{"id":12811,"date":"2021-11-18T11:43:09","date_gmt":"2021-11-18T11:43:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cassandravoices.com\/?p=12811"},"modified":"2021-11-18T11:43:09","modified_gmt":"2021-11-18T11:43:09","slug":"ciaran-orourke-breaking-the-cycle","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/casswp.eutonom.eu\/index.php\/2021\/11\/18\/ciaran-orourke-breaking-the-cycle\/","title":{"rendered":"Ciar\u00e1n O&#8217;Rourke: Breaking the Cycle"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><a style=\"color: #0000ff;\" href=\"https:\/\/charliebyrne.ie\/product\/one-big-union\/\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">One Big Union<\/span><\/i><\/a><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> is a self-published collection of essays by Irish poet <span style=\"color: #3366ff;\"><a style=\"color: #3366ff;\" href=\"https:\/\/cassandravoices.com\/author\/ciaran-o-rourke\/\">Ciar\u00e1n O\u2019Rourke.<\/a> <\/span>The essays, many of which have been previously published in such outlets as <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Poetry Ireland Review, Irish Marxist Review<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, and indeed, <\/span><span style=\"color: #3366ff;\"><a style=\"color: #3366ff;\" href=\"https:\/\/cassandravoices.com\/history\/chambis-world-martin-chambi-1891-1973\/\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Cassandra Voices <\/span><\/i><\/a><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">herself, are a mix of literary criticism, political theory, and personal writing. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The book\u2019s introduction locates itself in the burgeoning genre of pandemic writing. Thus he writes:<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><em><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Between the winter of 2019 and the summer of 2021, a period of cascading social and ecological crises, I found myself returning to the work of a number of poets, artists, and political firebrands, with a fresh sense of discovery and gratitude. This miscellany of essays is the result.<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In essence, this book is a polished version of a reading diary, with O\u2019Rourke responding to the artists he was confined with over quarantine. As such, it\u2019s an intensely personal and vulnerable work, even when the directly autobiographical material is minimal.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Before Ireland\u2019s third lockdown Ciaran O&#39;Rourke picked up a work by the indigenous Peruvian photographer, Mart\u00edn Chambi which is now among his favourite books.<a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/91E5h01t2y\">https:\/\/t.co\/91E5h01t2y<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/indepdubnrth?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@indepdubnrth<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ARTSOVERBORDERS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@ArtsOverBorders<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/IlsaCarter1?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@IlsaCarter1<\/a> @wadeinthewate11 <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Elzobub?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@Elzobub<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/FellipeLopes7?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@fellipelopes7<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/amandaknox?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@amandaknox<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; CassandraVoices (@VoicesCassandra) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/VoicesCassandra\/status\/1360933267231432709?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">February 14, 2021<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You finish the book with the impression that Percy Bysshe <span style=\"color: #0000ff;\">Shelley<\/span> plays a leading role in O\u2019Rourke\u2019s inner life ; that Irishness is something O\u2019Rourke feels strongly attached to; and that he is passionately devoted to left-wing political ideals, even though he finds the atmosphere of devoted Communist organisations mentally stultifying.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This is a lot to know about a relative stranger, and it\u2019s a testament to O\u2019Rourke\u2019s ability as a writer that this distinct, personal voice is present throughout, even in moments when the subject matter veers into academic territory.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-12819 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/cassandravoices.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/Screencinema.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1200\" height=\"900\" \/><\/p>\n<p><b><i>Hole in the Wall Blues<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Perhaps it\u2019s scholarly fatigue, but I must admit I found the moments of personal, autobiographical writing the most compelling parts of the book.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In \u2018Hole in the Wall Blues\u2019, O\u2019Rourke writes about a topic made timely by the <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Save the Cobblestone <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">protest \u2013 the erosion of Dublin\u2019s cultural geography \u2013 in an endearingly personal way.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The example he uses is the Screen cinema on Townsend street, now a building site for what O\u2019Rourke believes will be a \u201crental hub\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It wasn\u2019t like the Screen cinema was some beautiful location, he argues. No, it was dingy, cheap, and outmoded. But, O\u2019Rourke writes, \u201cjust by being there and providing the service it did, this rather run-down space had made the city a home of sorts\u201d.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In another essay, \u2018Sea Music\u2019, he talks about the strange intimacy that has grown between himself and the other regular bathers at Seapoint. These accounts of his private life made me care about the more abstract essays, helping me, as a reader, trace the thread of emotional necessity behind his discussions of Percy Shelley or Langston Hughes.<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">On October 3 2015 a US Air Force gunship attacked the <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/Kunduz?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#Kunduz<\/a> Trauma Centre operated by M\u00e9decins Sans Fronti\u00e8res killing at least 42 people and injuring 30 more.<a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/YyGvInOP69\">https:\/\/t.co\/YyGvInOP69<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/broadsheet_ie?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@broadsheet_ie<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/FrancoiseDuroch?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@FrancoiseDuroch<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/leahysarah?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@leahysarah<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/KevinHIpoet1967?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@KevinHIpoet1967<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/BowesChay?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@BowesChay<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/electfrahughes?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@electfrahughes<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; CassandraVoices (@VoicesCassandra) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/VoicesCassandra\/status\/1438435452307091456?