On Tuesday, March 20, Dr. Maureen O’Connor from University College Cork delivered the talk “Contesting Gender Stereotypes in Irish Cultural Mythology: An Eco-Feminist Perspective”. Drawing on Eco-Feminist criticism, Dr. O’Connor discussed the silencing of powerful women voices in the construction of Irish mythology by leading Irish Revivalists. Most of the talk was, thus, devoted to exploring the relevance of the poet, dramatist, committed activist and labour activist Eva Gore Both (1870-1926) whose use of Irish folklore emphasized female protagonists often ignored in patriarchal appropriations of Irish cultural mythology and subverted the masculine nationalist identity of Ireland’s heroic narratives.
The talk was sponsored by the Unidade de Igualdade and coordinated by Dr. Teresa Caneda Cabrera, PI of the Research Project FFI2017-84619-P “INTRUTHS: Cultural Practices of Silence in Contemporary Irish Fiction” funded by the Ministerio de Economía, Industria y Competitividad.