Charles Robert Maturin’s second novel,

(1808), has been pejoratively declared a “bizarre imitation” of Sydney Owenson’s then recently published and highly successful work,

(1806) (Flanagan 46). Judging from the title, this certainly seems to be the case, leading both Maturin’s contemporaries and later critics to understand

as an obvious imitation of Owenson, undertaken in a bid to capitalise on her success. Owenson’s pioneering novel – now typically understood as the first Irish national tale – responded to the Anglo-Irish Union of 1801 and attempted both to ‘introduce’ Ireland to her new national partner, England, and to reconcile the two countries to their unification. As it did so,

…

1106 words

Citation: Morin, Christina. "The Wild Irish Boy". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 26 August 2007 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=8161, accessed 23 November 2024.]