Liam O'Flaherty
Encyclopedia
Liam O'Flaherty was a significant Irish
novelist and short story writer and a major figure in the Irish literary renaissance
, born August 28, 1896, died September 7, 1984.
), county Galway
. His family, descendants
of the Ó Flaithbertaigh family of Connemara
, were not well off. The Irish language
was widely spoken in the area, and in the O'Flaherty household both English and Irish were used.
O'Flaherty was the son of Maidhc Ó Flaithearta and Maggie Ganley of Gort na gCapall. In 1908, at the age of twelve, he went to Rockwell College. This was followed by enrollments at Holy Cross and University College, Dublin. According to The Sunday Times
, he also attended Belvedere College
and Blackrock College
. He did not attend the first two schools for long. He had intended joining the priesthood, but in 1917 he left school and joined the Irish Guards
under the name 'Bill Ganly'. He served on the Western Front, where he was injured, and it is possible that the shell shock he suffered may have been responsible for the mental illness which became apparent in 1933.
He returned from the front as a socialist, having become interested in Marxism as a schoolboy, and two days after the establishment of the Irish Free State
in 1922 O'Flaherty and a group of supporters seized a building in Dublin for four days, flying a red flag
from it.
, a cousin, later turned Ó Flaithearta's novel, The Informer
, into a film.
Many of his works have the common theme of nature and Ireland. He was a distinguished short story writer, and some his best work in that genre was in Irish. The collection Dúil, published towards the end of his life, contained Irish-language versions of a number of stories published elsewhere in English. It is likely, for example, that the story 'The Pedlar's Revenge' was first written in Irish under the title 'Díoltas'. This collection, now widely admired, had a poor reception at the time, and this seems to have discouraged him from proceeding with an Irish-language novel he had in hand.
In a letter written to The Sunday Times in later years he confessed to a certain ambivalence regarding his work in Irish, and spoke of other Irish writers who received little praise for their work in the language. This gave rise to some controversy.
In 1923, O'Flaherty published his first novel, Thy Neighbour's Wife
, thought to be one of his best. In 1935, his novel The Informer
(for which he had been awarded the 1925 James Tait Black Memorial Prize
for fiction) was made into a film by John Ford. Over the next couple of years he published other novels and short stories. In 1933 he suffered from the first of two mental breakdowns.
He travelled in the United States and Europe, and the letters he wrote while travelling have now been published. He had a love of French and Russian culture
, and this may have been part of the attraction he felt towards communism. Before his death, however, he left the Communist Party and returned to the Roman Catholic faith.
(1924), Funny The Way It Is (1925), The Informer
(1925); adapted as a film (The Informer, 1935), Mr. Gilhooley (1926), If You Think About It (1926), The Wilderness (serialised 1927, gathered in book form and republished 1986), Return of the Brute
(1929), A Tourist's Guide To Ireland (satirical, 1929), The Ecstasy Of Angus (1931), Skerrett (1932), his autobiography Shame The Devil (1934), Short Stories (1937; revised 1956), Famine
(1937), Land (1946), Two Lovely Beasts and Other Stories (1950), Insurrection (1951), The Pedlar's Revenge and Other Stories (1976), and The Letters Of Liam O'Flaherty (published posthumously, 1996).
In addition to "The Sniper
", some notable short stories by O'Flaherty are "Civil War", "The Shilling", "Going into Exile", and "A Red Petticoat".
In the 1970s he recorded a spoken word version of The Ecstasy Of Angus. This was released as a double-album record in 1978 by Claddagh Records
, Dublin, catalogue no. CCT 15 & 16.
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
novelist and short story writer and a major figure in the Irish literary renaissance
Celtic Revival
Celtic Revival covers a variety of movements and trends, mostly in the 19th and 20th centuries, which drew on the traditions of Celtic literature and Celtic art, or in fact more often what art historians call Insular art...
, born August 28, 1896, died September 7, 1984.
Biography
O'Flaherty was born in the remote village of Gort na gCapall, on Inishmore (one of the Aran IslandsAran Islands
The Aran Islands or The Arans are a group of three islands located at the mouth of Galway Bay, on the west coast of Ireland. They constitute the barony of Aran in County Galway, Ireland...
