The Politics of Illusion: A Political History of the IRA - Softcover

Patterson, Henry

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1897959311 ISBN 13: 9781897959312

Publisher: Serif, 1997

Synopsis

This is the first comprehensive study of the IRA's attempts to create a "social republicanism, " a marriage between militant nationalism and the politics of the left. From agitation among the peasantry in the 1920s to efforts in the 1990s to add a political dimension to purist nationalism in the form of Sinn Fein's "peace process, " Henry Patterson analyzes the various failed attempts to marry two fundamentally incompatible ideologies.

About this title

About the Author:

Henry Patterson is Professor of Politics at the University of Ulster and the author of numerous books and articles on Irish history, including Class Conflict and Sectarianism.

From Library Journal:

Since World War I, the Irish Republican Army (IRA) and its political wing, Sinn Fein ("Ourselves Alone"), has been a significant if at times barbarous voice in the contentious Anglo-Irish relationship. At a time of great optimism on both sides of the Irish border, Patterson (Univ. of Ulster) reconsiders the IRA in this of his highly praised work. The result is a history of neither the Troubles nor the IRA, which are amply covered elsewhere in such works as Paul Arthur's Northern Ireland Since 1968 (Blackwell, 1996. 2d ed.) and Tim Coogan's The IRA: A History (Rinehart, 1993). Instead, Patterson deliberately seeks here the objectivity usually so lacking in similar works. He views IRA/ Sinn Fein as a social phenomenon, an evolving "social republicanism," and considers its role in crucial periods of postpartition Irish history. What emerges is a picture of a movement divided between the impulses of violence and terrorism and the attractions of peace and political responsibility. As such, it is an extremely timely book that will be an eye-opener for those who believe they understand Ireland and its problems.?John J. Doherty, Montana State Univ., Bozeman
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Serif
• Publication date: 1997
• ISBN 10: 1897959311
• ISBN 13: 9781897959312
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 320