Letters from acclaimed Irish poet Seán Ó Riordáin are being donated to University College Cork (UCC) where he once worked as a part-time lecturer and later served as writer-in-residence.
Born in Baile Bhuirne in the Múscraí Gaeltacht in Mid-Cork in 1917, Ó Ríordáin came to public prominence with the publication of his collection of poetry, Eireaball Spideoige, on January 1st 1953.
On Tuesday UCC marked the approaching 70th anniversary of the publication of Ó Ríordáin’s seminal work with a series of readings and the unveiling of a donation of Ó Ríordáin’s letters to UCC.
Dr Ailbhe Ní Ghearbhuigh, Department of Modern Irish at UCC, said the letters, which were sent by Ó Ríordáin to his close friend, Isobel O’Shea, all dated from a critical period of his life.
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“The letters were written between 1967 and 1976, a crucial period in Ó Ríordáin’s life as he moved from poetry to prose as his principal medium,” said Dr Ní Ghearbhuigh
“Addressed to his close friend Isobel O’Shea, the correspondence is full of wit and mischief that offers a useful corrective to our sense of the poet’s life as blighted by solitude and illness.”
Ó Ríordáin, who grew up in Inniscarra near Cork City, suffered from ill health for much of his life after he contracted pneumonia, aged 13. His father died from TB when the poet was aged 10.
Ó Ríordáin later contracted TB himself and spent much of his life in sanitoria though he did work as a clerk in the Cork Motor Tax Office from 1936 until his early retirement due to health issues in 1965.
In 1967, Ó Ríordáin was made a part-time lecturer in University College Cork and between 1969 and 1976, he was UCC’s writer in residence while he also wrote a weekly column in The Irish Times.
His first collection, Eireaball Spideoige, was published in 1953 followed by Brosna in 1964 and Línte Liombó in 1971 while a posthumous collection, Tar éis mo bháis, was published in 1978.
His best-known works include Adhlacadh Mo Mháthar; Oileán agus Oileán Eile; Cnoc Mellerí and Saoirse, as well as Cúl an Tí, which featured on the secondary school curriculum.
Dr Ní Ghearbhuigh said: “Seán Ó Riordáin was a major figure in the literary life of 20th century Ireland and continues to influence writers today. These letters depict a different aspect of Ó Ríordáin’s complex nature than the version we see in his poetry and journals.
“While he is primarily remembered for his poetry, this collection, which includes letters, postcards and sketches, offers many valuable insights into cultural and political life in Ireland during the 1960s and 1970s.”
The poet’s personal library is already preserved in UCC.
