Sir, - Edmund Curtis once remarked that Irish "surpasses in gravity the Spanish, in elegance the Italian, in colloquial charm the French and equals, if it does not surpass, the German itself in inspiring terror"! Concern for the future and proper study of the Irish language goes back a long, long way, given the presence in one Irish newspaper some 140 years ago (The Cork Examiner, October 28th, 1859) of a letter which suggested that the Germans and French were more diligent than the Irish in "applying themselves earnestly to the study of the Celtic languages".
Lively letters in The Irish Times recently lead me to suspect that there are two entirely different spins which may be applied to the current debate as to whether compulsory Irish was necessary for all post-primary teachers before June 24th last: (a) Irish and the abuse of teachers from those with excessive expectations; and (b) Teachers and the abuse of the Irish language.
Although I really appreciated Gabriel Rosenstock's "word play" - at least in respect to the etymology of some Irish words - I could not help thinking that he was using the Irish language debate as a pretext to beat teachers in Irish schools (August 2nd) for he only mentioned the "harmless cranks" and those who were "a disgrace to their profession" (without mentioning whether or not these people were employed as subject specialists in the Irish language). Did he never meet some really good teachers of Irish who shared his passion for the subject and could communicate it as effectively as himself? If he didn't, he might ask himself why.
I'm not sure about the reasons for the "terror" surrounding one of our official languages, if it still exists, but the negativity should surely stop. Ireland needs good teachers in all disciplines, especially in these more demanding times, and good teaching, as it exists in the majority of our schools and the majority of subject areas, is not synonymous in all cases with an excellent command of the Irish language, even if some non-professional commentators would have it otherwise.
Correspondents to The Irish Times have neglected to appreciate that the Irish oral and written examinations were imposed originally because it was thought that all teachers should be adequately prepared for the possible eventuality of meeting a student in their classroom who preferred to speak the native tongue above the dominant one. As the grounds for such hopes/fears have considerably diminished in most areas, maybe the time has come for everybody to admit to that fact and work from prevailing realities. Is fearr amharc amhain romhat na dha amharc i do dhiadh. - Is mise,
Dr Charles J. O'Sullivan, Department of History, University College Cork.