The Use of Ulster Speech by Michael Longley and Tom Paulin

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The Use of Ulster Speech by Michael

Longley and Tom Paulin

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B S T R A C T

The article examines the application and exploration of Ulster dialects in the work of two poets of Northern Irish Protestant background, Tom 3DXOLQDQG0LFKDHO/RQJOH\,WGHSLFWV3DXOLQijVDWWLWXGHWRWKHSDVWDQG the present of their community of origin, the former positive and the latter negative, which is responsible for the ambiguities in his use of and his comments on the local speech. Both poets employ the vernacular to UHIHUWRWKHLULPPHGLDWHFRQWH[WLHWKHFRQĠLFWLQ8OVWHUDQGLQWKLV UHVSHFWOLQJXLVWLFGLIIHUHQFHFRPHVWREHDVVRFLDWHGZLWKYLROHQFH<HW another vital element of their exploration of the dialect is its link to their RULJLQVKRPHDQGWKHLQWLPDF\LWHYRNHVZKLFKRIIHUVDbFRQWUDU\SHU-spective on the issue of languages and makes their approach equivocal. 7KLVFRQWH[WLQ3DXOLQijVSRHWU\LVIXUWKHUHQULFKHGZLWKDOOXVLRQVWRRU open discussion of the United Irishmen ideal and the international Prot-estant experience, and with his reworking of ancient Greek myth and WUDJHG\ZKLOHLQ/RQJOH\ijVSRHWU\LWLVVHWLQWKHIUDPHZRUNRIĴWUDQVOD-tions” from Homer which, strangely enough, transport the reader to contemporary Ireland. While Longley in his comments (interviews and autobiographical writings) relates the dialect to his personal experience, 3DXOLQLQKLVHVVD\VDQGLQLQWHUYLHZVVHHPVWRVLWXDWHLWLQDbYDVWHUQHW-work of social and political concepts that he has developed in connection ZLWKODQJXDJHZKLFKLQ,UHODQGKDVQHYHUVHHPHGDbQHXWUDOSKHQRPHQRQ GHWDFKHGIURPKLVWRULFDODQGSROLWLFDOLPSOLFDWLRQV/RQJOH\ijVXVHRIOR-FDOVSHHFKLVVHOGRPGLVFXVVHGE\FULWLFV3DXOLQijVRQWKHFRQWUDU\KDV stirred diverse reactions and controversies. The article investigates some RIWKHVHFULWLFDOYLHZVFKLHĠ\FRQFHUQHGZLWKWKHDOOHJHGDUWLğFLDOLW\RI his use of local words and with his politicizing the dialects. Performing WKHDQDO\VLVRIKLVSRHPVDQGHVVD\VWKHDUWLFOHDUJXHVIRU3DXOLQijVĴFRQ-sistency in inconWKHDQDO\VLVRIKLVSRHPVDQGHVVD\VWKHDUWLFOHDUJXHVIRU3DXOLQijVĴFRQ-sistency,” i.e. the fact that his application of dialectal ZRUGVUHĠHFWVKLVORYHKDWHDWWLWXGHWRKLVFRPPXQLW\RIRULJLQDQGWKDW

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LQWKHFODVKRIWZRUHDOLWLHVRIWKHFRQĠLFWDQGRIKRPHKLVVWDQFHDQG OLWHUDU\SUDFWLFHLVQRWIDUIURP/RQJOH\ijVZKLFKKDVEHHQUHJDUGHGDV quite neutral as one can infer from the lack of critical controversy about it. The voices of the two poets and their use of local speech provide DbFUXFLDOLQVLJKWLQWRWKH1RUWKHUQ,ULVKUHDOLW\ZLWKDOOLWVLQWULFDF\DQG paradox.

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B S T R A C T

Michael Longley and Tom Paulin, two poets of the Northern Irish Protes-tant background, both make an extensive and remarkable use of the speech of their locale. They share an ambivalent attitude towards their community RIRULJLQDQGWKHLUXVHRI8OVWHUGLDOHFWVUHĠHFWVH[DFWO\WKLVDPELYDOHQFH Some critics (Gerald Dawe, for instance) fail to notice this connection, es-SHFLDOO\LQWKHFDVHRI3DXOLQZKLOH/RQJOH\ijVXVHRIWKHYHUQDFXODULVUDUHO\ discussed. Both Longley and Paulin have written poems in which they pre-VHQWWKHPVHOYHVDVVHGLWLRXVğJXUHVXVLQJWKHLU1RUWKHUQVSHHFKDVDbNLQG RIDbFLSKHU3DXOLQIXUWKHUHQYLVDJHVLWDVDbVHFUHWFRGHWUDQVPLWWHGEHWZHHQ WKHZULWHUDQGWKHUHDGHU+HDOVRVHHPVWRORRNIRUDbVW\OHWKDWZRXOGEH close to such mode of writing, “coding” certain words and making his po-HPVKHUPHWLF7KHYHUQDFXODULQKLVZULWLQJFRPHVZLWKLQDbYDVWFRQWH[WRI oral culture, sound, history (linguistic one included), and politics. Longley VLPLODUO\VHWVWKHGLDOHFWVDJDLQVWDbVRFLDODQGSROLWLFDOEDFNJURXQGVWUHWFK-ing its scope by references to modern European and ancient Greek history DQGP\WKZKLFKRFFDVLRQDOO\KDSSHQVWREH3DXOLQijVSUDFWLFHWRR%RWK SRHWVH[SORUHWKHSRWHQWLDORIWKHORFDOVSHHFKDVDbSRZHUIXOWRROWRWUHDW WKHWKHPHRIWKH1RUWKHUQ,ULVKFRQĠLFW

Before going on to an analysis of their application of Ulster dialects LQSRHWU\LWLVQHFHVVDU\WRKDYHDbEULHIORRNDWWKHSRHWVijFXOWXUDOEDFN-JURXQGUHDOL]LQJğUVWRIDOOWKDWWKHWDJVĴ3URWHVWDQWĵDQGĴ&DWKROLFĵDUH RIWHQXVHGLQWKH1RUWKWRGHPDUFDWHRQHijVFRPPXQLW\RIRULJLQZLWKRXW really referring to religion. Longley, whose parents moved from England WR,UHODQGVSRNH%ULWLVK(QJOLVKDWKRPHDQGDWWHQGHGDb3URWHVWDQWVFKRRO As he said in one interview, “The result of being brought up by English SDUHQWVLQ,UHODQGLVWKDW,IHHOVOLJKWO\LOODWHDVHRQERWKLVODQGVbbbb,WijVRXW RIVXFKVSOLWVRXWRIVXFKWHQVLRQVWKDW,ZULWHSHUKDSVĵĴ4 $0L-FKDHO/RQJOH\ĵ$OWKRXJKEDVLFDOO\/RQJOH\FRQVLGHUVKLPVHOIDQ,ULVK poet, his feeling of identity is never self-complacent and the confession of

