Sydney Owenson's, Florence Macarthy, and Iconic Realism through Patriotic Rhetoric

From my second book and presentation at the American Conference for Irish Studies: 

Sydney Owenson (Lady Morgan) embarks on another adventure of writing a national tale centered on the title character of her novel, Florence Macarthy, A National Tale. In 1818, Irish government is now firmly established as one emanating from British rule. The British have just lost another war with the Americans, and with that loss, have endured a reduction of pride. France is in the process of rebuilding its own government, so Ireland is in a position whereby discussions with the British may be able to develop in regaining possible individual rights within the law. Owenson seizes this opportunity to enlighten her reading audience with a renewed spirit of empowerment. However, she also needs to increase her book sales among those with the economic means, so she relies on her usual technique of expressing a revolutionary consciousness through her characters’ dialogues and actions.  

Owenson sees this as an opportunity to reach into the mind-sets of the Irish and the English through the linguistic arrangement within her tales that correlate with both the Irish and British readers. She has a current reading audience now, so she uses this forum of writing national tales to demonstrate the fortitude needed to realize revolutionary reform. In her 1818 novel, Owenson’s title character, Florence Macarthy, addresses a Marquis of Dunore and boldly states: 

I never will call you my lord, till the day of judgment; that is, till all’s proved; and your lordship, the great Marquis of Dunore (which you are at the blessed moment), taking possession of your castle; for fortune, though she be portrayed to stand upon a rolling stone, as being flighty by nature, yet for the most part she helpeth such as be of courageous mind, and valiant stomach. – Did not Thomyris the Scythian queen, and the collateral ancestor of the Macarthies, by her great spirit, with a few hundred followers, bate Cyrus intirely, with many thousands? And did not --, but I will not bother your lordship with needless tediousness, only just will defy the world, from this day out, to prove that I care a testoon for you. (F.M. p. 200)

Owenson clearly demonstrates a courageous stance in the lexicon she chooses her character to use here.  The bold statement, “I never will call you my lord,” emphasizes dissolution of the feudal state, yet it focuses on the necessity for individuals to state their claims of autonomy. Furthermore, she alludes to Thomyris, the Scythian queen, to authenticate her point of view, illustrating the strength within her bloodline. In her decorous conclusion of this passage, Owenson announces through her character, “I will not bother your lordship with needless tediousness…”, utilising the use of negative phraseology, ‘will not bother’ and “needless tediousness,” along with the equally negative, yet bold verb, ‘defy’ to express very politely her defiance juxtaposed with national pride. 

This novel embodies the determination of a patriot who refuses to allow any governing entity total control over its free-thinking populace. As she moves her characters through the novel, they become stronger in their fortitude to withstand any societal or political pressures, and they overcome any weaknesses through their united allegiance to the ability of each individual to express her or himself in a way that moves humanity forward to positive transformation.  Thus, Owenson transforms her own consciousness by releasing through her characters’ dialogue and actions any anxiety, which her contemporaries may inflict in their critique of her nationalistic penchant.

F. Scott Fitzgerald: The Eyes of Dr. T.J. Eckleburg and Iconic Realism

http://fc01.deviantart.net/fs47/f/2009/172/9/f/Doctor_T__J__Eckleburg_by_sukimd.jpg

But above the gray land and the spasms of bleak dust, which drift endlessly over it, you perceive, after a moment, the eyes of Doctor T. J. Eckleburg. The eyes of Doctor T. J. Eckleburg are blue and gigantic—their irises are one yard high. They look out of no face, but, instead, from a pair of enormous yellow spectacles which pass over a nonexistent nose. Evidently, some wild wag of an oculist set them there to fatten his practice in the borough of Queens, and then sank down himself into eternal blindness, or forgot them and moved away. But his eyes, dimmed a little by many painless days, under sun and rain, brood on over the solemn dumping ground. (F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, Chapter 2)

In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s, The Great Gatsby, the eyes of Dr. T.J. Eckleburg peer across the ‘dumping ground’ of American spirit. How does this exemplify my theory of iconic realism? 

1. Fitzgerald portrays eyes as the ‘windows of the soul’ of a country steeping in corruption and superficiality. 

2. Fitzgerald places these eyes on an old billboard, gazing across a field of forgotten possessions, an unusual placement of such representatives of the soul of a nation. 

3. Fitzgerald brings into focus America’s need to appreciate all members of society, maintaining a mindset to be ever vigilant of the forefathers’ intentions of "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness."

Sociolinguistic Style of Sydney Owenson's Writing and Iconic Realism

Plaque commemorating Sydney Owenson (Lady Morgan)

on Kildare Street, Dublin, Ireland

From both my second book and an ACIS Mid-Atlantic/New England Regional Conference presentation:

Iconic realism is the placement of a realistic and iconic figure juxtaposed to another realistic iconic example to enlighten an audience of the need for cultural transformation. Sydney Owenson (Lady Morgan) uses her personal experience and historical research to demonstrate revolutionary rhetoric through application of character role reversals, class discrepancies, and linguistic variations, all of which illustrate the need for societal transformation within various regions of nineteenth-century Ireland. 

