It is through her we can see that feminist ideas were gaining ground in Ireland in the late 18th century. Mary Ann McCracken is just one example of how mainstream historiography has neglected women’s contribution in shaping the outlook of their society. Women were sworn into the Society and some actively participated in the ’98 Rising. The goal of the United Irishmen was a separation from England and the setting up of a republic along the French model. Mary Ann McCracken’s (1770-1866) emancipative ideas concerning the lot of women in her day are revealed in the correspondence with her brother Henry Joy McCracken, a founding member of the Society of United Irishmen, while he was imprisoned in Kilmainham Jail. The author examines in turn Mary Ann McCracken, Anna Doyle Wheeler, William Thompson and James Connolly. Priscilla Metscher’s study, Pioneers of Women’s Emancipation in Ireland (Connolly Books, 2018) focuses on the political thinking, activities and lives of eminent Irish fighters for women’s emancipation, from a Marxist perspective. To quote Connolly: "No revolutionary movement is complete without its poetical expression." In a short story discovered recently and attributed to Connolly, "The Agitator's Wife", another powerful woman character features at the heart of the piece. 'Tis the way of the world in America as well as in Ireland. The poor of the world are always slaving for other people, always going hungry that others may be fed, naked that others may be clothed, badly housed that others may live in palaces. Always slaving for other people, is it? And do you think you will get out of that by going to America? Faith then, you won't. In the play, the farmer's wife Ellen replies to her eldest son Pat's intention to emigrate to America.įar off hills are always green. the dramatic conflict is fought around the person of Frank O'Donnell, a farmer's son, who in the first act announces his attention of joining the English Army, but at the end of the third act, having been shown the right path by his parents and sweetheart, and the old blind patriot Brian McMahon joins the fighting forces of the Irish Republican Brotherhood instead. It is a play of country life in Ireland at the time of the Fenian Rising. To quote the Irish suffragist Francis Sheehy-Skeffington who reviewed it: The play "Under Which Flag?" was first performed by the Workers' Dramatic Company in Liberty Hall three weeks before the Easter Rising (March 26, 1916). Mary Ann McCracken wrote insightful, emancipatory letters to her imprisoned brother, Henry Joy. James Connolly took time out to write two plays and over twenty songs, poems and ballads. These artistic expressions are not mere decoration, but an integral part of understanding and changing the world.Īs explored in a previous article, the United Irishmen (and women) made extensive use of literary satire, and published songs in their political publications. Since times immemorial, people involved in the struggle for a better world have given expression to their aspiration not only in political texts and deeds, but also in artistic ways. To mark International Women's Day, Jenny Farrell reviews Pioneers of Women’s Emancipation in Ireland, by Priscilla Metscher
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