A review of '"Ordinary Irish Life: Music, Sport and Culture" Méabh Ní Fhuartháin and David M. Doyle eds. (Pre-published version)

Abstract

This collection of nine essays, edited under the auspices of the Centre for Irish Studies at NUI Galway, seeks to broaden further the remit of Irish Studies by arguing for the place of sport, music and culture as central planks in that arena. Chapters 2, 3, 6 and 8 deal with music, chapters 4 and 7 with sport, while chapters 5, 9 and 10 range from explorations of ‘corner boys’, to radio talk shows, to Irish migrant workers in Cuba respectively. While the majority of the essays are concerned with 20th-century Ireland, the volume as a whole ranges from the late 18th century up to the present time. Some essays deal with specific centres (Belfast, Dublin, Lahinch, Miltown Malbay, Cuba, Massachusetts) while others are not geographically specific (corner boys were found in most Irish towns, radio talk shows tend to transcend the regional, while the peripatetic showbands were a national phenomenon). A casual glance at the chapter headings suggests that a broad purview and a broad definition of culture are at hand. But what about the ‘ordinary’? What does that mean for Irish Studies in general and for this volume in particular?