), county Galway
Galway
Galway or City of Galway is a city in County Galway, Republic of Ireland. It is the sixth largest and the fastest-growing city in Ireland. It is also the third largest city within the Republic and the only city in the Province of Connacht. Located on the west coast of Ireland, it sits on the...
. His family, descendants
Lineal descendant
A lineal descendant, in legal usage, refers to a blood relative in the direct line of descent. The children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, etc...
of the Ó Flaithbertaigh family of Connemara
Connemara
Connemara is a district in the west of Ireland consisting of a broad peninsula between Killary Harbour and Kilkieran Bay in the west of County Galway.-Overview:...
, were not well off. The Irish language
Irish language
Irish , also known as Irish Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family, originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish people. Irish is now spoken as a first language by a minority of Irish people, as well as being a second language of a larger proportion of...
was widely spoken in the area, and in the O'Flaherty household both English and Irish were used.
Early years
The Sunday Times (UK)
The Sunday Times is a Sunday broadsheet newspaper, distributed in the United Kingdom. The Sunday Times is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News International, which is in turn owned by News Corporation. Times Newspapers also owns The Times, but the two papers were founded...
, he also attended Belvedere College
Belvedere College
Belvedere College SJ is a private secondary school for boys located on Great Denmark Street, Dublin, Ireland. It is also known as St. Francis Xavier's College....
and Blackrock College
Blackrock College
Blackrock College is a Catholic voluntary secondary school for boys aged 14–18, located in Williamstown, Blackrock, County Dublin, Ireland. The College was founded by French missionaries in 1860, to act as a school and civil service training centre. Set in of grounds, it has an illustrious...
. He did not attend the first two schools for long. He had intended joining the priesthood, but in 1917 he left school and joined the Irish Guards
Irish Guards
The Irish Guards , part of the Guards Division, is a Foot Guards regiment of the British Army.Along with the Royal Irish Regiment, it is one of the two Irish regiments remaining in the British Army. The Irish Guards recruit in Northern Ireland and the Irish neighbourhoods of major British cities...
under the name 'Bill Ganly'. He served on the Western Front, where he was injured, and it is possible that the shell shock he suffered may have been responsible for the mental illness which became apparent in 1933.
He returned from the front as a socialist, having become interested in Marxism as a schoolboy, and two days after the establishment of the Irish Free State
Irish Free State
The Irish Free State was the state established as a Dominion on 6 December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty, signed by the British government and Irish representatives exactly twelve months beforehand...
in 1922 O'Flaherty and a group of supporters seized a building in Dublin for four days, flying a red flag
Red flag
In politics, a red flag is a symbol of Socialism, or Communism, or sometimes left-wing politics in general. It has been associated with left-wing politics since the French Revolution. Socialists adopted the symbol during the Revolutions of 1848 and it became a symbol of communism as a result of its...
from it.
Work
After the war O'Flaherty left Ireland and moved to the United States, where he lived in Hollywood for a short time. The well-known director John FordJohn Ford
John Ford was an American film director. He was famous for both his westerns such as Stagecoach, The Searchers, and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, and adaptations of such classic 20th-century American novels as The Grapes of Wrath...
, a cousin, later turned Ó Flaithearta's novel, The Informer
The Informer (novel)
The Informer is a novel by Irish writer Liam O'Flaherty published in 1925. It received the 1925 James Tait Black Memorial Prize.-Plot summary:Set in 1920's Dublin in the aftermath of the Irish Civil War, the novel centers on Gypo Nolan...
, into a film.
Many of his works have the common theme of nature and Ireland. He was a distinguished short story writer, and some his best work in that genre was in Irish. The collection Dúil, published towards the end of his life, contained Irish-language versions of a number of stories published elsewhere in English. It is likely, for example, that the story 'The Pedlar's Revenge' was first written in Irish under the title 'Díoltas'. This collection, now widely admired, had a poor reception at the time, and this seems to have discouraged him from proceeding with an Irish-language novel he had in hand.
In a letter written to The Sunday Times in later years he confessed to a certain ambivalence regarding his work in Irish, and spoke of other Irish writers who received little praise for their work in the language. This gave rise to some controversy.
