhood (I.R.B) whose own aversion for bloodshed did not spare him a prison cell, credited Davis with having taught him to become a good nationalist. John Mitchell, the ex repealer also praised Davis for having taught him to love Ireland as fiercely as he hated England.” (Curtis 163)
In his poems there are many instances of emotional appeals used by Davis seemingly in the hopes of evoking a strong passionate nationalist like response to his writings. I first realized this in the way in which Davis personifies his country. He first identifies her as female in “The Wests’s Sleep” and then depicts her (the country) as something that is in need of saving. This personification of Ireland leads me to the same conclusions as Curtis. Davis wants to inspire and rouse the Irish youth to awaken from their apparent docile …show more content…
He examined Thomas Davis’s songs, poems, and other writings from a political, economic, and cultural context. Curtis made the connection between Davis’s sociological status and that of his country and readers and evaluated how his writings in The Nation affected what he was writing. Because there were substantial problems in Ireland politically and socially as a result of the dominance of the Great Union, his own patriotism and nationalism were interlaced all throughout his writing. Curtis also examined the role of the audience in shaping Davis’s literature and vice versa. Thomas’s work resonated with his ardent readers and supporters and as a result Curtis claimed it sent them into action. The action of Davis’s supporters inversely resonated with him and reflected itself in his
Irish Literature in English
Dr. Martine van Elk
September 14, 2015
Thomas Davis: Repealer or Rebel?
In his essay titled “Moral and Physical Force: Violence in Irish Nationalism” Perry Curtis Jr. argues that Thomas Davis hides behind the guise of being a writer whose narrowing concern is the immediate and indefinite repealing of oppressive English legislature. Curtis claims that Davis is actually an agitator. That Davis is a rabble-rouser who uses violent language in his writings as a call to arms to his Irish readers, persuading them to revolt against their British tyrant.
Curtis opens his passage about Davis with the confession that there are still a number of ambiguities about the nature and importance of Irish nationalism. …show more content…
129)
It is clear from these two passages that Davis is certainly using persuasive techniques although exactly what impact Davis’s words had on both his peers and the proceeding generation of nationalists is up for debate. Curtis ends his argument by stating “John O’ Leary, one of the patron saints of the old Irish Republican Brotherhood (I.R.B) whose own aversion for bloodshed did not spare him a prison cell, credited Davis with having taught him to become a good nationalist. John Mitchell, the ex repealer also praised Davis for having taught him to love Ireland as fiercely as he hated England.” (Curtis 163)
In his poems there are many instances of emotional appeals used by Davis seemingly in the hopes of evoking a strong passionate nationalist like response to his writings. I first realized this in the way in which Davis personifies his country. He first identifies her as female in “The Wests’s Sleep” and then depicts her (the country) as something that is in need of saving. This personification of Ireland leads me to the same conclusions as Curtis. Davis wants to inspire and rouse the Irish youth to awaken from their apparent docile …show more content…
He examined Thomas Davis’s songs, poems, and other writings from a political, economic, and cultural context. Curtis made the connection between Davis’s sociological status and that of his country and readers and evaluated how his writings in The Nation affected what he was writing. Because there were substantial problems in Ireland politically and socially as a result of the dominance of the Great Union, his own patriotism and nationalism were interlaced all throughout his writing. Curtis also examined the role of the audience in shaping Davis’s literature and vice versa. Thomas’s work resonated with his ardent readers and supporters and as a result Curtis claimed it sent them into action. The action of Davis’s supporters inversely resonated with him and reflected itself in his