Sir, – The concept of the “anxiety of influence”, coined by the literary critic Harold Bloom, captures the pressure modern writers feel, being overshadowed by their predecessors. In the Irish literary context, Yeats and Joyce are usually mentioned as casting long shadows.
As Edna O’Brien is laid to her eternal rest, this modern writer hopes the anxiety of her influence will never wane. – Yours, etc,
ANNE MARIE KENNEDY,
Co Galway.
