Life travelled to Sweden, 1960, and was disappointed by its modern society; early writings published through cooperation of Fr. Austin Flannery, OP, editor of the monthly journal Doctrine and Life; m. Mary Troy, with whom a son; also associated with Tom Barrington (IPA) in pro-Europe movement; settled in Freiburg, Germany, to assist with edition of the Herder Correspondence (1964-68), a journal engaged in cultural politics of Vatican Council II; appt. editor, and returned to Ireland, settling at Maoinis Island, off the Connemara coast adjac. to Carna, 1968, with wife and two sons (Osin and Cillian); issued Herder essays as The Changing Face of Ireland (1968); applied Europe of the Regions approach to Ireland and supported Gaeltacht development; also supported the two nations analysis of Northern Ireland; opposed modernisms - feminism, divorce and abortion - in The State of the Nation (1883) and Nice People and Rednecks (1986); supported Israel an Iarchonnacnt campaign; wrote for An Phoblacht as pseud. Freeman, 1970s; possibly ghosted the Eire Nua policies of Sinn Féin (Kevin St.), in the 1970s; lectured Political Science and Modern European History, UCG, 1976-82; travelled to East Germany in the last days before union, 1990, and issued Dream of Oranges (1996), an eye-witness account; issued controversial pamphlet as The Heaney Phenomenon (1991); Fennell teaches College of Commerce & Communications, Rathgar, Dublin; established from his own publishing house, Sanas; publishes new essays with Liffey Press as Cutting to the Point (2003); moved to Anguillara, Italy; his dg. Natasha acts as his communications assistant; Fennell is the dedicatee of Seán Lucy, ed., Irish Poets in English (1972). DIW FDA [ top ] Works
[ top ] [ top ] Criticism There is a Wikipedia page on Fennell - online [accessed 16.12.2011]. Also Joseph McMinn, review of Heresy: The Battle of Ideas in Modern Ireland (Blackstaff 1993), 289pp., in Linenhall Review (Spring 1994); John Kirkaldy, review of Cutting to the Point, in Books Ireland (April 2004), pp.84-85 [infra]; Brian Power, review of Savvy and the Preaching of the Gospel, in Books Ireland (Summer 2004), [ infra].
See also sundry other reviews, in Commentary, as [infra]. [ top ] Commentary Seán de Fréine, The Great Silence: the Study of a Relationship Between Language and Nationality (Cork: Mercier 1978), quotes Fennells letter to the Evening Press (19 Aug. 1963), in which he writes of the shameful fact that in our forty years of freedom not one book which could be called an important contribution to thought has been produced by an Irishman living in Ireland. (de Fréine, p.103.) Barry Ó Séagha, review of Toner Quinn, ed, Desmond Fennell: His Life and Work and The Turning Point: My Sweden Year and After, in The Irish Times (30 March 2002) [Weekend]: contribs. incl. Brian Arkins [intro., here called feeble], Carrie Crowley, Bob Quinn, John Waters, Mary Cullen, Joe Lee, Nollaig Ó Gadhra and Risteárd Ó Glaisne; cites first published volume, Mainly in Wonder. [ top ] Bill Sweeney, reviewing Desmond Fennell, The Post-Western Condition: Between Chaos and Civilisation (2000), speaks of the authors reputation as a fiery critic of modernism who shoots from the spleen at any deviation from nationalist orthodoxy, an avid collector of conspiracy theories, and a staunch, if not always lucid defender of his own personal take on the human condition. The current work of invective gives eyewitness account of collapse of East Germany; Fennell sets his sights on comsumerism and capitalism of the Ameropean [sic] system; lists as evils tolerance of homosexuality, of public display of bodily intimacies and the abandonment of authority of age over youth, as well as demise of civilisation in favour of postmodernism. Sweeney considers that the book offers a litany of generalisations with no definition of terms. [ top ] John Kirkaldy, review of Desmond Fennell, The Turning Point: The Postwestern Condition: Between Chaos and Civilisation, and Desmond Fennell: Life and Work, in Books Ireland, May 2002, pp.123-24: Fennell fits into no neat little box; conservative, old-fashion and bigot are unfair or inadequate descriptions. He speaks