McCann joins ranks of the greatFor Colum McCann, the Dublin-born, New York-based writer whose ‘Let the Great World Spin ’ won the US National Book Award on Wednesday night, the prestigious accolade helped make up for Ireland’s defeat to France – just about, he tellsFIONA McCANN
Beautiful singing, sandwich-throwing and Irish whingeingDuring a Celine Byrne concert in Castlebar I heard the familiar lament of a woman whose child threw his dinner out the window
Features »
- How close were Shelley and Keats?
For all their being yoked together in the minds of the public, the two are quite different poets, and were critical of one another’s work, writesMATTHEW SWEENEY
A friendship and a blessingPOET REMEMBERED: BEING A FRIEND of the late John O’Donohue was a special experience – a blessing. His presence preceded any words that might later be exchanged. He had a capacity to create a reassurance and make a bridge of understanding that was instinctive, pre-verbal.
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- Life melts our fear of old age and recasts it as a sweet reward
Youth and age are opposite forces. They often meet in fascination and horror but, with great luck, they eventually coalesce, writesMICHAEL HARDING
- No future for young when education system is part of the past
GIVE ME A BREAK: LIKE A LOT of parents experiencing the Leaving Cert for the first time, I’m watching my child go through a process that seems antiquated and counterproductive. There are no jobs for life any more, and yet the Leaving Cert seems aimed at forcing teenagers to choose careers in a time of uncertainty. Should you take an exam in “higher” or “lower”? Should you drop a subject to maximise your points? It doesn’t matter that you want to continue higher Irish or higher maths for the love of it – if you want to maximise points you drop to lower and focus on the subjects you’ll score higher in.
Obituaries »
Lonely, imposing figure in the history of thoughtClaude Lévi-Strauss: THE FAME of Claude Lévi-Strauss, who has died aged 100, extended well beyond his own subject of anthropology. He was without doubt the anthropologist best known to non-specialists. This is mainly because he is usually considered to be the founder of the intellectual movement known as structuralism, which was to have such influence, especially in the 1970s.
Actor acclaimed on stage, screen, radio and TVDenys Hawthorne: DENYS HAWTHORNE, who has died aged 77, was a stage, film, television and radio actor, best known in Ireland for his role as Mr Yearling in the RTÉ production ofStrumpet City . First shown in 1980, a digitally remastered version was released in 2003.
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