In Shakespeare's Henry V, Macmorris asks; "What ish my nation?". Fast forward to June 1904, and the same question arises for Leopold Bloom, to which he replies: "Ireland, I was born here. Ireland." Issues of belonging and sense of national identity reverberate through Irish culture, and are as important as ever in terms of our fragile film industry (don't believe all the hype) and the future of Irish television in the global digital marketplace. Lance Pettitt explores these issues across film and TV in a postcolonial framework. As he argues, "the economic, technical and cultural realities of Ireland's . . . links with colonialism and capitalism are etched into the histories of both media."
One of his aims is to synthesise and develop the pioneering work in the early 1980s of Kevin Rockett, Luke Gibbons and John Hill. At the time Irish media studies was barely recognised as a field of scholarship, and their publications were accompanied by a range of debates and initiatives in cultural institutions such as the Irish Film Institute (as it then was), and the establishment of film and media courses in the universities.
The first part of Pettitt's book deals with cinema, the second with television. A set of questions at the head of each chapter acts as a guide throughout and reminds us of the book's textbook feel - and main likely market. He avoids slipping into a cushy linear history, but emphasises the works within their wider historical and social contexts - where certain institutional codes, overt and covert forms of censorship, shaped the images on the screen, whether from the BBC, RTE or elsewhere.
In discussing documentaries, he is careful to identify the overall genre's development as a context for his focus on Irish material. Similarly, for popular serials, he roots their development against a broader background. "During the 1980s of post-Abortion Referendum Ireland, Glenroe was a soft-centred serial, affectionately enjoyed by middle Ireland." The book's material is a clear reminder of how TV drama serials come and go, but also how the longest-running reinvent and renew the format. Throughout the book, he suggests that mainstream, global forms can be understood as being "indigenised" or reworked for local consumption, citing I Went Down and The General as examples of Irish reappropriations of the mainstream gangster genre. And although he felt compelled to reprise some of the familiar benchmarks of Irish film and TV history, from Man of Aran to The Late Late Show, he also explores less obvious areas such as Ireland's Eurovision experience, and sitcoms such as Father Ted and Give My Head Peace. He prefaces his discussion by summarising the genre's development, indicating diverse critical approaches, and indicates how, for example, Father Ted's anarchic brand of humour can be seen within a lineage stretching back to Joyce and Flann O' Brien.
The emphasis on the political and creative elements informs all discussions and underpins questions about the role of media as agents of change, heritage film, popular television drama, the role of public service broadcasting, the tension between cultural and commercial models of film development, the frequent failures of different governments to drive media policy - and the absence of informed public debate.
While Pettitt's study is necessarily selective, there are inevitable and often notable gaps, such as Nighthawks, @last TV and Family. But overall, his articulate style and critical insights are a valuable addition to the growing field of Irish screen scholarship, and an important exploration of the complexities and contingencies of identity in the digital age.
Stephanie McBride teaches film studies at Dublin City University and is on the Board of the Film Institute of Ireland