Published in 1985, Frances Molloy ’No Mate for the Magpie has been termed “one of the most original novels to emerge from the Northern Irish Troubles” (Jeffers, 2017).  Written in an at-the-time completely original Northern Scots–Irish vernacular, its gives voice to the satirical reflections of a bold, if poor, Catholic girl, growing up in Northern Ireland during the beginning of the Troubles.  As Jeffers has argued, the narrator “provides rare insight from a Northern Irish female perspective, which is exceptionally valuable given the overwhelmingly masculine corpus of fiction, history, and biographies that chronicle Northern Ireland in most of the twentieth century.” (Jeffers 2017).

This event aims to trace the legacies of this strong, satirical female perspective on the cultural peace work and women's writing post-1998.  It will explore issues including: the role of literature, and the arts more widely, in ‘cultural peace work’ (Harrington 2024); the impact of vernacular writing from local perspectives in contributing to fostering an inclusive ociety; the importance of female perspectives in peace and reconciliation processes.  Crucially, it will question why women writers from the North of Ireland repeatedly disappear from Irish literary history (Ingman, 2013), and ask how can we better integrate their stories into the national narrative of post-conflict Northern Ireland? 

Speakers include:

Dr Stefanie Lehner (Queen’s University Belfast)

Dr Eamonn Hughes (Visiting Researcher, Institute of Irish Studies, QUB)

Professor Jennifer Jeffers (Cleveland State University)

Dr Laura Kennedy (UCC)

Dominic Harkin (Queen’s University Belfast)

There will be a roundtable discussion with women writers from the North, a discussion with Molloy’s editor and personal friend, Ruth Carr; and a reading of Molloy’s work from actress Shelia McWade, who performed, in the 1980s, a one-woman show of Molloy’s novel.  The event will close with a wine reception, generously funded by The Senator George J. Mitchell Institute for Global Peace, Security and Justice. 

Registration

To register for the event, please email lkennedy@ucc.ie with your full name, contact number and email address. Places are limited and will be allocated on a first come first served basis.

Event co-ordinators:

Dr Stefanie Lehner, Mitchell Institute Fellow and Senior Lecturer in the School of Arts, English and Languages, Queen’s University Belfast

Dr Laura Kennedy, Lecturer, University College Cork

This event is hosted in partnership with University College Cork.