Sydney Owenson's "Lay of an Irish Harp" and Iconic Realism

Sydney Owenson (Lady Morgan) 

The cover photo of my book from New York Public Library

In her 1807 lyrical collection, Lay of an Irish Harp, Sydney Owenson uses the iconic imagery of a harp to scrutinize the resonating cry for enlightened human consciousness shortly after the Act of Union 1801 has been enforced. She illustrates the harmonics of human intellect surrounding the Irish message of perseverance in times of hardship and indignity suffered when human rights are ignored, using rhythmic structure within her poetics and iconic allusions through intricate semiotic fusion of philosophy and history. According to her memoirs, Owenson’s aspiration was as follows: 

...to make my native country better known, and to dissipate the political and religious prejudices that hindered its prosperity…Neither lovers, friends, nor flatterers, ever turned my attention from the steady, settled aim of my life-- and that was to advocate the interest of my country in my writings…        

When enlightenment merely reflects the ignorance of cultural bias, the abrasive consciousness of society suppresses creative exploration and moves into a mire of lost intentions and spiritual limitation. Owenson begins a personal quest to enlighten her contemporaries of a plausible if not impossible endeavour for the Irish and the British to maintain a semblance of harmony in Ireland. She uses the aural traditions of harp music and the power in lyrical structure to express innovative concepts through the traditional aural experiences of narratives and music.  Kate Bowan and Paul Pickering remark: 

Music is central to the formation of identities whether national, ethic, religious, or political as it can by virtue of being a social activity, include or exclude, and is open to countless reshaping and re-articulations in various contexts.

Thus, Owenson’s literary works demonstrate an iconic vision in the midst of dissonance, as she focuses her reading audience’s attention on discordant elements within nineteenth century Irish society that need transformation. (Excerpt from my paper, read at the Association for Franco-Irish Studies conference in Dublin, Ireland)

Imre Madách's "The Tragedy of Man" and Iconic Realism

Dissonance is an avenue to creative expression for change, indicated in Imre Madách's play...

In his 1860 play, "The Tragedy of Man," Imre Madách uses iconic realism to illustrate cultural awareness of the value in humanity's ability to understand the simple gifts of our Lord.  He questions societal expectations by moving his audience through a journey of social outcry against pettiness in his depictions of Adam, Eve and Lucifer, entangled in episodic adventures that transcend historical boundaries.

They travel to ancient Greece, Rome, Egypt, the middle ages and London, Madách’s radical, textual dissent against the provincial establishment reveals his personal truth by eliminating story line constrictions of time and space. He deliberately places Adam and Eve in these unusual settings for this couple to illustrate that the journey of self worth and independence include the worthiness of nation, beginning with the attainment of self-knowledge.

He presents Eve as the mother of humanity, with the conviction that her children will move humanity forward in their quest for true knowledge. Similarly, Madách holds onto the hope that his Hungary would develop autonomy and maintain its unique culture and language.  

In his 1918 book, The Resurrection of Hungary, Arthur Griffith writes, “Ireland’s heroic and long-enduring resistances to the destruction of her independent nationality were themes the writers of Young Hungary dwelt upon to enkindle and make resolute the Magyar people” (xxiv). Griffith’s association of Ireland and Hungary illustrates that artists living within the  contrived constraints of both of these countries use the power of a dissonant pen to motivate their reading audiences to make positive choices.

Brian Friel's "Molly Sweeney" and Iconic Realism

In his play, Molly Sweeney, Brian Friel utilizes theatrical dialogue between his three main characters, situated in connection with Molly’s blindness. Her blindness enables her to ‘see’ the world in a way that the sighted cannot. She transports the other characters and thus, the audience, from ignorance to awareness of cultural expectations. 

Friel’s Molly Sweeney is a literary representation of the iconic figure of Cathleen Ni Houlihan, and he creates the icon as a realistic woman with real perceptions in order to bring the audience to an awareness of the cultural dilemma of the dichotomy within the Irish historical perception of self. Friel connects Molly’s new sight with an overall feeling of anxiety that could be the personal reactions of one individual’s yearning for courage or a nation’s.

"Dixit Dominus" (In gratitude to Mozart) and Iconic Realism

Cochlea from Medical Dictionary- The Free Dictionary

When I was in high school, I was blessed to attend a two week music workshop at the University of Georgia. I began by playing oboe in the orchestra, but switched to sing in the advanced choir. It was much more rewarding to me, and I thoroughly enjoyed singing Alto to Mozart's Dixit Dominus as one of the classical pieces we sang for the cumulative concert. 

 

In the poem below, I demonstrate my semiotic theory of iconic realism by writing a description of the hearing process, but one aspect of that process is unexpected: the cochlea is dormant. This human ear is deaf. Thus, this perfect individual will never hear...Dixit Dominus. (It is God's Word.) I have placed the iconic representation of hearing with an iconic composition, Dixit Dominus to bring awareness of the beauty in all of humanity, especially in those individuals who cannot hear. 

Dixit Dominus 

by Jeanne I. Lakatos

The chorus swells; waves rush in,

their flow controlled 

by the canal's turbid banks. 

Membrane pulsates - 

Malleus, Incus, Stapes

vibrate

through a liquid universe.  

Electrical impulses meander

in and out and around 

minuscule hair cells within.

Majestic cochlea sits on its throne,

dormant. 

Eighth nerve to the brain reaches out.

Mozart sheds a heavenly tear. 

This perfect one will never hear ~

Dixit Dominus.

To hear Mozart's Vesperae solennes de Confessore, Dixit Dominus, click onto this link: 

https://youtu.be/H7QbViCuGfU

Click onto the link below to see an animation of sound felt along the basilar membrane in the cochlea:

https://youtu.be/dyenMluFaUw