PS-Introduction to Cultural Studies: Memory and Conflict in Northern Ireland
Kübra Özermis
Kommentar
Between 1968 – 1998 Northern Ireland was shaken by a conflict between Irish Catholics, who demanded emancipation and civil rights, Protestant Unionist who defended the status-quo and the British army who initially should have ensured peace between the two parties but became quickly involved in the escalation of violence. Decades of paramilitary violence on both sides and military violence defined the lives of people in Northern Ireland and spilled over to Great Britain and mainland Europe. While outwardly the conflict, often referred to as the ‘Troubles’, seemed to evolve around religious differences, the actual dimension of the disparities between ‘Catholics’ and ‘Protestants’ runs deeper than disputes over religious identities. Disputes about the colonial past, the partition of Ireland, the position of Catholics in Northern Irish society and the British rule in Ireland contributed, and to some extent still contribute, to the sectarian conflict. The Good Friday Agreement, signed in 1998, ended the armed conflict, yet the division in Northern Irish society still remains and threatens to flare up, particularly since the re-emergence of the questions over the Irish border.
In this seminar, students will gain an overview on how collective identity and memory are situated within the context of the Northern Irish conflict. We will be looking at how disputes over past events not only impacted the formation of collective memory and identity but also contributes to the sectarian division in Northern Ireland. We will analyse how at the peak of the armed conflict diverging views on the past not only resurfaced but intensified the conflict between the two communities. Likewise, it will be important to see how events that took place during the ‘Troubles’ are not only approached differently by each community but seem to form the platform for the continuation of division and dispute. In order to form an understanding of how the conflict was shaped by memory, identity and trauma students will critically engage with concepts of cultural memory and identity. For a better understanding of how these concepts impact Northern Irish society we will be looking at various forms of cultural representation in each session.
The final exam in this seminar is a 2000-word term paper. Regular and active participation is required. Reading material will be made available on Blackboard.
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13 Termine
Regelmäßige Termine der Lehrveranstaltung