A remembrance of Seamus Heaney (1939-2013)

Seamus Heaney. Retrieved from link

Yesterday, I was saddened to learn of the death of Irish poet Seamus Heaney, whose eminently readable translation of Beowulf introduced me to the fascinating world of ancient literature back in high school. In subsequent years, friends repeatedly suggested I read his poetry, which they and others described as lyrical and accessible, a fine combination for poetry if one may say so. I never got around to it, but perhaps now I will. Mr. Heaney was 74.

As too often happens, only upon someone's death do we become fully conscious of their life and influence. Mr.Heaney's case is little different. As the Prime Minister of Ireland Enda Kenny recently said, "For us, Seamus Heaney was the keeper of language, our codes, our essence as a people...He belongs with Joyce, Yeats, Shaw and Beckett in the pantheon of our greatest literary exponents" (source). Among many prizes, Mr. Heany won the 1995 Nobel Prize in Literature, and taught at some of the most respected universities of his time. Many believe he is the most acclaimed Irish poet since William Butler Yeats (1865-1939).

For those interested in learning more of Mr. Heaney, the following links may be of service:

-Wikipedia entry.
-Wall Street Journal remembrance
-New York Times remembrance
-Henri Cole's remembrance from "The New Republic"
-Part 1 of 2 of Heaney's Beowulf translation, read by Heaney himself

I am thankful for Mr. Heaney's small but important contribution in sparking my interest in literature, and hope his life and work will continue to inspire others in the years ahead. The world could use a few more poets perhaps, and an occasional reminder of our shared human roots.

So thank you, Mr. Heaney - you will be missed.

From Ireland, With Love: Some Impressions and Reflections

My family and I spent the past week traveling across Ireland. We had a lovely (albeit exhausting) trip, experiencing many interesting things and visiting many interesting places. A more narrative piece (hopefully with photos) will be forthcoming in the next few days. In the mean time, I thought perhaps to include some impressions and reflections acquired whilst abroad, the better to contextualize a later account of some places we visited. With that said, let's dive in.

To start, it seems to me Ireland is an exceedingly pastoral country. Over every mountain and around every bend, one often finds pastures and fields enclosed by hedgerows and short stone walls. It seemed every curve in the road brought some new expanse of idyllic farm country, awash in a combination of Ireland's "40 shades of green." Numbers lend credence to these impressions: as of 2011, there were  more cows in country (5,925,300) than people (4,576,000), and a goodly number of sheep (3,480,000) to boot. In addition, only 9% of Ireland is covered by trees, compared to an EU average of 30%. Combined with mountainous terrain, the result is vast and open country of an exceedingly pastoral character. I enjoyed the views.

 Less enjoyable proved the economic scenes which greeted us. To provide some context, in the late 90s and early 2000s Ireland experienced a property bubble: in other words, the price of houses and property rose faster than ordinary economic indicators suggested they should. When Ireland adopted the Euro in 1999, monetary policy shifted from Dublin to the European Central Bank (ECB) in Frankfurt, which among other things led to a lower interest rate than would have existed had the old currency remained in place. Low interest rates made the acquisition of credit (loans, etc.) less expensive, which often increases demand for borrowing and speculation. Academics and policy wonks debate the specifics of all this, but it should suffice for our purposes that property values rose rapidly through the early 2000s, and collapsed in 2008. As of 2011, the price of houses in Dublin (the capital) had fallen 51% from their peak; at the same time, the price of apartments fell 60%. Neither value has recovered, and most estimates suggest it will only get worse in the next few years

The signs of this bubble are in evidence all across Ireland, but particularly in Dublin, where speculation proved hottest, and collapse the steepest. Throughout our trip,"To let" signs proved common, and from time to time we passed housing developments that had been finished but never sold. Outside Galway, we passed houses that before the property bubble were valued at over a million Euro, while today they go for €400,000.

Demand - which supports or drives up prices - is also not likely to improve, with current unemployment in Ireland at 13.5% (26.5% for people younger than 25, and 12.1% for the rest). Furthermore, Irish Gross Domestic Product (GDP) contracted 0.6% from QI in 2013 compared to same quarter in 2012. Also, the number of mortgages granted has fallen to levels not seen since 1971, of which 28% are in arrears (behind in payments), a figure that continues to grow.