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,ULVK (QJOLVK RU OLQNHG WR UHOLJLRQĽEXW H[FOXVLYHO\ RQ WKH FRQQHFWLRQ with “the sick counties we call home,” as he terms Ulster in his “Letters” (3RHPVļ7U\LQJWRHYDGHLGHQWLğFDWLRQZLWK8OVWHUFXOWXUH /RQJOH\GRHVQRWUHQRXQFHWKHUHJLRQĴ,VWLOOGRQijWWKLQNRIP\VHOIDV DQ8OVWHUZULWHU,WKLQNRIP\VHOIDVDbZULWHUZKRFRPHVIURP8OVWHUDV DQ8OVWHUPDQZKRZULWHVĵĴ7KH/RQJOH\7DSHVĵ,WLVQRWJHRJUDSK\ that seems to be the issue, but politics and denomination. With regard to the former, he feels an outsider, alien to both his unionist community of origin and its nationalist alternative. He seeks to strike his own balance, ğQGDbPLGGOHJURXQGEHWZHHQWKHWZRĴ,ijPOLNHDbVXSSRUWRIDbVHHVDZĵ Ĵ3RU]ÈGQLHVNURMRQ\SïDWHNĂQLHJXĵ6LPLODUO\WR3DXOLQ0DKRQRU 0XOGRRQKHWDNHVRQWKHDLURIDbVXEYHUVLYHĴVS\LQJRQĵWKHSKLOLVWLQHDQG VPXJ3URWHVWDQWFRPPXQLW\Ĵ$PRQJQDWLRQDOLVWV,IHHODbXQLRQLVWDQG DPRQJXQLRQLVWV,EHKDYHOLNHDbQDWLRQDOLVWĵĴ3RU]ÈGQLHVNURMRQ\SïDWHN ĂQLHJXĵ,QUHIHUHQFHWRUHOLJLRQKHGHğQHVKLPVHOILQFRQWUDGLFWRU\ WHUPVDVĴDbSDJDQDQGRQHRIWKRVHDZNZDUG3URWHVWDQWVĵĴ)RQWĵGorse Fires

WKHIRUPHUPHDQLQJKLVFXUUHQWUHDOVWDWHRIEHOLHIVZKLOHWKHODW-ter relating to his origins by means of the conventional label. He remem-EHUVWKDWDWWKHRXWEUHDNRIWKHFRQĠLFWKHZDVĴFRQVXPHGZLWK3URWHVWDQW JXLOWĵ EXW HYHU VLQFH KH ĴGHFLGHG WKDW IHHOLQJ JXLOW\ LV Db ZDVWH RI WLPHĵ Ĵ7KH/RQJOH\7DSHVĵ

3DXOLQijVEDFNJURXQGVHHPVMXVWDVPXFKLIQRWPRUHFRPSOH[$O-though extremely critical about the Northern Irish Protestant unionists and their “state,” he says he has never been “entirely detribalized”

(Mino-taur: Poetry and the Nation State%RUQLQ/HHGVDWWKHDJHRIIRXUKH

moved to Belfast together with his family of Presbyterian Scottish, English and Manx stock. Raised in Belfast, he went on to study at Hull and Ox-ford, then lectured at Nottingham and now at Oxford. He feels an Irish ZULWHUEXWGHQLHVDbFOHDUFXWVHQVHRILGHQWLW\EHLW,ULVKRU(QJOLVKDQG bewares of the ancestry worship, though in his poetry he celebrates certain ğJXUHVRIWKHSDVWVXFKDVWKH8QLWHG,ULVKPHQ:KHQDQ8OVWHUSUHVVEDU-RQRQFHDVNHGKLPĴ$UH\XDQ8OVWHUPDQ"ĵ3DXOLQIRXQGKLPVHOIXQDEOH to answer and slipped away (The Hillsborough Script/HDYLQJ%HOIDVWLQ DbKXUU\ZKLFKKHUHPHPEHUVLQDbSHQLWHQWLDOWRQHLQĴ)RUWRJLYHQHVVĵThe

:LQG'RJKHZDVĠHHLQJWKHQHWVRIĴDFUD]\VRFLHW\DQDKLVWRULFDO

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many texts to social and political dimensions of Protestantism (both nega- WLYHDQGSRVLWLYHWR3URWHVWDQWLPDJLQDWLRQDVERWKDbFUHDWLYHDQGDbOLPLW-LQJIRUFHDQGWRLQWHUQDWLRQDO3URWHVWDQWH[SHULHQFHDVDbFRQWH[WIRUWKH North of Ireland, where Protestants have paradoxically felt under siege. Paulin himself seems to be driven to and repelled by various aspects of his community of origin.

With time Paulin developed concepts behind language and poetic dic-WLRQ WKDW DLPHG WR OLEHUDWH KLV VW\OH IURP WKH IRUPDOLW\ RI KLV ğUVW FRO-OHFWLRQV(PSOR\LQJDbPRUHFROORTXLDOWRQHWKHSRHWVWDUWHGWRPDNHXVH RIORFDOGLDOHFWDQGHPSKDVL]HWKHPHDQLQJRIĴRUDOLW\ĵ3DXOLQijVWKLQNLQJ about language falls into the network of pronounced social and political LGHDVZKLFKDVDbSUDFWLFHVWDQGVRXWIURPPRVWRIFRQWHPSRUDU\,ULVKSR-etry (Heaney comes closest in this respect). The vernacular and the oral qualities of the language, together with some other aspects of it such as punctuation or syntax, are involved, in his view, in the social and politi-cal struggle for territory, property, culture, national identity and power ($b1HZ/RRNDWWKH/DQJXDJH4XHVWLRQ).

