TLRH | SCARF | The construction of the Disenfranchised Woman in Irish Theatre

Monday, 7 February 2022, 10 – 11am ''Not in Flesh’: The
Construction of the Disenfranchised Woman in Irish Theatre' a talk
by Dr Salomé Paul (TCD) as part of the School of Creative Arts
Research Forum, in association with the Trinity Long Room Hub. This
paper investigates the construction of the figure of the
underprivileged woman in the Irish dramatic canon during the
Revival movement through the examination of J.M. Synge’s theatre
and its legacy on the contemporary stage. Synge’s plays are
considered among the most canonical plays in Irish theatre because
they have outlined the constitutive features of archetypal
characters still populating the contemporary stage. My analysis
will focus on two figures of particular interest to the dramatist,
the woman and the disenfranchised, and will examine their
intersection through the characterisation of poor women developed
in The Shadow of the Glen (1903), Riders to the Sea (1904) and The
Tinker’s Wedding (1908). In these plays, the representation of this
identity appears disconnected from the reality experienced by
indigent women in rural Ireland. Indeed, as a middle-class
Protestant man, Synge created the figure of the disfranchised woman
to support and endorse his Anglo-Irish political vision of
Irishness. Yet, relying on the concept of horizon of expectation
coined by Hans Robert Jauss in Toward an Aesthetic of Reception
(1978), I will demonstrate that this highly fictional portrayal has
grown into a topos of Irish theatre still in use on the
contemporary stage. The characterisation of underprivileged women
in Marina Carr’s By the Bog of Cats… (1998) and Martin McDonagh’s
The Beauty Queen of Leenane (1996) appears as a re-enactment of the
figure of the disenfranchised woman and problematically addresses
Irishness through the lens of rural poverty and womanhood for
middle-class urban audiences. In doing so, contemporary Irish
theatre produced in influential venues perpetuates the
romanticisation of this identity, dismissing the reality and the
implications of being a poor woman in Ireland. Bio: Dr Salomé Paul
is a current Postdoctoral Fellow in Drama funded by the Irish
Council. Her research investigates the transformation of Greek
tragedy in Marina Carr’s theatre. She is also working in
collaboration with Clara Mallon (NUIG) on the edition of a
collection of essays examining representation and authorship of
working-class women in Irish theatre. The School of Creative Arts
Research Forum meets fortnightly at 10am on Mondays during term and
is led by the School's doctoral students. The aim of the Forum is
to give a space for School researchers, both staff and postgraduate
students, to share their ideas in a supportive environment. It is
also an opportunity for the School to hear about the research of
colleagues both from within TCD and outside who share our research
interests. In line with the research agenda of the School, talks
will encompass traditional research and practice-based research and
will be followed by Q&A. Learn more at:
https://www.tcd.ie/trinitylongroomhub/