The numbers are sobering, and opinions regarding them are never far from the surface. Whilst walking the streets of Dublin for instance, my family and I encountered a small demonstration protesting budget cuts and fiscal austerity. Similarly in Galway, graffiti was in evidence near to the Spanish Arch and other tourist sites calling for an end to austerity, and indirectly abandonment of the EU. It is interesting, given the fact that in 2011 Ireland was hailed as a "model" of austerity by Germany and others, despite signs of increasing unemployment, welfare dependence, and emigration (see story from the New York Times). From what I could tell on the ground, the situation has not improved in that time.

Yet not all is depressing in Ireland these days. The people proved exceedingly friendly on our visit, from the stranger on the street who gave us directions, to the pub folks who made room for us so we might enjoy the live music. Speaking of which, the music is an absolute treat. There is perhaps no other country in the world whose people and music seem so perfect for one another. And there is perhaps no other country whose national symbol is a musical instrument (I've heard it's either the harp or the Uilleann Pipes, a kind of Irish bag-pipe). I felt a passion in Ireland for music, both ancient and grounded in the experiences of everyday life. Go to any pub worth its salt after 9pm, and one is likely to encounter banjos and fiddles, pipes, flutes, guitars and drums (see bodhrán). In all of my encounters with these groups, I never did see a bit of sheet-music, nor a musician who didn't seem to be having the time of his or her life. The virtuosity of the players at times bordered on the surreal, and hours went by without notice. Usually a player starts a tune, and other join in as they figure out the melody and the key the first player chose. Sometimes a player would improvise a harmony, or set a beat for everyone else. As time wore on, some players would leave and others would join; it was all very informal, yet did not suffer a drop in quality. All the while, one sits barely a few feet away, close enough to see the players' sweat, and feel their whoops of joy as well as hear them. There is nothing quite like an pub-based jam session with the Irish.

Ireland proved a stimulating place, and what I've written is but a smattering of the impressions and reflections I experienced while there. It seemed to me a beautiful country with beautiful people, both struggling under the burden of a heavy history (more on that later perhaps) and a somber economic present. I enjoyed my time in Ireland, and hope someday to return.  

Interesting reads: "The Anabasis" by Xenophon

For those who read for pleasure, some books must simply be read more than once. One such work for me is the "Anabasis" by Xenophon.  

A tale of adventure and daring, Xenophon's Anabasis begins at the conclusion of the Peloponnesian War (431-404 BCE), a protracted conflict between the allies of Athens and Sparta (aided in the latter stages by Persia). Much of Greece was mobilized during the conflict, and few years in that stretch passed without fighting in some part of Hellas (the contemporary term for "Greece").

At about the same time as the war was winding down in Greece (404), the King of Persia, Darius the second of his name, died and gave control of Persia over to his first son Arsicas, who took the name Artaxerxes the second of his name upon taking the crown. However, the king's second son, Cyrus the Younger, felt he should be king, and plotted to overthrow his brother. Cyrus' plot was revealed to the king by Tissaphernes, and was imprisoned until the urging of the brothers' mother saw Cyrus released. It is with this episode that Xenophon's account begins.

Cyrus returned to his lands along the coast of Asia Minor (present day Turkey) on the eastern periphery of the empire, where he began in secret to recruit an army, the core of which would eventually include a little over 10,000 Greek soldiers.

An anabasis is Greek term denoting a march up from the sea and into the country. Once gathered, this is precisely what the army of Cyrus the Younger did, marching across modern Turkey, Lebanon, Syria, and Iraq, where on the banks of the Euphrates river they defeated the Persian army of Artaxerxes II at Cunaxa. While victorious, Cyrus the Younger fell during the battle, leaving the Greek army of 10,000 without a leader or purpose for being in the middle of Persia. Artaxerxes offers to negotiate with the Greeks, and invites their leaders to a feast to discuss terms. Unfortunately for the Greeks, the feast turns out to be a trap, and in a single evening nearly all the generals of the Greek army are executed.

It is at this point that Xenophon, a veteran of the Peloponnesian war, emerges to rally and eventually lead the Greek army out of Persia, and back to their homes in Greece. They march far to the north, battling many foes, eventually reaching the Black Sea. Here it is said the Greeks famously broke out in chants of "Thálatta! Thálatta!" which means "The sea! The sea!" and indicated they were nearly home.

The Anabasis is a lovely read, full of history, adventure, drama, and beautiful language. It has influenced numerous artists over the centuries, and continues to find its way into culture today. Whether one has a scholarly bent or merely after an interesting story, the Anabasis is full of interesting qualities and worth reading if one has the time.