Notions of “oral” style, sound and speech, connected with the in-ĠXHQFHRI+DUG\DQG)URVWVHHPWREHYLWDOIRUWKHDQDO\VLVRI3DXOLQijV SRHPV<HWWKLVDQDO\VLVUHYHDOVWKDWLWLVQRWFRPPXQDOLGHQWLğFDWLRQWKDW OLHVDWWKHKHDUWRIKLVIRFXVRQWKHODQJXDJHijVRUDOTXDOLWLHVRURIKLVXVH RIGLDOHFW,WLVUDWKHUDbORYHKDWHUHODWLRQVKLSORYHRIKLVFRPPXQLW\ijV language, oratory, and radical tradition (embodied in his poetry by the United Irishmen), and hate of their current ideas and state (unionism with its Orange parades). In his introduction to Minotaur Paulin sets orality against the social and political value of print: “Within oral cul-ture there is an instinctive suspicion of print culcul-ture because it expresses SRZHUDQGODZĵZKLOHĴRUDOLW\LVV\QRQ\PRXVZLWKSRZHUOHVVQHVVDQG IDLOXUHĵļ3DXOLQijVRZQSRHWU\RIWHQVHHPVWRĴVWUDLQWRXWWHULW-self ” (“Matins,” :DONLQJDb/LQHDJDLQVWWKHSRZHURISULQW<HWRUDOLW\ is not disabled, on the contrary. Paulin associates it with Protestantism: if VSHHFKLVIUHHGRPWKH8QLWHG,ULVKPHQijVDFFHQWVRXQGVDQGSURQXQFLD-tion support their political ideal. In “On the Windfarm” the poet com-pares both speech and history in the making, Being and Becoming, to an untamed wind (:DONLQJDb/LQHļ

His comment that “the writer must aim to go beyond writing into DbNLQGRIVSHHFKFRQWLQXXPĵMinotaurFRXOGEHDSSOLHGWRKLVRZQ poems starting with the /LEHUW\7UHH, where he began to combine various types of diction, among others Ulster speech and Belfast dialect. Neil Cor-coran observes that /LEHUW\7UHH is more “supple and musical,” “by turns luxuriant and ascetic,” while FivemiletownLVĴSDULQJ3DXOLQijVQDWXUDOHOR-TXHQFHWRWKHERQHĵļ3DXOLQZDVDOVRLQĠXHQFHGE\WKHHQHUJ\

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among the American Scots-Irish he discovered “some sort of recognition of this displaced tribe which in some way I might belong to. I was trying WRJHWDbNLQGRIUHGQHFNODQJXDJHLQWKHERRN>Fivemiletown@ĵĴ4 $ 3DXOLQĵ7KLVGLVFRYHU\FRQYHUJHGZLWKKLVUHĠHFWLRQRQWKHZRUNRIWKH American painter of Scotch-Irish stock, Jackson Pollock. Paulin in his own SRHWU\KDVEHHQWU\LQJWRVRXQGRXW3ROORFNijVVSLULWRIĴEOLQGO\DQGLQ-WXLWLYHO\ QRW NQRZLQJ ZKDW \RXijUH DW EXW GRLQJ LWĵ DV KH IRUPXODWHV LW LQĴ,b$P1DWXUHĵFivemiletownļ'HWHVWLQJWKHVW\OHRIWKHQLQH-WHHQWKFHQWXU\(QJOLVKOLWHUDU\WUDGLWLRQKHIRXQGDbIRUPXODRIğJKWLQJ it in “orality,” whose spontaneity and energy affected his acts of writing.

Paulin has kept his Ulster pronunciation despite, or perhaps against, his living in England and teaching at Oxford. “Fortogiveness” provides the UHDGHUZLWKDbFOHDULQGLFDWLRQRIWKLVDWWLWXGHĴ,ijPVWLOODWKRPHLQ>%HO-fast] speech / even though somewhere along the way / my vowels have maybe got shifted or faked” (7KH:LQG'RJ7KHQRWLRQVRIKRPHDQG FRPPXQLW\VRPHWLPHVFRQYHUJHLQKLVSHUFHSWLRQRIWKHYHUQDFXODUMXVW as they do for Longley and Heaney. In “The Wind Dog” Paulin recalls his native Belfast speech in the family context:

and why does my mother say modren not modern"

DPRGUXQQXYHOQRWDbPRGHUQQRYHO a faQDWLFQRWDbIDQDWLF

ZKLFKLVDbZD\RIVD\LQJ

this is my mother tongue. (7KH:LQG'RJ

My references to Heaney and Longley are not coincidental. The poem abounds with quotations from Longley (“no continuing city”), Heaney (“Broagh,” “exposure,” “muddy compound”), Muldoon (“quoof ”), Rosen-berg (“break of day in the trenches”), John Clare and others. Paulin cher-ishes the notion of the universal community of writers with its constant ĠX[RILGHDVDQGĴ7KH:LQG'RJĵLV\HWDQRWKHUĴFRPPXQLW\RIZULWHUVĵ poem in his creative output. Some of the local linguistic “investigations” in this poem suggest that Paulin speaks on behalf of his fellow poets im-PHUVHGLQWKHVRXQGVRIWKH1RUWKHUQ,ULVKFRQĠLFWRULQWKHĴDFRXVWLF exposure” of another war (Rosenberg in the First World War). For Pau-OLQLWLVDbUDUHSRHWLFVWDWHPHQWRIWKLVNLQG,WVOLJKWO\UHVRQDWHVZLWKWKH ĴJHQHUDWLRQDOĵWRQHRI/RQJOH\ijVĴ/HWWHUVĵ,QĴ7KH:LQG'RJĵKHUHLğHV VRXQGDQGDVVRFLDWHVLWZLWKODQGVFDSH7KHDOOXVLRQVWR+HDQH\ijVSODFH QDPHSRHPVIXUWKHUSURYLGHDbKLQWDERXWKLVLURQL]LQJWKHJHQUHDQGSURYH that Paulin cannot see the possibility of going back to harmony and safety

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RIWKHĴRULJLQVĵEHLWFKLOGKRRGRUHW\PRORJ\7KHFRQĠLFWLQ8OVWHUKDV put an end to “innocence.” Nature has been replaced by the bombed city, and the sound of the place is not the one of humans but of war machines.

