Irish literary renaissance, late 19th- and early 20th-century movement that aimed at reviving ancient Irish folklore, legends, and traditions in new literary works. The movement, also called the Celtic renaissance, was in part the cultural aspect of a political movement that was concerned with self-government for Ireland and discovering a literary past that would be relevant to the struggle for independence. The revival produced some of the best plays of the 20th cent. in the dramas of J. M. Synge Synge, John Millington (sĭng), 1871–1909, Irish poet and dramatist, b. near Dublin, of Protestant parents.
..... Click the link for more information. and Sean O'Casey O'Casey, Sean (shôn), 1884–1964, Irish dramatist, one of the great figures of the Irish literary renaissance.
..... Click the link for more information. and some of the greatest poetry in the works of W. B. Yeats Yeats, W. B. (William Butler Yeats), 1865–1939, Irish poet and playwright, b. Dublin. The greatest lyric poet Ireland has produced and one of the major figures of 20th-century literature, Yeats was the acknowledged leader of the Irish literary renaissance .
..... Click the link for more information. . One of the movement's most impressive achievements was the establishment of the Abbey Theatre Abbey Theatre, Irish theatrical company devoted primarily to indigenous drama. W. B. Yeats was a leader in founding (1902) the Irish National Theatre Society with Lady Gregory, J. M. Synge, and A. E.
..... Click the link for more information. . Other important writers of the revival were Lady Gregory Gregory, Lady Augusta (Isabella Augusta Persse), 1859–1932, Irish dramatist. Though she did not begin her writing career until middle-age, Lady Gregory soon became a vital force in the Irish drama.
..... Click the link for more information. , G. W. Russell Russell, George William, pseud. A. E., 1867–1935, Irish author, b. Lurgan, educated in Dublin. An active member of the Irish nationalist movement, he edited the Irish Homestead (1904–23) and the Irish Statesman
..... Click the link for more information. (pseud. A. E.), and James Stephens Stephens, James, 1882–1950, Irish poet and fiction writer, b. Dublin. One of the leading figures of the Irish literary renaissance , Stephens is best known for his fanciful and highly colored prose writings—The Crock of Gold (1912), The Demi
..... Click the link for more information. . James Joyce Joyce, James, 1882–1941, Irish novelist. Perhaps the most influential and significant novelist of the 20th cent., Joyce was a master of the English language, exploiting all of its resources.
..... Click the link for more information. was a caustic sometime participant in the movement.

Bibliography

See R. Hogan, After the Irish Renaissance (1967); J. W. Foster, Forces and Themes in Ulster Fichon (1974).

Irish literary renaissance

Flowering of Irish literary talent in the late 19th and early 20th century. It was closely allied with a strong political nationalism and a revival of interest in Ireland's Gaelic heritage (see Gaelic revival). Other factors in the renaissance were the retelling of ancient heroic legends in books such as Standish O'Grady's History of Ireland (1878, 1880) and Douglas Hyde's A Literary History of Ireland (1899), and the Gaelic League, formed in 1893 to revive the Irish language and culture. It developed into a vigorous literary force centred on William Butler Yeats; other important figures were Augusta Gregory, John Millington Synge, and Sean O'Casey. See also Abbey Theatre.