several languages ; There is a touch of Swift about him, but also a little bit of Malvolio and Eeyore The Turning Point is the weakest of thes books at one level cringe-making a polemic of disgust … [Fennell believes that] the whole wretched mess is the inevitable result of a liberal state Fennell is grossly unfair to Sweden [ ]. [ top ] Conor McCarthy, Modernisation: Crisis and Culture in Ireland 1969-1992 (Four Courts Press 2000): The term [revisionism] was introduced into Irish debate by Desmond Fennell, who, in a series of books published since the 1960s, has questioned the modernistation process initiated by Whitaker and Lemass, suggesting that this process has led to the abandonment [17] of most of the goals of the Free state (subsequently the Republic) set itself in the immediate post-Independence period. The most important of such goals were the project of political unification with Northern Ireland and the revival of the Irish language. (pp.17-18.) [ top ] Brian Power, review of Savvy and the Preaching of the Gospel, in Books Ireland (Summer 2004), p.153: ‘[ ] Fennell [ ] describe[s] and analyse[s] the anti-nationalist, liberal civilisation that is gaining momentum here [… He] declares himself disappointed on a number of grounds, such as the absenceof an effective and well-supported Chatolic media. For example, no journal comparable to the English Tablet has emerged in Ireland. He wonders at our general apathy and at the Churchs leaderships apparent conviction that being publicly inaudible is a satisfactory way to evangelise. Nor can he understand how RTÉ has been able to sideline, without challenge, Catholic thought, news and culture. [ top ] Quotations [ top ] Crossing Swords over Phaedra (Letter to The Irish Times, 11 March 1996): Fintan OToole on theatre is always a pleasure to read, and his Second Opinion on Phaedra at the Gate Theatre (March 5th) was no exception. But before this fine production, in Derek Mahons melodious translation, passes from discussion, I wish to make two corrections to what has been said. The first is embodied in my use of the word translation . Fintan OToole, as others before him, speaks of Derek Mahons version. But the text, published by Gallery Books, is described by the publisher as a translation; the blurb calls Mahon an inspired translator. / The confusion is understandable because renderings of foreign language plays by a number of Irish playwrights and poets in recent years have had varying relationships to the original texts. Moreover, the recent play at the Gate was presented. misleadingly as Racines Phaedra by Derek Mahon, rather than, correctly, as Phaedra, by Racine, translator Derek Mahon . Admittedly, Mahons translation, in a few places, unaccountably takes liberties with the original and does not render what it says. But 95 per cent of the text is Racines play rendered into English, and therefore almost entirely what its publisher calls it, namely, a translation. (A pity, that almost entirely .) / My other point has to do with the predecessors of Racines play. Mr OToole, taking his lead, presumably, from Derek Mahons programme note, names these predecessors as Euripides and Greek myth. So let me speak up for Seneca whose Phaedra, written 500 years after Euripides, was the immediate predecessor of Racines play. Racine had read Seneca and mentions his play in the preface to his own. His own was a new creation, not a translation; but just as large passages of his dialogue draw on Euripides, at two or three points it echoes Seneca. Yours, &c. / Portobello, Dublin 8. [ top ] The State of the Nation: in business, science … etc., the vast bulk of our thinking is derivative. (The State of the Nation: Ireland Since the Sixties, Swords: [Poolbeg] 1983, pamph.; included also in Seán Ó Tuama, in The Gaelic League Idea, Cork: Mercier 1972.) The Legacy of Pearse: The nation states of Europe have not been established by peaceful means. Why should the case of Ireland be any different? (Letter to The Irish Times, 2 Sept. 2000). [ top ] References Website: There is a Desmond Fennell web site at www.desmondfennell.com. [ top ] Notes [ top ]
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