%HKLQG3DXOLQijVXVHRIGLDOHFWOLHVWKHQRWLRQRIFUHDWLYHVSRQWDQHRXV and risky orality, which he writes about in $1HZ/RRNDWWKH/DQJXDJH

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ZKHQKHDUJXHVIRUDb+LEHUQR(QJOLVKGLFWLRQDU\$QRWKHUDV-pect he values highly is the intimate complicity between the reader and WKHZULWHUXVLQJDbGLDOHFW7KLVPD\FRPHDVFKDOOHQJLQJIRUVRPHUHDG-HUV3DXOLQijVRZQXVHRIORFDOZRUGVLVLQWKLVUHVSHFWPRUHH[WUHPHWKDQ +HDQH\ijVRU/RQJOH\ijVZKRZRXOGSURYLGHWKHLUUHDGHUVZLWKH[SODQDWLRQV in earlier collections. Paulin generally leaves local words unexplained. He UHFRJQL]HVWKHGLIğFXOW\EXWLVPRUHLQWHUHVWHGLQWKHHIIHFWRIWKLVH[SHUL-ment. Programmatically opposing the idea of linguistic purity which he UHJDUGVUDFLVWKHXVHVORFDOVSHHFKDVDbIRUPRIFRQWHVWDWLRQĴ,I\RXORRN at the way in which the English language has been historically described, WKHFHQWUDOFRQFHSWLVRIWKHZHOORI(QJOLVKXQGHğOHG,KRSHWRGHğOHWKDW ZHOO DV PXFK DV SRVVLEOHĵ Ĵ4 $ 3DXOLQĵ 7KHUH LV Db GHWHFWDEOH QRWH of enfant terribleQHVV LQ WKLV VWDWHPHQW WKLV DFW RI VDERWDJH MXVW DV LQ KLVZULWLQJVDERXW(QJODQG,WLVDbGHPRQVWUDWLRQRIQRWRQO\SHUVRQDORU FUHDWLYHIUHHGRPEXWDOVRDbSROLWLFDOGHFODUDWLRQRIDbĴEDUEDULDQĵRSSRV-ing the British. In “The Wind Dog” he openly states that the lFUHDWLYHIUHHGRPEXWDOVRDbSROLWLFDOGHFODUDWLRQRIDbĴEDUEDULDQĵRSSRV-inguistic SXULW\ RI %ULWLVK (QJOLVKĽDQG RI ,ULVK IRU WKDW PDWWHUĽLV Db IDNH DQG JRHVRQWRPRFNLQJO\ĴGHğOHĵVWDQGDUGIRUPVRIWKHDGMHFWLYHVĴ(QJOLVKĵ DQGĴ,ULVKĵZLWKWKHUHJLRQDODFFHQWĴWKLVLVHFKW%ULWLVKbbbbQRWDbVSULQJ ZHOOĽWKHZHOORI$QJOLVKRUWKHZHOORI2LULVKXQGHğOHGĵ8VLQJ WKHWHUPĴODQJXDJHĵLQWHUFKDQJHDEO\ZLWKĴGLDOHFWĵKLVOLQJXLVWLFSURMHFW in $1HZ/RRNDWWKH/DQJXDJH4XHVWLRQ involves Ulster Scots, Irish and ,ULVK(QJOLVKPHGLDWHGE\WKHFUHDWLYHSRZHUVRI,ULVK(QJOLVK3DXOLQijV study of the use of the vernacular by fellow poets (Minotaur) offers yet DbGHHSHULQVLJKWLQWRWKHLVVXHDQGFRLQFLGHVDWWLPHVZLWK+HDQH\ijVFRP-ments on the translation of Beowulf. They share the perception of Ulster GLDOHFWVĽSULYDWHVHFUHWIDPLO\VSHHFKĽDVDbNH\WRWKHRIğFLDOODQJXDJH once imposed by the conquest.

,Q3DXOLQijVSRHWU\WKHVSHDNHUVRIWKRVHGLDOHFWVDUHPRVWO\LQYROYHGLQ political activities: Orangemen in “Drumcree Three” (7KH:LQG'RJļ WKH3DLVOH\OLNHSUHDFKHULQĴ'UXPFUHH)RXUĵ7KH:LQG'RJļ RQHRIWKHPRVWLQWHUHVWLQJRI3DXOLQijVSRHPVLQWHUPVRIWKHVRXQGOD\HU of Ulster speech and rhetoric), the UDA in “Cadmus and the Dragon”

 _{Compare another ironic dinnseanchasRI3DXOLQijVĴ$1DçYH5LVNĵ (7KH:LQG'RJ}

ļ DOVRUHIHUULQJWRDbERPELQJDQGFRPPHQWLQJRQWKHSHDFHSURFHVVDQGWKHUROHRI poetry.

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of ridicule for the British (The Hillsborough Script), some protagonists of

The Riot Act, but also the schoolmaster in “Father of History” (/LEHUW\ TreeZKRVHGLVWLQFWDFFHQWJLYHVDZD\QRWRQO\KLVSODFHRIRULJLQEXW

also his republican convictions and, probably, denomination. As opposed WRWKHSUHDFKHUijVRIĴ'UXPFUHH)RXUĵKLVIDLWKLVDbKXPDQLVWijVFRQFHUQ The language of his ideas is lucid and practical, while his burr (the rough pronunciation of “r” in some accents) takes on rebelliousness and phy-VLTXHRIWKHĴOLEHUW\WUHHĵĽWKHV\PERORIWKHXSULVLQJ7KHGLDOHFWLV DOVRDbNLQGRIDbĴVHFUHWFRGHĵVKDUHGZLWKWKHUHVWRIWKH8QLWHG,ULVKPHQ This free speech carries the promise of the rebirth of the republican ideal, which Paulin tries to resuscitate in his poetry. A similar correspondence between Ulster dialect and Protestant republicanism appears in “And :KHUH'R<RX6WDQGRQWKH1DWLRQDO4XHVWLRQ"ĵZKHUHIDVFLQDWLRQZLWK local accent has sexual connotations, suggesting the emotional power of the political ideal.

