Competing Ethnic Identities in Ireland - Essay Example

Concepts of Irish It has been argued that 'race' as a mechanism of social stratification and as a form of human identity is a recent concept in humanhistory. Prior to the seventeenth century, historical records indicate little evidence of the idea and ideologies associated with race. However, researching and understanding the history of race as the premier source of human identity, it is possible to find some of the earliest hints of ethnic stereotyping in Medieval text. This paper briefly explores how varying ethnic stereotypes of the Irish during the middle ages, specifically those of Bede and Gerald of Wales, reflect the competing ethnic identities in Ireland from the twelfth century. It cannot be denied that the Vikings invasions throughout Western Europe played a role in the shaping of society, both politically and socially in the ninth and tenth centuries. In his book, Kings and Vikings, Sawyer notes that although the Vikings were disruptive and destructive when raiding, they made a positive contribution to society as conquerors and colonists.(Sawyer, 1994).This is a revised view of Vikings, where previously they were thought to be plundering and murderous villains and is more accurate if we are to take the evidence of the social development due to the Vikings into account. Ireland was affected strongly by the impact of the Vikings. Before the invasions of the Norse, the Irish were a race of cattle farmers, living mainly inland and there was little commerce or trade within Ireland or between Ireland and the rest of Europe. After the Norse had settled the Irish concentrated on the coastal areas and a rich system of trade developed. This shows that the Vikings had a significant impact on the culture and society of the Irish, without which they would not have developed so quickly. It is the attitudes of these Normans towards the Irish that is particularly interesting, however. Gerald of Wales describes the Irish people as uniformly barbaric, with only a talent for music to recommend them. Gerald of Wales was born in about 1147 at Mamobier Castle, Pembrokeshire. His father was a Norman knight, and his mother a Welsh princess. After his studies he became a teacher in Paris. Later he was appointed Court Chaplain to King Henry II. In 1185 Henry ordered Gerald to accompany Prince John to Ireland. He wrote about these experiences in his books, The Topography of Ireland and The Conquest of Ireland. Gerald was particularly interested in the military tactics used by both sides. Although Gerald was critical of the Irish his book shows concern for the way they were treated by John's army. In The Topography of Ireland, Gerald of Wales writes in great length of the beauty of the land, all the while keeping it in perspective to Britain, which the author obviously feels is superior in many ways to Ireland. After the beautiful description of the land and its resources, however, Gerald speaks about the rudimentary cultures of the people. "This people are not tenderly nursed from their birth, as others are; for besides the rude fare they receive from their parents, which is only just sufficient for their sustenance, as to the rest, almost all is left to nature. They are not placed in cradles, or swathed, nor are their tender limbs either fomented by constant bathings, or adjusted with art. For the midwives make no use of warm water, nor raise their noses, nor depress the face, nor stretch the legs, but nature alone, with very slight aids from art, disposes and adjusts the limbs to which she has given birth, just as she pleasesBut although they are richly endowed with the gifts of nature, their want of civilization, shown both in their dress and their mental culture, makes them a barbarous people. For they wear but little woollen, and nearly all they use is black, that being the color of the sheep in this country. Their clothes are also made after a barbarous fashion, " (Cambrensis, 2000). It is apparent that Gerald of Wales did not have high respect for much of Irish culture. In Contrast, Bede the Venerable seemed to adore Ireland and its people. In the Ecclesiastical History of the English Nation, he writes: "Ireland, in breadth, and for wholesomeness and serenity of climate, far surpasses Britain; for the snow scarcely ever lies there above three days: no man makes hay in the summer for winter's provision, or builds stables for his beasts of burden. No reptiles are found there, and no snake can live there; for, though often carried thither out of Britain, as soon as the ship comes near the shore, and the scent of the air reaches them, they die. On the contrary, almost all things in the island are good against poison. In short, we have known that when some persons have been bitten by serpents, the scrapings of leaves of books that were brought out of Ireland, being put into water, and given them to drink, have immediately expelled the spreading poison, and assuaged the swelling. The island abounds in milk and honey, nor is there any want of vines, fish, or fowl; and it is remarkable for deer and goats," (Bede, 1999). His idyllic description of Ireland, and his view of the Irish themselves as saints and scholars, is in direct contrast to Gerald's general view of Ireland as a cesspool filled with barbarians. This may have contributed to a sort of split Irish identity later on. There are instances throughout the Ecclesiastical History of the English Nation of Bede's admiration for the Irish, if only subtle. "Columba came into Britain in the ninth year of the reign of Bridius, who was the son of Meilochon, and the powerful king of the Pictish nation, and he converted that nation to the faith of Christ, by his preaching and example, whereupon he also received of them the aforesaid island for a monastery, for it is not very large, but contains about five families, according to the English computation," (Bede, 1999). Here, we see the Irish as priests and apparent positive influences over their constituency. Later, Bede explains that "Whilst Sigebert still governed the kingdom, there came out of Ireland a holy man called Fursey renowned both for his words and actions, and remarkable for singular virtues, being desirous to live a stranger for our Lord, wherever an opportunity should offer," (Bede, 1999). Certainly these depictions offer Great Contrast to Gerald the Greats views of the region. These conflicting views however, may be explained in the fact that the two men were actually witnessing two different Irish cultures. As Frame argues, "The survival of a Gaelic Irish identity in later medieval Ireland, in the face of English invasion and colonisation, sprang in part from the simple fact that the conquest remained incomplete. Between c.1170 and c.1250 the English expanded into all the provinces of Ireland. South of a line from Dundalk to Limerick and Cork, their occupation was given depth through settlement by peasants, artisans and traders from Britain, especially in the coastal lowlands and the river-valleys, (Frame, 2001). Therefore, it is to be assumed that parts of Ireland actually were more civilized than others at the time. No matter what the cause, the conflicting views of Ireland and the Irish worked toward a socially constructed worldview of the people. It also shows that while race may be a relatively new concept, the dividing lines caused by ethnic stereotyping date back much further. Works Cited Bede. Ecclesiastical History of the English Nation. Internet Medieval Source Book. Trans. Alexander Pyle. 1999. Avalable Online: http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/basis/bede-book1.html Cambrensis, Giraldus. The Topography of Ireland. Trans. Thomas Forester. In Parentheses Publications, Medeival Latin Series. Cambridge, Ontario, 2000. Also available online: http://www.yorku.ca/inpar/topography_ireland.pdf. Cambrensis, Giraldus. The Conquest of Ireland. Trans. Thomas Forester. In Parentheses Publications, Medeival Latin Series. Cambridge, Ontario, 2001. Also available online: http://www.yorku.ca/inpar/conquest_ireland.pdf. Frame, Robin. "The Two Nations of Medieval Ireland." Church and State: Nations. Available Online: http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/state/nations/medieval_ireland_01.shtml Gransden, Antonia. Historical Writing in Englandc. 550 to c. 1307. Routledge & Kegan Paul, London. 1974. Sawyer, P. Kings and Vikings (Routledge, 1994) Stafford, P. Unification and Conquest (Arnold, 1996) Read More