Maria Szasz

Brian Firel and America

Brian Friel and America is the first book-length study to explore Irish playwright Brian Friel through an American lens. By examining Friel's depiction of Irish-American immigrants, his stylistic and thematic similarities to American dramatists Thornton Wilder and Tennessee Williams, his American academic characters, his frequent use of American music, and his evocative portrayal of America as villain, Maria Szasz considers how Friel's perspective towards America has changed during his over forty-year playwriting career. The final aspect of Szasz's American lens closely analyzes the U.S. reception of Friel's plays. Szasz carefully debates the reasons behind Friel's triumphs and failures on and Off Broadway. With a foreword by Professor Christopher Murray of University College Dublin, in essence, Brian Friel and America unravels the complexities of meaning America has had for Friel.

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“Lyra McKee (1990-2019): ‘How Uncomfortable Conversations Can Save Lives’” The Rose and Irish Identity

Both Ireland and the Pacific Northwest are known for their climates, and have historically been associated with the rose. This collection of essays explores the exchange Ireland has had with the Northwest using the rose as an example by examining the beautiful and the harsh, the petals and the thorns. It is the culmination of the work of established and emerging historians and writers who have traversed the boundary between the Northwest and Ireland several times. The timely contributions gathered here include essays about the imperialist mindset, biased court systems, the victims of social hatred, and organized resistance. Timeless themes include grief, poetry and the oral tradition, and the effect plants have upon a given population. The book is a much\-needed contribution to often overlooked aspects of colonialism and boundaries.

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