For example, in the preface of her essay entitled, Absenteeism, she highlights the need for both the English and the Irish to be mindful of their patriotic responsibilities: 

“Notwithstanding the intense interest which is felt throughout all England concerning Ireland and Irish affairs, notwithstanding the frequent debates in parliament, and more frequent pamphlets and volumes published on points of Irish politics and economy, the prevailing ignorance on these subjects still operates powerfully in maintaining prejudices the most unfounded and the most fatal, and in retarding those measures of wisdom and of justice without which Ireland can never be happy; or the British Empire secure.” (Absenteeism pp. ix, x)

In this statement, Owenson demonstrates the commonality between the authority, England, and the respective community of Ireland, as she begins with the phrase, ‘notwithstanding the intense interest which is felt…’ She engages in the assertive use of negative phraseology linked with a deferential passive voice to unite the divergent intentions of England and Ireland. 

Her decision to carefully select the grammatical configuration of passive voice hints at her concern over absenteeism and indicates that she is stepping back to show respect for authority while she remains specific in her focus on the negative effect that this course of action has on the Irish citizenry.  She concludes this paragraph with a series of negative phrases that focus on the dire consequences if both Ireland and England do not consider the elimination of cultural bias. 

Through her sociolinguistic style of including Irish language and political tones with her enlightening observations of the English treatment of the Irish, she creates a sense of balance in a revolutionary manner that clashes with various societal levels, using iconic realism to juxtapose history with societal expression to bring about an awareness of the need for societal cohesion. 

Robert Frost's "The Oven Bird" and Iconic Realism (Click onto this title to hear and see an ovenbird.)

(Oven Bird photo from Google Images)

The Ovenbird

by Robert Frost

There is a singer everyone has heard,


Loud, a mid-summer and a mid-wood bird,


Who makes the solid tree trunks sound again.


He says that leaves are old and that for flowers


Mid-summer is to spring as one to ten.


He says the early petal-fall is past


When pear and cherry bloom went down in showers


On sunny days a moment overcast;


And comes that other fall we name the fall.


He says the highway dust is over all.


The bird would cease and be as other birds


But that he knows in singing not to sing.


The question that he frames in all but words


Is what to make of a diminished thing.

Robert Frost's poetry portrays the enigma of humanity through his observations of nature. His poem, "The Ovenbird," is no exception. The high-pitched song of this bird reminds the busy human of the lessons learned through the simplicity of nature.

The iconic structure here is the oven bird, a woodland icon, representing the natural progression of life. In the tenth line, Frost points out, "He says the highway dust is over all." This line is unusual in that it follows vivid, natural imagery that awakens the reader to the conflict between humanity's impact versus the seemingly insignificant bird. A bird whose voice sounds like a song to us, but to the bird, it's simply communicating to other birds in a natural way, "not to sing.”

In this poem, Frost also illustrates through the passage, "Mid-summer is to Spring as one is to ten," the necessity of a natural sequence and the devastation that can exist when humanity interrupts or neglects this natural progression. 

This could also pertain to each of us. We must follow a natural sequence in our individual lives, for if we do not, we could take a path that causes pain and dissonance, which is why we must align our hearts with the One who guides us throughout our lives...in God's time. 

To hear me read this, please click HERE.

Anne Cleary and Dennis Connolly, Video Artists, and Iconic Realism

Anne Cleary and Dennis Connolly

Photo from Google Images

This is a segment from a presentation that I was in the midst of presenting at a New England Conference for Irish Studies. However, I came down with the Norovirus. Ugh! What a horrible virus!  Anyway, I had to leave the room very quickly, unable to complete my presentation. Thus, here 'tis: 

Anne Cleary and Dennis Connolly are partners in life and have lived in Dublin, Ireland and Paris, France. They collaborate to create video art. Their films are dependent on audience interaction, with their audiences inclusive of common individuals ranging in ages from young children to older adults. This artistic team illustrate the iconic human act of moving through Dublin, Ireland or any metropolis. However, many of the individuals do not connect with each other. The significance of this is the key to understanding the iconic realism in this work of art. 

These individuals emulate a common, human activity, yet this act, captured by the videographers’ observing eye to express lack of physical contact, creates certain dissonance. The message from this careful configuration of a ubiquitous eye and common human activity could be that humanity longs to embrace life fully; however, certain parameters prevent this occurrence. Other possible interpretations may involve a sense of detachment. Regardless of the interpretation, these artists exemplify iconic realism in that there is an iconic structure, the human eye behind a camera, placed in a realistic setting that does not conform to the accepting reality of intimacy. Through this juxtaposition, the artists illustrate cultural liberation through video images, an innovation in this current age of reality viewing. 

To view a brief example of their video art, click HERE.