Start Date
28-5-2024 4:30 PM
End Date
28-5-2024 4:45 PM
Description
The pub has been at the centre of Irish culture and identity for at least two centuries, has become a pillar of the Irish tourism “product,” and an export commodity as thousands of themed “Irish pubs” have been established across the world in the last number of decades, supplementing existing establishments that have served the global Irish community. This paper draws on key themes from the diverse material in our upcoming academic volume on the Irish pub, to be published by Cork University Press, later in 2024. The book brings together contributions from scholars of history, sociology, design, literature, culinary arts and music to explore the literary, visual, organisational, legal and social invention and reinvention of the “Irish pub” over many centuries. While the memory of the “traditional pub” is often evoked, for example in popular coffee table books, cinema and advertising, the Irish pub has always had a dynamic presence. Largely “invented” in the eighteenth century, it has been shaped by regulation, legislation, transport technology and the development of urban and rural centres. It has had a central role in Irish life, generating both community and difference. This centrality has been evoked in literary expressions: from drama to poetry and novels – from Seán O’Casey and Brendan Behan to, more recently, Louise Kennedy and Paul Murray. This has been the case for both jurisdictions on the island of Ireland. The continuing literary (and associated visual) heritage feeds into the mythological image of the pub, so successfully packaged for export by major corporations such as Diageo, as well as underpinning the pub as a significant tourist attraction. The paper also addresses aspects of the pub and violence: it is often a place of trauma as well as community. What of the future? While the overall number of pubs continues to decline, this trend hides a number of significant variables, including a differential decline between rural and urban areas, a major shift into the food business, changing licensing laws, and consolidation and emergence of major pub “chains.” The future of the pub will be significantly shaped by technological developments, regulatory environments, continued social and demographic change and consumer tastes. The paper will conclude with some speculations as to the future shape of the Irish pub: and the potential to invent new traditions and memories.
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DOI
https://doi.org/10.21427/n8cm-3k53
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Economic History Commons, Entrepreneurial and Small Business Operations Commons, European History Commons, Food and Beverage Management Commons, Food Studies Commons, Other Arts and Humanities Commons, Other Languages, Societies, and Cultures Commons, Social and Cultural Anthropology Commons, Sociology of Culture Commons, Tourism Commons, Tourism and Travel Commons
Between Memory and History: Irish Pubs as Sites of Memory and Invention
The pub has been at the centre of Irish culture and identity for at least two centuries, has become a pillar of the Irish tourism “product,” and an export commodity as thousands of themed “Irish pubs” have been established across the world in the last number of decades, supplementing existing establishments that have served the global Irish community. This paper draws on key themes from the diverse material in our upcoming academic volume on the Irish pub, to be published by Cork University Press, later in 2024. The book brings together contributions from scholars of history, sociology, design, literature, culinary arts and music to explore the literary, visual, organisational, legal and social invention and reinvention of the “Irish pub” over many centuries. While the memory of the “traditional pub” is often evoked, for example in popular coffee table books, cinema and advertising, the Irish pub has always had a dynamic presence. Largely “invented” in the eighteenth century, it has been shaped by regulation, legislation, transport technology and the development of urban and rural centres. It has had a central role in Irish life, generating both community and difference. This centrality has been evoked in literary expressions: from drama to poetry and novels – from Seán O’Casey and Brendan Behan to, more recently, Louise Kennedy and Paul Murray. This has been the case for both jurisdictions on the island of Ireland. The continuing literary (and associated visual) heritage feeds into the mythological image of the pub, so successfully packaged for export by major corporations such as Diageo, as well as underpinning the pub as a significant tourist attraction. The paper also addresses aspects of the pub and violence: it is often a place of trauma as well as community. What of the future? While the overall number of pubs continues to decline, this trend hides a number of significant variables, including a differential decline between rural and urban areas, a major shift into the food business, changing licensing laws, and consolidation and emergence of major pub “chains.” The future of the pub will be significantly shaped by technological developments, regulatory environments, continued social and demographic change and consumer tastes. The paper will conclude with some speculations as to the future shape of the Irish pub: and the potential to invent new traditions and memories.