'Messy Theory and Dirty Practice': The Return to the Body in New Writing from the North of Ireland

Caroline Magennis is Professor of Contemporary Irish Literature, where she is Impact Lead for the School of Arts and Media. She is the author of Northern Irish Writing After The Troubles (2021), which was the joint winner of the BACLS Prize, and Harpy: A Manifesto for Childfree Women, was published in May 2024 by Icon Books (English), W.F. Howes (Audiobook) and Alienta Editorial (Spanish). Originally from Portadown, Co. Armagh, she has published widely on Irish literature and culture from the North with a focus on women's writing, contemporary fiction and popular culture.


'Messy Theory and Dirty Practice': The Return to the Body in New Writing from the North of Ireland


This paper seeks to reflect on the representational history of the body in writing from the North, with a focus on contemporary texts which take embodied experiences as their narrative catalyst. It will also reflect on the physical work of writing in our discipline, with a glance towards work which borders on life writing and autofiction. Irish feminist thought has, for decades, thought meticulously through the symbolic potential and representational lacunae that beset Irish “body texts.” I want to claim kinship with this rich lineage and draw attention to the bright future of emerging scholars in this field. I will think about the ways in which twenty-first century texts have offered a more expansive approach both to the representation of the body and also what it means to be a writing body that attends to this work, particularly in the age of the unequal academic workplace. In particular, I will focus on recent novels by Michael Magee, Louise Kennedy, Jan Carson and Aimee Walsh, as well as reflections from creative-critical practice. 

Unless stated otherwise, all our events are free of charge and anyone interested in the topic is welcome to attend. Registration is required for all events. Please sign up using the booking form below.