Paulin himself does not always “relish” the dialect. Sometimes it evokes DbIHDURIKLVWRULFDODQGSROLWLFDOH[WUHPLWLHVDVLQĴ3ROLWLNĵ

,ijGEHGHDGFKXIIHGLI,FRXOGFDWFK the dialects of those sea-loughs, EXW,ijPVFDUHGRIDOOWKDWijVKDUG DQGFRPSOHWHO\VXEMHFWLYH

those quartzy voices in the playground RIDbVFKRROFDOOHG5RVHWWD3ULPDU\ whose basalt and sandstone have gone like Napoleon into Egypt. (/LEHUW\7UHH

3DXOLQijVIHHOLQJVDERXWGLDOHFWVZKRVHVRXQGVKHGHVFULEHVLQDQHPR-tional way, are clearly contradictory. Despite its spikiness, the speech of WKH8QLWHG,ULVKPHQLVIULHQGO\ZDUPNLQGORYHGDQGHQMR\HG7KHXQ-LRQLVWGLDOHFWVDUHTXDUW]\KDUGDQGVXEMHFWLYH5RVHWWD3ULPDU\LQ%HOIDVW is predominantly Protestant). With its ironic title the poem distances Pau-lin from his community of origin, especially in the siege atmosphere of Belfast.

*HUDOG'DZHSRLQWHGWR3DXOLQijVLQFRQVLVWHQF\LQWKLVSDUWLFXODU SRHPĴGHDGFKXIIHGĵIJH[WUHPHO\SOHDVHGijLVDbGLDOHFWDOZRUGWKXVWKH SRHWZLVKHVĴWRGRZKDWKHKDVDFWXDOO\DFKLHYHGĽWRXVHIURPIJWKHGLDOHFWVij RQHWHUPRIUHIHUHQFHIJGHDGFKXIIHGij6RLWLVFRQIXVLQJWRFRQIHVVWKDWKH is scared of that world while simultaneously making deliberate use of parts RILWVODQJXDJHĵ2QHFDQLQIHUWKDW3DXOLQijVDWWLWXGHWRWKHODQJXDJHVHHPV WREHWKHORYHKDWHUHODWLRQVKLSĽEXW'DZHGUDZVDbGLIIHUHQWFRQFOXVLRQ

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“The poet cannot really have it both ways. Only out of the control of WKHIJFRPSOHWHO\VXEMHFWLYHijFDQDQ\WUXHJUDVSRIDbSHRSOHijVODQJXDJHDQG consequently their experience, emerge.” Dawe seems to differentiate un-LRQLVWVijGLDOHFWVIURP3DXOLQijVĽEXWGHVSLWH3DXOLQijVSRVLWLRQRXWVLGHWKDW tribe and their ideology, their language is still part of the culture he hails IURPZKLOHWKHYHUQDFXODULVDOVRDbPHDQVRIUHVLVWLQJWKH6WDQGDUG(QJ-lish, establishment), the state. In $1HZ/RRNDWWKH/DQJXDJH4XHVWLRQ he UHPDUNVWKDWWKHOR\DOLVWVHSDUDWLVWLGHDRIFUHDWLQJDbGLFWLRQDU\IRUKRPH-OHVV8OVWHUGLDOHFWZRUGVĴLVDbUHVSRQVHWRWKHKRPHOHVVRUGLVSODFHGIHHOLQJ ZKLFKLVQRZVXFKDbVLJQLğFDQWSDUWRIWKHOR\DOLVWLPDJLQDWLRQĵ:KDW LVPRUHWKHLUFRQVFLRXVQHVVRIEHLQJDbĴPLQRULW\SHRSOHĵPDNHVWKHP believe that their dialect is threatened both by the British English and Ul-VWHU(QJOLVKĽĴWKHSURYLQFLDOODQJXDJHRI2IğFLDO8QLRQLVPĵ3HWHU 0F'RQDOGGHVFULEHV3DXOLQijVWZRIDFHWHGDWWLWXGHWRZDUGV8OVWHUVSHHFK as “speaking as though from within the community he examines, whilst DOVRVXEMHFWLQJWKDWFRPPXQLW\WRDbZLWKHULQJH[WHUQDOVFUXWLQ\ĵ The opposition of belonging and homelessness perfectly illustrates this ĴGLDOHFWTXHVWLRQĵ3DWULFLD&UDLJUHPDUNVWKDWĴKRPHVLFNQHVVLQ3DXOLQijV poems is the sickness of, not for, the place” and thus he is inventing “a style FDSDEOHRIbbbbVWD\LQJFORVHWRKRPHDQGDFKLHYLQJDbIRUPLGDEOHUDQJHRI making gestures of nonconformity and taking account of tradition” (“His-WRU\ĵ6KHWUDFHVKLVXVHRIWKHYHUQDFXODUWRWKH5K\PLQJ:HDYHUV who extensively used Ulster Scots and with whom Paulin shares politi- FDOLGHDOV&UDLJDOVRSRLQWVWRWKHDIğQLW\EHWZHHQ3DXOLQijVSODLQH[SUHV-VLYHXVHRIGLDOHFWDQG/RXLV0DF1HLFHijVXQURPDQWLFXVHRIODQJXDJH7KH source of their attitudes lies with “the deracination of one and disaffection RIWKHRWKHUĵĴ5HĠH[HVDQG5HĠHFWLRQVĵQS

In “Politik” the allusion to the Rosetta stone brings into play several IDFWRUVKLVWRU\RIFRQTXHVWDQGFRORQ\HQLJPDLQWHOOLJLELOLW\DQGLQDF-FHVVLELOLW\ RI GLDOHFWV WKH GLDOHFWVij ĴVWRQ\ĵ VRXQGV DVVRFLDWHG ZLWK WKH GLHKDUGLGHDVRIWKHFRPPXQLW\DQGWKHGDWHRI1DSROHRQijVGLVFRYHU\ VXJJHVWLYHRIVHFWDULDQLVPZKLFKZRQRYHUWKH8QLWHG,ULVKPHQ ULVLQJ-XVWDVLQ0XOGRRQijVĴ$QVHRĵVFKRRO,ULVKLVODWHUXVHGE\SDUDPLOL-WDU\QDWLRQDOLVWVDVDbĴVHFUHWFRGHĵVRLQ3DXOLQijVSRHPWKHGLDOHFWVRIWKH Rosetta Primary embody the unionist past and present.

