Irish Writers in the Civil Service

Tracing the evolution of the figure of the writer-cum-bureaucrat from the Victorian Irish Civil Service through to the present day, this volume examines the scenes of literary art that developed behind counters and desks in bureaucratic Dublin and Belfast, as well as the international contexts in which Irish writers found administrative work in the diplomatic sphere. Advancing our sense of the shape and dynamics of these environments, the volume maps out literary networks spanning both local and central government institutions, thus shedding new light on the phenomenon of the literariness of Irish officialdom.

The volume shows that Irish writers in bureaucratic institutions drew extensively upon their work-life experiences in their writing, frequently emulating or critiquing bureaucratic writing practices in their literary work. Whilst exploring the ways in which employment in state bureaucracies facilitated literary writing, the volume also articulates the specific challenges facing Irish writer-officials whose freedom of expression was drastically curtailed by their position as state functionaries. Examining this complex literary scene of the state functionary across time presents a new window into the workings of the Irish state, as processed through the creative imagination of those who knew it best.