The Great Irish Famine- Cathal Poirteir-Review
Uploaded by Kerrytom on Aug 10, 2013
The next secondary work that needs to be discussed is Cathal Poirteir’s ‘The Great Irish Famine’. Chapter Ten ‘The Stigma of Souperism’ by Irene Walsh largely deals with the debate about ‘souperism’ and gives a good broad general discussion on the issue before, during and after the famine. Walsh recognises how much of a sensitive issue this still is in modern Ireland, and also how seemingly endless debate can rage on the subject due to the difficultly in fully understanding how prevalent the practice of ‘souperism’ actually was. “In 1985 the Abbey Theatre’s production of Eoghan Harris’ play ‘Souper Sullivan’ was followed by a spate of letters to the editor of ‘The Irish Times’ as well as newspaper and radio interviews in which the author was forced to defend his claims and opinions in a way that few playwrights have been called to do in modern times.” This raises the question as to whether the bitterness of alleged ‘souperism’ still lingers today. This also raises another question. Are people today too quick to vilify the majority of the Protestant clergy during the famine because of the perceived sins of the few? Has the charitable and life saving work of the many been overlooked and forgotten because of the perceived immoral work of the minority?
Walsh only briefly discusses the colonies in Dingle and Achill and provides only minimal evidence of the social unrest which existed in these areas. The aim of Whelan’s study is to provide a general outlook on the problem, so clearly it would not be very useful for an in-depth study on either the Dingle or Achill missions. She does however provide some useful primary material on the issue of the colonies angering the local people by purchasing the best available land and, through education and employment, provide people chances of advancement not readably available to local Catholics. Whelan notes an interview give to ‘The Connaught Tribune’ in 1934 by eight-seven year old, Sean Mhic Chonmhara. He was a native of Achill and recalls Nangle’s colony purchasing the best available land and the tenants being kicked off the land if they did not attend the Protestant service. He describes how forty families were kicked off their land in this manner and the land being given to converts. Like Bowen’s study, Whelan’s work is too broad to fully examine the issues surrounding the colonies in Dingle and Achill,...