&ULWLFVVXFKDV*HRUJH:DWVRQRU'DYLG:KHDWOH\DFFXVH3DX-OLQRIDSSURSULDWLQJGLDOHFWRIXVLQJLWIRUSROLWLFDOSXUSRVHV<HWFDQWKLV EHDYRLGHGLQWKHFRXQWU\ZKRVHGRPLQDQWODQJXDJHLVDbFRORQLDOKHULWDJH" By depicting the use of the vernacular by the UDA (who back up their DVSLUDWLRQWR1RUWKHUQ,UHODQGijVLQGHSHQGHQFHZLWK8OVWHU6FRWVE\WKH United Irishmen and by himself, Paulin does not advocate the view that WKH\DOOKROGWKHVDPHYLHZV$VDbWRRORIWKHSRHWijVVWULIHDJDLQVWVWDQGDUG

249

WKHHYROXWLRQRI3DXOLQijVSRHWU\IURPWKHFRQVWULFWHGVXEGXHGGLFWLRQWR-wards linguistic freedom, association of images and sound games, as well as towards richer texture and contexts due to the use of local and collo-quial expressions. Critics such as Robert Johnstone (“Guldering Unself-FRQVFLRXVO\ĵMXGJHKLVXVHRIGLDOHFWDVDUWLğFLDOVHOIFRQVFLRXVDQG programmatic, contrary to his claims of “orality” and spontaneity. Elmer $QGUHZVĴ7RP3DXOLQĵLVWKHRQO\RQHEHVLGH&ODUH:LOOVWRH[-SODLQWKHOLQJXLVWLFDVVRFLDWLYHIUHHGRPRUDQDUFK\RI3DXOLQijVSRHWU\DV an exploration rather than limitation, and who appreciates the poem that is not reducible to semantic “meanings.” No matter how we approach it, in Ireland language with its inherent history seems not to be “politically QHXWUDOĵ3RHWVDFNQRZOHGJHWKLVIDFWLQVWHDGRIWU\LQJWRĴDSSURSULDWHĵLW they explore those historical relations which also bear on politics.

0LFKDHO/RQJOH\ijVOLQJXLVWLFEDFNJURXQGZDVRQHRIWKHUHDVRQVIRU his “double identity” or internal split. In Tuppenny Stung:

Autobiographi-cal Chapters he reAutobiographi-calls the problems of acceptance he faced at school. His

English accent acquired at home and associated with the better-off mid-dle-class distinguished him from his working-class friends at that time. The moments of his going to school and back home were the ones of re-creating, re-inventing himself in order to integrate with his surround- LQJV7KLVUHDFWLRQLVFKDUDFWHULVWLFRILPPLJUDQWVijFKLOGUHQIRUZKRPGLI-IHUHQFHPHDQVSHHUH[FOXVLRQRUHYHQDJJUHVVLRQ7ZLFHDbGD\/RQJOH\ZDV crossing the border of two personalities, the two worlds where language GHğQHGLGHQWLW\DQGWKHVHQVHRIEHORQJLQJ

In the course of his education, linguistic characteristics shifted from social class to regional difference. As Longley remembers in “River & )RXQWDLQĵUHIHUULQJWRKLVDQG'HUHN0DKRQijVVWXGLHVDW7ULQLW\Ĵ(WRQLDQV RQ&RPPRQVFXWRXUDFFHQWVZLWKDbNQLIHĵ7KH*KRVW2UFKLG7KHLU DFFHQWZDVDbFOHDUPDUNRIWKHLURULJLQVĴ:HZHUHIURPWKH1RUWKbbbb&RO-OHJH6TXDUHLQ%HOIDVWDQGWKH/LQHQ+DOO+DGEHHQRXUSDWFKĵ$JDLQ ODQJXDJHZDVWKHUHDVRQIRUGLVFULPLQDWLRQFODVVLğFDWLRQDQGSUHMXGLFH <HWDVDQHOHPHQWRIFXOWXUDOGLIIHUHQFHLWDOVRDOORZHGWKHWZRSRHWVWR JDLQGLVWDQFHWRWKHLULPPHGLDWHVXUURXQGLQJVĽWKH,QGH[WKH%DQDQG RWKHUSKHQRPHQDRIWKH,ULVK5HSXEOLFRIWKDWWLPHĽDQGWRWKHLUKRPH further away. It became the means of defying those issues, adding to Long-OH\ijVDQG0DKRQijVLPDJLQHGUROHRIVXEYHUVLYHVZLWKWKHLURZQĴVHFUHWĵ ODQJXDJHZKLFKDSSHDUVTXLWHVLPLODUWR3DXOLQijVVWDQFH

In some of his poems drawing on antiquity Longley employs words IURP8OVWHUDQG%HOIDVWGLDOHFWVDQGWRDbOHVVHUH[WHQW,ULVKĴ+RPHFRP-LQJĵ RU Ĵ7KH %XWFKHUVĵ HPSOR\ LQGLYLGXDO ,ULVK ZRUGV

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IDVWGLDOHFWĴ7KH+HOPHWĵĽ6FRWVĴ7KH9LVLRQRI7KHRFO\PHQXVĵĽ8O-ster Scots, and “Phemios and Medon” is written almost entirely in UlIDVWGLDOHFWĴ7KH+HOPHWĵĽ6FRWVĴ7KH9LVLRQRI7KHRFO\PHQXVĵĽ8O-ster Scots. The poet does not comment on his use of local words and he is rarely, if ever, asked that question. For sure, one would not expect such Db OLQJXLVWLF YDULHW\ LQ WUDQVODWLRQV RU SRHPV GUDZLQJ RQ WKH &ODVVLFV ,W DJDLQ EULQJV WR PLQG +HDQH\ijV SUDFWLFH LQ Beowulf: “In those instances ZKHUHDbORFDO8OVWHUZRUGVHHPHGHLWKHUSRHWLFDOO\RUKLVWRULFDOO\ULJKW ,bIHOWIUHHWRXVHLWĵ[[LLļ[[[:HPD\ZRQGHUDERXWWKHSUDFWLFDOLWLHV RI+HDQH\ijVWUDQVODWLRQĽKRZHIIHFWLYHLWLVLIWKHUHLVQR8OVWHU6FRWVRU +LEHUQR(QJOLVKGLFWLRQDU\RUDb1RUWKHUQ,ULVKSHUVRQDWKDQGHVSHFLDOO\ that his glossed translation of Beowulf was initially commissioned by Nor-WRQIRU$PHULFDQXQLYHUVLWLHV6LPLODUO\/RQJOH\ijVĴ3KHPLRVDQG0HGRQĵ LVKDUGO\GHğQDEOHLQWHUPVRIGLDOHFWDQGQRWFRPSOHWHO\XQGHUVWRRGE\ Db6RXWKHUQHUQRWWRPHQWLRQDbIRUHLJQHU:HPD\ZRQGHUDERXWWKHSROLWL-cal aspects of choosing whether to resurrect Homer in Belfast dialect or in 8OVWHU6FRWVZKLFKPDNHVDbGLIIHUHQFHLQWKH1RUWKRI,UHODQG

