John Montague

Frank L. Kersnowski

1975
72 pages
ISBN 0-8387-7983-2
Irish Writers Series

John Montague is another outstanding contribution to the Irish Writers Series. These monographs have been designed to treat in individual volumes the significant Anglo-Irish writers of the 19th and 20th centuries. When complete the series will constitute a significant history of modern Anglo-Irish literature, encompassing discussions of more than 40 writers.

The present volume discusses the poems and stories of John Montague-a volume of fiction, Death of a Chieftain and Other Stories, and several volumes of poetry-which examine the family, the community, and the experiences that shaped his character, recognizing the importance of Ireland to him as man and writer. Legend, archaeology, history, and contemporary life all concern him; and their details become manifestations of patterns that are universal and mythic for him.

Widely praised in Europe and the United States, the poems and stories of John Montague have found distinctive significance in Ireland. He is one of the few Irish writers to involve his life and art in the current political and cultural turmoil of Ireland and has been so recognized by his fellow writers and by Jack Lynch, the former taoiseach.

About the author:

Born in 1934 in Washington, D.C., Frank L. Kersnowski was educated at the University of Tennessee (B.A., M.A.) and the University of Kansas (Ph.D.). He belongs to the American Committee for Irish Studies and the American Association of University Professors. Since 1960 he has specialized in modern Irish literature, and in connection with this interest he has spent two summers traveling through Europe talking with writers and completing research. He has spent some time with John Montague, talking and visiting the places where Montague grew up. Dr. Kersnowski, at present a professor at Trinity University, San Antonio, Texas, has published widely on contemporary Irish literature and is now completing a study of Irish poetry since World War II. Other literary concerns include editorship of the Sisterdale Press, which publishes contemporary Southwestern poetry.