In the dawn of the 1990s, women’s literature was given a significant push thanks to AS Byatt’s book, Possession: a Romance, which received the Booker Prize. The novel is daring, going back and forth between 19th-century poets and 20th-century researchers studying them. It masterfully blends different genres such as campus, epistolary, romance, detective, gothic, poetry, and history, resulting in a remarkably entertaining read.
However, I encountered Possession quite some time after it first came into the world. Although it proves to remain timeless, it’s unable to compete with the enduring appeal of another dark and mysterious campus novel from the same time – Donna Tartt’s The Secret History. Tartt’s debut has garnered a die-hard following over the last three decades; it aligns with the Dark Academia subculture, found on social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram. This subculture enjoys exploring classic academia with an ominous twist and engaging in related activities such as readings and role-playing. Tartt describes her novel as a ‘whydunnit’, where the knowledge of a murder and its perpetrator is given away in the opening lines.
The story delves into the details and the narrative is told from the viewpoint of Richard Papen, encompassing the only tale he’s able to share. Despite being a hefty read of roughly 500 pages, it never feels drawn-out due to Tartt’s knack for maintaining intrigue throughout the story. What captivated me at my 1992 reading, and what likely contributes to its status as a contemporary Gothic classic, is Tartt’s precise grasp of group mentality’s underbelly. With a narrative resembling The Lord of the Flies, Tartt’s story features egotistical liberal arts students carrying out forbidden rituals, only to fail in their attempts.
Finally, while I may not possess the firm evidence to back my claim, I acclaim Anne Dunlop as the founder of ‘chick lit.’ Prior to Derry Girls and Marian Keyes’ Watermelon came Helen Gordon in The Pineapple Tart. The story follows Helen and her sisters as they flee their home in Northern Ireland to Dublin, aiming to attract as many men as possible. As one of the first books my women’s studies friend T introduced to me, it was a tale we found hilariously relatable.
We were overjoyed when Dunlop released A Soft Touch and The Dolly Holiday shortly after his first book. I found myself pondering what may have occurred to the author following the creation of his literary trio since there didn’t seem to be any further offerings. It emerged that Dunlop had taken a break from writing, importantly though, he picked up his pen in more recent times. A treasure trove of writings awaits our reading pleasure yet I remain cautious. These books, tied to a specific time in history, were crafted for readers of that era and I’d rather not tarnish those cherished memories.
The early 1990s marks a high period for first-rate fiction, or it could merely be the time when I came across a multitude of talented female authors. Some worth mentioning includes Jazz, written by Toni Morrison, Annie Proulx’s Pulitzer-winning piece The Shipping News, and two works from Carol Shields namely The Stone Diaries and The Republic of Love.
Speaking of poets, during my exploration of women’s studies, I pondered why male poets were so highly regarded. However, it soon dawned on me that the scale was tipped, women poets were equally great. In college, I conducted a survey of the gender distribution in our reputed poetry journal, Poetry Ireland Review, established in 1948. Despite my diligent search in the attic for my findings, they seem to have been lost in time. However, I remember the results were rather grim. The evidence suggested a stark contrast between the numbers of male editors to female, with 12 men to 2 women, one of whom was a co-editor.
Contrarily, the poetry domain in Britain was fairing slightly better. Poets like Carol Ann Duffy, Jackie Kay, and Kathleen Jamie emerged, being hailed as the “new generation” of British poets.
In my younger years, I often watched my mother prepare dinner and found myself wondering when I’d have to exchange my comfortable purple flares and sneakers for a more mature ensemble of heels, tights, and knee-length tweed skirt. It was already clear to me that societal expectations were steadfast, and they would inevitably influence my dressing, lifestyle and role as a woman in the home.
Reflecting on Marina Carr’s role in a male-dominated Irish theatrical landscape, and the overwhelming nature of the compilation “All Things Are Too Small: Essays in Praise of Excess”, brings to mind the groundbreaking 1990 work, “Gender Trouble” by Judith Butler.
Butler’s treatise on sex, gender and sexuality catalysed a profound shift in my own understanding. She asserts that gender is a social construct, often characterised by performative behaviour, providing a means to challenge existing gender norms. Butler averred, “Defining ‘woman’ is a flawed and biased process, tied to specific viewpoints, restrictive, and presumes to categorise a complex and diverse reality for everyone.”
However, “Gender Trouble” and its theories have faced criticism and Butler herself has since clarified and expanded upon her ideas. Nonetheless, it was this work, with its strong opposition to outright and static notions of ‘woman’, that offered me a lexicon for my unease. How I long to comfort my younger self, explaining that womanhood can assume numerous forms.
During my upbringing in Kildare, I was scarcely exposed to modern theatre. However, frequent visits were made to the Abbey Theatre. Despite the excitement of visiting the city, the plays, like O’Casey, Boucicault, and Synge, seemed drearily monotonous – similar to the works of Peig and the poetry of Padraig Pearce, they were embodiments of ‘misery literature.’ These theatre experiences failed to inspire me, and my drama tutor would later use this blind spot against me in grading, but they did nothing to alter my opinion of Irish theatre.
In 1994, Marina Carr revitalised the Abbey with The Mai, her debut full-length drama. The play features Robert, a cellist who has returned home after years of roaming, artistically utilizes The Mai as a musical instrument, their child, Millie, shares her story from the side of the stage. The character of The Mai faced by Olwen Fouéré, attempts to manage her doomed matrimony. Although the play depicted tragedies of rural Ireland, it provided a modern, identifiable representation told through the voice of ladies, especially identifiable to a Midlands dweller. The Mai was the first in a series of Carr’s midlands works including Portia Coughlan (1996) and By the Bog of Cats (1998). She received the Windham-Campbell Literature Award in 2017 and a UCD honorary doctorate where she had studied during her undergraduate years.
The early ‘90s was the period of one of the biggest selling books, Madonna’s “Sex.” A provocative and racy composition featuring Madonna herself as the subject of its erotic photographs, this sleek, aluminium-bound, and polymer-sealed book with a cautionary label sold beyond 1.5 million copies globally. Despite not being a Madonna supporter at the time (a preference I made right later on) and the book being out of my student budget due to its whopping $50 price tag (equivalent to €100 today), I downsized my choices to Handy Sex Hints for Irish Girls by Cliodna O’Flynn, published by Marino-Mercier where I was gaining work experience. My friend T and I got all in to assist in its promotion. Donned in our stylish leopard-print fur coats, shorts, and fishnets, we ventured to Lillie’s Bordello for the promotional photoshoot. Surely, the laughter ceased when our astonishments in a definite national weekend newspaper were seen by our grandmothers. At least, their respite was that it wasn’t the Sunday World.
Paula McGrath is a creative writing assistant professor at University College Dublin and an eminent novelist. Her reading suggestions list follows.
“The Secret History, penned by Donna Tartt in 1992, is a quintessential piece of campus fiction. Possession: A Romance from AS Byatt, written in 1990, offers a satirical look at 19th-century poets and 1990s scholars. The Pineapple Tart by Anne Dunlop, published in 1992, discloses the intimate lives of students in 90s Dublin. In Judith Butler’s 1990 work, Gender Trouble: Feminism and the Subversion of Identity, the title encapsulates the content. The Mai is a 1999 work by Marina Carr that is as enjoyable to read as it is to watch. Finally, Madonna’s 1992 book Sex provides a touch of titillation for your coffee table.”