5HIHUULQJWRĴ7KH%XWFKHUVĵ5REHUW-RKQVWRQHDVNVDbUKHWRULFDOTXHV- WLRQĴ$QGZK\IJ%XWFKHUVijLIQRWWRPDNHXVWKLQNRIWKH6KDQNLOO%XWFK-HUVOR\DOLVWVZKRH[FXVHGWKHLUDFWVRIIRXOVDGLVPDVGHIHQVLYHDFWLRQV"ĵ Ĵ+DUPRQLFVEHWZHHQ(OHFWULğHG)HQFHVĵ7KH,ULVKsheughIRUIJGLWFKij (quite current in Ulster speech) marks the place of action of the poem rath-HUWKDQGHğQHVWKHSURWDJRQLVWVijLGHQWLW\\HWWKHDGMHFWLYHĴERJĵEULQJLQJ WRPLQG+HDQH\ijVĴ.LQVKLSĵLVDVVRFLDWHGZLWKPXUGHURXVLPSXOVHVDQG GHDWK$OUHDG\Ĵ7KH9LVLRQRI7KHRFO\PHQXVĵDQWLFLSDWLQJWKH2G\VVH\ “butchers,” uses an Ulster Scots word, while “Phemios and Medon,” the HSLVRGHGLUHFWO\SUHFHGLQJ+RPHUijVRULJLQDOĴEXWFKHUVĵXVHVH[WHQVLYHO\ 8OVWHU6FRWV/RQJOH\FRQğUPV-RKQVWRQHijVMXGJHPHQWE\FRPSDULQJĴKLV part of Mayo” with Ithaca (sandy and remote) and Greece, and remembers that summer when everybody was talking about the Protestant gang:

,ijYHRIWHQWKRXJKWWKDWWKDWSDUWRI,UHODQGbbbbORRNVOLNH*UHHFH2U *UHHFHORRNVOLNHDbGXVWļERZOYHUVLRQRI,UHODQGDWWKDWWLPHRQH of the things people were talking about was the Shankill Road mur-GHUV7KHUHijGEHHQVRPHGUHDGIXONLOOLQJVDQGWRUWXULQJVLQRXWKRXVHV very remote places like that. My physical circumstances brought to the surface, or brought to my attention, perhaps, that passage in the

2G\V- _{In early volumes Longley provides explanations of the words in references, giving}

up this practice with the publication of 7KH *KRVW 2UFKLG Ĵ+RPHFRPLQJĵ IJEXOODXQij IJVWRQHEDVLQijWKHZRUGXVHGDOVRLQĴ,Q0D\Rĵ (Poems ļĴ7KH%XWFKHUVĵIJVKHXJKij IJGLWFKijĽGorse FiresĴ/DHUWHVĵIJGXQFKHUijIJĠDWFDSijĽGorse Fires Ĵ7KH+HOPHWĵ IJZHDQijIJEDE\ijIJPDPP\ijIJEDEELHij7KH*KRVW2UFKLGĴ7KH9LVLRQRI7KHRFO\PHQXVĵ IJSHHULHKHHGLWijIJFRQIXVHGGLVRULHQWHGijĽ7KH:HDWKHULQ-DSDQ

251

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and somebody else, wipes out the suitors. And I had in the back of my mind the Shankill Butchers. (Metre

In “Phemios and Medon,” when Odysseus intends to “redd the KRXVHĵ ERWK VXLWRUV ĴKRRN LW DQG KXQNHU IRUQHQVW WKH DOWDU RI =HXV b$IHDUGDQGVNHOO\H\HGNHHNLQJHYHU\ZKHUHIRUGHDWKĵ*HQHUDOO\LQWKH poem, the Ulster dialect is used for communication and for the narrative: by Odysseus and Telemachos in direct speech, and by Telemachos as the narrator in indirect speech:

I gulder to me da: ‘Dinnae gut him wi yer gully,

+HijVRQO\DbKDUPOHVVFUD\WHU$QGKRZijVDERXW0HGRQ 7KHWRDVWPDVWHUZKRVHDVK\SHW,ZDV"'LG\HGLQJKLP" 7KRQRXOJDEEOHEORRWHUijVDbFDQQ\KXHU 2XWKHVSDOWHUVĠDIğQJKLVKDQGVEOLUWLQJWRP\NQHHV >2G\VVHXV@IJ<RXPD\WKDQN7HOHPDFKRVIRUWKLVFKDQFHWRZLVHXS $QGSDVVRQWKHPHVVDJHRIRXOGDFHQF\ij7KH*KRVW2UFKLG

$OWKRXJK ĴRXO GDFHQF\ĵ LV Db UXQQLQJ WHUP LQ WKH 1RUWK GHQRWLQJ ĴSHDFHIXOFRH[LVWHQFHĵRIWKHFRPPXQLWLHVEHIRUHWKHFRQĠLFWKRZHYHU such coexistence may have been considered “decent” predominantly by one community only), here it sounds grotesque in the context of Odys-VHXVijLQWHQGHGVODXJKWHULQKLVRZQKRXVHLQWKHQDPHRIGHFHQF\6WLOO WKRXJKWKH\DUHDFFRPSOLFHVLWLVDbFRQYHUVDWLRQEHWZHHQDbIDWKHUDQGKLV VRQ,QDbIHZRWKHUSRHPVE\/RQJOH\GLDOHFWDFFRPSDQLHVLQWLPDWHPHHW-ings, profoundly moving scenes of reunion and homecoming after years of H[LOH,QĴ/DHUWHVĵIRULQVWDQFHZHFDQVHH2G\VVHXVijDQGPHWDSKRULFDOO\ /RQJOH\ijVRZQIDWKHUZHDULQJKLV%HOIDVWduncher, while the speaker of “The Mustard Tin” tries to go back in time at the deathbed of his parent andKRNHVDURXQGKLVFKLOGKRRGIRUIDPLOLDUREMHFWVIJORRNVIRUWKHPij %RWK3DXOLQDQG/RQJOH\VLWXDWHODQJXDJHLQDbVRFLRSROLWLFDOSHUVSHF-WLYH$OWKRXJKWKLVDVSHFWLVPRUHQRWLFHDEOHLQ3DXOLQijVSRHWU\ODQJXDJH LQ/RQJOH\ijVZRUNLVQRWIUHHIURPSROLWLFDOLPSOLFDWLRQV7KHLUXVHRI8O-VWHUGLDOHFWVKDVDbGRXEOHHGJH2QWKHRQHKDQGLWUHIHUVWKHUHDGHUWRWKH 1RUWKHUQ,ULVKFRQĠLFWUHJDUGHGE\PDQ\LQWHUPVRIWKHFLYLOZDUDQGLV RIWHQSODFHGLQWKHIUDPHZRUNRI*UHHNP\WKRORJ\,Q3DXOLQijVZULWLQJV this trend is represented, for example, by “Cadmus and the Dragon” or his two plays, The Riot Act after Antigone and Seize the Fire after Prometheus

