Arguing that critical approaches to urban literature have often undermined the role of rivers, the present analysis will look at the emotional power that the river Liffey brings about in Nuala Ní Chonchúir’s debut novel You (2010). Informed by ecocritical theory, the discussion will tackle issues connected to the effects of urban and semi-urban habitats on the shaping of the individual mind, in a way that will challenge the traditional divide between city and countryside. It will consequently contend that the protagonist’s perception and relation to the places she inhabits can be explained in terms of the notions of topophilia and ecophobia, with the sole purpose of subverting them. The analysis will finally suggest that the comforting sound of whirls, the lulling effect of the current of the river, is the nurturing element that stands between the laws of nature and those of society, blending life with death and allowing the possibility for rebirth.

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Family and Dysfunction in Contemporary Irish Narrative and Film explores how the family in Irish culture has functioned, and continues functioning, as an essential icon of Irishness by analysing a selection of key literary and filmic texts of the last four decades. Interestingly, the rapid and drastic changes that the family has undergone, especially as the result of the Celtic Tiger years, do not necessarily entail that the institution has lost importance-quite the opposite, and this is reflected in the artistic output of the nation overall.

Abstract:Since the beginning of the Northern Ireland "Troubles", interest in exploring the social and political concerns of a region affected by sectarian violence and religious bigotry has produced a significant body of literary works within which the thriller has become one of the most suitable forms of expression. The traditional action thriller has acquired in this context a rich political dimension, producing what is now widely known as the "Troubles" thriller. The development of this mode has diverged into two categories: the "Troubles-trash"; and a more "literary" form, which draws on serious political matters to reflect upon social and religious disputes. Both kinds, however, have been criticised for offering a stagnant and reductive version of the dynamics of the conflict; a judgement that should be qualified. Bearing this in mind, the purpose of the present article is to analyse the ways in which these issues are echoed in the literary productions of three well-known writers:

RESUMEN La primera novela del poeta y ensayista vasco Jon Juaristi, La caza salvaje, fue galardonada en 2007 con el Premio Azorín. De corte intelectual y profundamente erudita, la historia comenzaba nada menos que con una parodia de las primeras páginas de una de las obras más emblemáticas de la literatura del siglo XX, Ulysses de James Joyce. La hibridez estética de la narración y su transgresión de fronteras literarias e ideológicas cumplían el objetivo de permitir al autor ofrecer una versión renovada del nacionalismo vasco. Sin embargo, a lo largo de este artículo trataré de demostrar que los ecos de la obra Joyce, así como su postura ideológica frente a los más conocidos líderes del nacionalismo irlandés, proporcionaron a Juaristi más que resonancias coincidentes. Partiendo de estos presupuestos, el presente trabajo arranca del estudio de la presencia de Joyce como fuente de inspiración de La caza salvaje para ahondar, posteriormente, en el significado que adquiere la obra del irlandés en la producción completa del autor vasco.

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