In 1923, O'Flaherty published his first novel, Thy Neighbour's Wife
Thy Neighbour's Wife
Thy Neighbour's Wife was the first novel by the Irish writer Liam O'Flaherty....
, thought to be one of his best. In 1935, his novel The Informer
The Informer (novel)
The Informer is a novel by Irish writer Liam O'Flaherty published in 1925. It received the 1925 James Tait Black Memorial Prize.-Plot summary:Set in 1920's Dublin in the aftermath of the Irish Civil War, the novel centers on Gypo Nolan...
(for which he had been awarded the 1925 James Tait Black Memorial Prize
James Tait Black Memorial Prize
Founded in 1919, the James Tait Black Memorial Prizes are among the oldest and most prestigious book prizes awarded for literature written in the English language and are Britain's oldest literary awards...
for fiction) was made into a film by John Ford. Over the next couple of years he published other novels and short stories. In 1933 he suffered from the first of two mental breakdowns.
He travelled in the United States and Europe, and the letters he wrote while travelling have now been published. He had a love of French and Russian culture
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, and this may have been part of the attraction he felt towards communism. Before his death, however, he left the Communist Party and returned to the Roman Catholic faith.
Death
O'Flaherty died on September 7, 1984, in Dublin,and many of his works were subsequently republished. He is remembered today as a powerful writer and a strong voice in Irish culture. In 2006 a memorial garden was built in his native village of Gort na gCapall, with a plaque describing his life and writings. The garden sits on the road through the village near the path leading to the Wormhole.Works
Among his books are The Black Soul (1924), Thy Neighbour's WifeThy Neighbour's Wife
Thy Neighbour's Wife was the first novel by the Irish writer Liam O'Flaherty....
(1924), Funny The Way It Is (1925), The Informer
The Informer (novel)
The Informer is a novel by Irish writer Liam O'Flaherty published in 1925. It received the 1925 James Tait Black Memorial Prize.-Plot summary:Set in 1920's Dublin in the aftermath of the Irish Civil War, the novel centers on Gypo Nolan...
(1925); adapted as a film (The Informer, 1935), Mr. Gilhooley (1926), If You Think About It (1926), The Wilderness (serialised 1927, gathered in book form and republished 1986), Return of the Brute
Return of the Brute
Return of the Brute is a novel written by Irish writer Liam O'Flaherty and published in 1929.-Plot:Based on the author's experience as an Irish Guardsman in W.W.I, this short novel tells the story of a squad of British soldiers in an unidentified area of the Western Front...
(1929), A Tourist's Guide To Ireland (satirical, 1929), The Ecstasy Of Angus (1931), Skerrett (1932), his autobiography Shame The Devil (1934), Short Stories (1937; revised 1956), Famine
Famine (novel)
Famine is a novel by Irish writer Liam O'Flaherty published in 1937. Set in the fictionally named Black Valley in the west of Ireland during the Great Famine of the 1840s, the novel tells the story of three generations of the Kilmartin family....
(1937), Land (1946), Two Lovely Beasts and Other Stories (1950), Insurrection (1951), The Pedlar's Revenge and Other Stories (1976), and The Letters Of Liam O'Flaherty (published posthumously, 1996).
In addition to "The Sniper
The Sniper (story)
"The Sniper" is a short story by Irish writer Liam O'Flaherty, set during the early weeks of the Irish Civil War.It was O'Flaherty's first published work of fiction, running in a small London-based Socialist weekly The New Leader while the war it depicted was still going on...
", some notable short stories by O'Flaherty are "Civil War", "The Shilling", "Going into Exile", and "A Red Petticoat".
In the 1970s he recorded a spoken word version of The Ecstasy Of Angus. This was released as a double-album record in 1978 by Claddagh Records
Claddagh Records
Claddagh Records is a record label which was founded in 1959 by Garech Browne and Ivor Browne. It specialises in Irish traditional music and spoken word. Gareth had been taking lessons at the time from the master piper Leo Rowsome whose artistry was very well known. Leo, who had made many...
, Dublin, catalogue no. CCT 15 & 16.
External links
- Unofficial Homepage
- Social Abandonment: The Life of Liam O'Flaherty
- Project Muse
- Liam O'Flaherty and the raising the Red Flag at the Rotunda. The workers' occupation of the Rotunda of January 1922.