John S. Ellis recently posted a provocative description of his
dissertation topic on "Celtic" ethnicity and nationalism in the UK
c.1899-1919. Although I'm certainly not an expert on this time period, I
would like to encourage further list discussion on this topic. For
British attitudes towards Irish nationalism in the Late Victorian period,
I found quite fascinating L. Perry Curtis, Jr., _Apes and Angles: The
Irishman in Victorian Caricature_ (Washington, DC: Smithsonian Press,
1971). Has Curtis' study found acceptance among historians of the period?
There seems to be two opposing camps on this issue of ethnic and national
identity in the "Celtic fringe." On the one hand there are Celtic
enthusiasts and nationalists, perhaps best represented by Peter
Berresford Ellis in books like _The Celtic Revolution: A Study in
Anti-Imperialism_ (Ceredigion: Y Lolfa, 1985). On the other hand, there
are numerous sceptics, whose attitudes toward the "Celtic fringe" are
perhaps best expressed by Malcolm Chapman in _The Celts: The Construction
of a Myth_ (NY: St. Martin's, 1992). I'm curious to hear what H-Albion
members think of these works, and of issues of ethnicity and nationalism
in the Celtic-speaking lands.
Thanks,
Chris Snyder
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Christopher A. Snyder "I would like a great lake of beer
History Dept. for the King of Kings.
Emory University I would like to be watching Heaven's family
Atlanta, GA 30322 drinking it through all eternity."
csnyder@unix.emory.edu --Irish, medieval (anonymous)
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