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‘As long as the fancy stuff is kept down’: The Perils of the Personal Note for Brian O’Nolan

Author: Ian Ó Caoimh (University College Dublin)

  • ‘As long as the fancy stuff is kept down’:  The Perils of the Personal Note for Brian O’Nolan

    Article

    ‘As long as the fancy stuff is kept down’: The Perils of the Personal Note for Brian O’Nolan

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Abstract

This essay expands on recent discussions of the influence of early Irish nature poetry on Brian O'Nolan's writing, specifically with regard to it succinctness of language and restraint of tone. Focusing on representations of death, emotion, and self-reflection across the oeuvre, Ian Ó Caoimh explores the dangerous consequences of indulging one’s self or of excessive self-examination in O'Nolan's writing, a stance which is in constant conflict with the compulsion to strike that personal note in the first place.

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Keywords: Death, Emotion, Tone, Irish Nature Poetry, Flann O'Brien, Brian O'Nolan

How to Cite:

Ó Caoimh, I., (2013) “‘As long as the fancy stuff is kept down’: The Perils of the Personal Note for Brian O’Nolan”, The Parish Review: Journal of Flann O'Brien Studies 2(1), 4-13. doi: https://doi.org/10.16995/pr.2917

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Published on
2013-10-23

Peer Reviewed