Bound. On the other hand, the dialects evoke family bonds, childhood

and home. They use local words to reveal the background and workings of violence, but also to express affection and the feeling of safety with which WKRVHZRUGVFDQSURYLGHWKHVSHDNHU,QWKHğUVWFDVHWKHSRHWVVKRZWKH

252

vernacular employed as yet another weapon of unionism, or they employ LWWKHPVHOYHVDVDbPHDQVRIVDWLUL]LQJOR\DOLVWV,WKDSSHQVWKDWWKHVSHDNHUV of their poems are members of the linguistic, but not political, community, which attests to the internal split within the group of Protestant descent. In the second case, when it is associated with home, the dialect seems to EHWKH1RUWKijVFXOWXUDOKHULWDJHZKLFKIUHTXHQWO\JHWVVRPHZKDWGHSROLWL-FL]HGLQ/RQJOH\ijVSRHWU\,Q3DXOLQijVWKHQRWLRQRIKRPHLVWRRSROLWLFDO for the dialect to ever get liberated. In both cases it provides one of most YLWDOIRXQGDWLRQVIRUWKHSRHWVijDFWLYHHQJDJHPHQWLQWKHGLVFXVVLRQRIKLV-WRU\DQGSROLWLFVUHĠHFWLQJDOOLQFRQVLVWHQFLHVDQGDPELJXLWLHVRIOLIHLQ 1RUWKHUQ,UHODQGLQWLPHVRIWKHFRQĠLFW

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Andrews, Elmer, ed. Contemporary Irish Poetry: A Collection of

Criti-cal Essays./RQGRQ0DFPLOODQ

---. “Tom Paulin: Underground Resistance Fighter.” Poetry in

Con-WHPSRUDU\,ULVK/LWHUDWXUH(G0LFKDHO.HQQHDOO\*HUUDUGV&URVV&ROLQ

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Corcoran, Neil. “Tom Paulin.” 7KH2[IRUG&RPSDQLRQWR7ZHQWLHWK

Century Poetry in English. Ed. Ian Hamilton. Oxford: Oxford University

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Craig, Patricia. “History and Its Retrieval in Contemporary Northern Irish Poetry: Paulin, Montague and Others.” Contemporary Irish Poetry:

A Collection of Critical Essays. Ed. Elmer Andrews. London: Macmillan,

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Ĵ5HĠH[HVDQG5HĠHFWLRQVĵ5HYRI,UHODQGDQGWKH(QJOLVK&ULVLV by Tom Paulin. 7LPHV/LWHUDU\6XSSOHPHQW$SU

'DZH *HUDOG Ĵ3RHPV RI Db 1RUWKHUQ 3URWHVWDQWĵ 5HY RI /LEHUW\

Tree, by Tom Paulin. ,/6

Heaney, Seamus. “Introduction.” Beowulf. Trans. Seamus Heaney. /RQGRQ)DEHUL[ļ[[[

Johnstone, Robert. “Guldering Unselfconsciously.” Rev. of Field Day 3DPSKOHWV1RVWRE\7RP3DXOLQ6HDPXV+HDQH\DQG6HDPXV'HDQH

Honest Ulsterman0D\ļ

Ĵ+DUPRQLFVEHWZHHQ(OHFWULğHG)HQFHVĵ5HYRIGorse Fires, by Michael Longley. Honest Ulstermanļ

Longley, Michael. Gorse Fires./RQGRQ6HFNHU :DUEXUJ ---.3RHPVļ'XEOLQ*DOOHU\

---.7KH*KRVW2UFKLG/RQGRQ&DSH3RHWU\ ---.7KH:HDWKHULQ-DSDQ/RQGRQ&DSH3RHWU\

253

---. Interview by Sarah Broom. Metreļ

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,QWHUYLHZE\'LOORQ-RKQVWRQĴ4 $0LFKDHO/RQJOH\ĵ,/6 ļ

---. Interview. “The Longley Tapes.” Honest Ulstermanļ McDonald, Peter. “History and Poetry: Derek Mahon and Tom Paulin.”

Contemporary Irish Poetry: A Collection of Critical Essays. Ed. Elmer

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Paulin, Tom. $1HZ/RRNDWWKH/DQJXDJH4XHVWLRQ Derry: Field Day 7KHDWUH&RPSDQ\

---. Fivemiletown. /RQGRQ)DEHU

---. Ireland and the English Crisis. 1HZFDVWOHXSRQ7\QH%ORRGD[H ---./LEHUW\7UHH/RQGRQ)DEHU

---. Minotaur: Poetry and the Nation State. Cambridge, MA: Harvard 8QLYHUVLW\3UHVV

---. Seize the Fire/RQGRQ)DEHUDQG)DEHU

---. The Hillsborough Script: A Dramatic Satire./RQGRQ)DEHU ---. The Riot Act./RQGRQ)DEHU

---. The Strange Museum./RQGRQ)DEHU ---.7KH:LQG'RJ/RQGRQ)DEHU ---:DONLQJDb/LQH/RQGRQ)DEHU

,QWHUYLHZE\(DPRQQ+XJKHVĴ4 $ZLWK7RP3DXOLQĵ,/6 ļ

Watson, George. “An Uncomfortable, Spikey Poet.” Rev. of

Fivemile-WRZQby Tom Paulin. ,/6

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'RJ by Tom Paulin. ,/6

Wills, Clair. Improprieties: Politics and Sexuality in Northern Irish