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">September 16, 2021<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p><b><i>Satisfying Punch<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Although most of these essays are ruminative and introspective, there are a few that pack a satisfying punch. My favourite is \u2018Smashing the Mirror\u2019, where O\u2019Rourke excoriates Poetry Ireland\u2019s toothless humility in front of the strong arms of cultural hegemony, exemplified in their partnership with the Dublin office of Facebook for national poetry day in 2017, and their use of a video of Joe Biden giving a merry, public-relations-approved speech about the beauty of Irish poetry for their fundraising campaign in 2019.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What does it mean for the institutions of Irish poetry to flatter the centres of power so shamelessly? O\u2019Rourke is excitingly sharp in his rhetorical denouncement:<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><em>The emerald glint in Biden\u2019s eyes, the nostalgic quaver in his voice, is meant to reinforce, for voters at home and lackeys elsewhere, a relation (between lord and vassal, say, or centre and outpost) that each of these circumstances also exemplifies \u2013 all under the guise of celebrating Irish poetry. And Poetry Ireland, it seems, is happy to play along: cosying up to power, for the sake of PR, and presumably on the long-term promise of cash.<\/em><\/span><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-12320 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/cassandravoices.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Trinity.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"960\" \/><em><b>Admission of Bias<\/b><\/em><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I may be biased when it comes to reviewing this book. In the first year of my English Studies course in Trinity College, Ciar\u00e1n O\u2019Rourke was working as a teaching assistant while he finished his phD, and I happened to be placed in his Romanticism tutorials.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Ciar\u00e1n was a wonderful teacher, with a gift for generating class discussion. He also had the touch of eccentricity required to deliver a course on Romanticism. At one point he had the whole class stand up and communally recite<span style=\"color: #3366ff;\"> <a style=\"color: #3366ff;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.poetryfoundation.org\/poems\/45134\/ode-to-the-west-wind\">Shelley\u2019s \u2018Ode to the West Wind\u2019<\/a> <\/span>in early Spring; as if we could hurry the pace of the seasons through the right incantation of the words.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">With that said, I had no idea I was reading my former teacher\u2019s book until after I had read through the collection. From the tone of the writing, and the subjects covered (bathing in Dun Laoghaire, Marxist politics, nineteenth century poets), I had assumed the author was in his fifties or sixties. I imagined a Terry Eagleton type \u2013 hip enough to know about Ursula Le Guin, but whose outlook on life has been shaped by figures from a deeper past. Then I looked up some interviews, and, with a jolt, recognised the fresh-faced, tall figure of my Romanticism tutor.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><em><b>Critique<\/b><\/em><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">One criticism I have is in relation to the structure of the book. <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">First, it lacks certain features of a professionally published work. There is no publication date. The cover image, by Lewis Hine, is not credited on the back cover, or on one of the first pages, but in the \u2018Introduction and Acknowledgements\u2019 section. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">These may seem minor issues, but by failing to follow conventions, it becomes harder to work with, and conveys an attitude of slight carelessness, unbefitting of its important contents.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">My second criticism is of the repetition between essays. As many of the essays were published in different publications, it appears the author was unconcerned at repeating a few key points. When gathered together in a book, however, these repetitions jar on the reader. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For example, several pieces of information related to Shelley in the essay entitled \u2018Shelley\u2019s Revolutionary Year\u2019 are duplicated without development in the title essay \u2018One Big Union\u2019, for example. <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This certainly conveys the extent of Shelley\u2019s psychological importance to the author, but it doesn\u2019t expand on the issue.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Overall, this is an intriguing collection of essays from a young Irish poet. Those interested in <span style=\"color: #3366ff;\"><a style=\"color: #3366ff;\" href=\"https:\/\/cassandravoices.com\/literature\/poetry\/poetry-ciaran-orourke\/\">O\u2019Rourke\u2019s poetry<\/a> <\/span>will gain insights into his artistic influences, and anyone looking for topical cultural critiques will be well served by some of the later essays in particular. Its main value is as a political statement of purpose for the poet. It also represents an opportunity for those interested to support a promising Irish writer, whose work has been hitherto largely available to readers for free.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><em>One Big Union\u00a0<\/em>is available for purchase through Ciar\u00e1n O&#8217;Rourke&#8217;s website, <span style=\"color: #3366ff;\"><a style=\"color: #3366ff;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ragpickerpoetry.net\/books\/\">ragpickerpoetry.net<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>One Big Union is a self-published collection of essays by Irish poet Ciar\u00e1n O\u2019Rourke. The essays, many of which have been previously published in such outlets as Poetry Ireland Review, Irish Marxist Review, and indeed, Cassandra Voices herself, are a mix of literary criticism, political theory, and personal writing. The book\u2019s introduction locates itself in [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":12813,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[19],"tags":[111,907,1127,1683,1686,1828,2104,2118,5564,5567,5596,6759,7097,7341,7574,8154,8183,8500,8922],"class_list":["post-12811","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-society-culture","tag-111","tag-ben-pantrey","tag-breaking","tag-ciaran","tag-ciaran-o-rourke","tag-communism","tag-culture","tag-cycle","tag-literary-criticism","tag-literature","tag-lockdown","tag-orourke","tag-percy-bysshe-shelley","tag-poetry","tag-quarantine","tag-save-the-cobblestone","tag-screen-cinema","tag-society","tag-the"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/casswp.eutonom.eu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12811","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/casswp.eutonom.eu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/casswp.eutonom.eu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/casswp.eutonom.eu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/casswp.eutonom.eu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12811"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/casswp.eutonom.eu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12811\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/casswp.eutonom.eu\/index.php\/wp-json\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/casswp.eutonom.eu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12811"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/casswp.eutonom.eu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12811"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/casswp.eutonom.eu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12811"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}