McKinsey, Martin S

English

University of New Hampshire

University of New Hampshire
University of New Hampshire Scholars' Repository
Faculty Travel Reports Global Education Center
Spring 2010
Martin McKinsey, Associate Professor of English,
travels to Scotland
Martin S. McKinsey
University of New Hampshire - Main Campus, martin.mckinsey@unh.edu
Follow this and additional works at: https://scholars.unh.edu/international_travel
This Report is brought to you for free and open access by the Global Education Center at University of New Hampshire Scholars' Repository. It has
been accepted for inclusion in Faculty Travel Reports by an authorized administrator of University of New Hampshire Scholars' Repository. For more
information, please contact nicole.hentz@unh.edu.
Recommended Citation
McKinsey, Martin S., "Martin McKinsey, Associate Professor of English, travels to Scotland" (2010). Faculty Travel Reports. 46.
https://scholars.unh.edu/international_travel/46
Martin McKinsey | Center for International Education and Global Engagement
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Professor McKinsey, honorary Scotsman 
on Edinburgh's North Bridge
Martin McKinsey
Associate Professor of English - College of Liberal Arts
Professor McKinsey traveled to Scotland in July to present a paper at the annual conference of the International Association for the Study of Irish
Literature.
There is something to be said for armchair travel. You are not liable to have your wallet
snatched out of your pocket, as was mine on my way to catch a flight from Athens to
London. Nor are you likely to spend a sleepless night in the airport because of a missed
connection, as I did at London-Stansted during my return trip. Still, for all the
disadvantages of actual travel, more than likely what you experience between such
mishaps will make you glad you left your armchair behind.
This past July, with the help of a CIE travel grant, I attended the annual conference of the
International Association for the Study of Irish Literature (IASIL) in Glasgow, Scotland. It
was the third IASIL conference I had attended. The first two had been in Ireland. That this
year's conference was being held in Scotland had a symbolic dimension. Not only did it
reinforce the "World Perspectives" theme of the conference, it also hinted at a mending of
fences in Scottish-Irish relations, long strained by differences over the Northern Irish
question. The location was lucky for me personally as well, since despite a growing
academic interest in Scottish literature, I had never set foot in the country. The IASIL
conference allowed me to gracefully fill that gap.
Not surprisingly, given the economic downturn, attendance was lower this year, especially
among Americans. I myself had flown in from Athens, where with the help of a research
fellowship from the Onassis Foundation I was completing a book on the twentieth-century Greek poet C.P. Cavafy. The theme of the conference
allowed me to combine my Greek project with my research interests in contemporary Irish literature, as I compared two poems by Cavafy with
poems by Northern Irish poet Michael Longley. The subject of my talk, as it evolved in the weeks beforehand, had to do with how war victims are
commemorated in verse. The fact is, you never really know what your subject is, and what its true dimensions will be, until you sit down to write. I
plan to spend some of my sabbatical year researching scholarship on public monuments – especially war monuments – and to use this to develop
my discussion into a journal article.
In addition to presenting my own paper, I was also called in to serve as chair on two other panels. Outside conference hours, I grabbed the
opportunity to meet Alan Riach, head of the Department of Scottish Literature at University of Glasgow and current president of the Association for
Scottish Literary Studies. Both he and conference organizer Paddy Lyon brought me up to speed on "literary Glasgow," from poet Tom Leonard
("wirraw init thigithir missyz") to novelist James Kelman ("There was a wee bit of hallucinating going on, but no that much, no when ye come to
consider it.") Fortunately, these and other conversations were conducted in standard English, not the near impenetrable Glaswegian variety you
sometimes hear on the streets, that writers like Leonard have attempted to capture. Glasgow itself is an impressive Victorian edifice of stone: the
Empire's "Second City" in its nineteenth-century heyday, but fallen on hard times since the post-war industrial decline. Urban renewal has erased
all but a few traces of its industrial past, and left great rips in its urban fabric; nevertheless the freshly sandblasted city is making a comeback as
habitat and destination, and beginning to live down its gritty "mean streets" reputation.
I took advantage of a free weekend to hop over to Edinburgh, an hour away by train. Edinburgh is Scotland's more recognizable cultural capital,
home to an internationally famous summer arts festival. The festival was still a week away, but between the Scottish Poetry Library, where I spent
the better part of one day, and sights like Edinburgh Castle and the Scottish National Gallery, there was more than enough to distract me. As it
happened, my visit coincided with the Edinburgh trip of the UNH Cambridge Summer Program, so I was able to rendezvous with English
department colleagues for a delightful meal of mussels and oysters. (Thanks to Andy Merton for snapping my picture.)
Now what was that I was saying about the pitfalls of travel?
About OISS Int'l Affairs Dual Major / Minor Study Abroad The World at UNH UNH Int'l Travel Policies & Resources Faculty Alumni
Martin McKinsey | Center for International Education and Global Engagement
http://unh.edu/cie//martin-mckinsey[6/14/2016 1:54:26 PM]
          
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Martin McKinsey, Associate Professor of English, travels to Scotland

UNH Scholars' Repository

University of New HampshireUniversity of New Hampshire Scholars' RepositoryFaculty Travel Reports Global Education CenterSpring 2010Martin McKinsey, Associate Professor of English,travels to ScotlandMartin S. McKinseyUniversity of New Hampshire - Main Campus, martin.mckinsey@unh.eduFollow this and additional works at: https://scholars.unh.edu/international_travelThis Report is brought to you for free and open access by the Global Education Center at University of New Hampshire Scholars' Repository. It hasbeen accepted for inclusion in Faculty Travel Reports by an authorized administrator of University of New Hampshire Scholars' Repository. For moreinformation, please contact nicole.hentz@unh.edu.Recommended CitationMcKinsey, Martin S., "Martin McKinsey, Associate Professor of English, travels to Scotland" (2010). Faculty Travel Reports. 46.https://scholars.unh.edu/international_travel/46Martin McKinsey | Center for International Education and Global Engagementhttp://unh.edu/cie//martin-mckinsey[6/14/2016 1:54:26 PM]Home UNH Home Contact/Emergency Center for International Education and Global EngagementCopyright © 2016, Center for International Education and Global Engagement  •  University of New HampshireHood House  •  89 Main Street  •  Durham, NH 03824  •  Ph 603-862-2398  •  Fax 603-862-0169Thompson Hall  •  105 Main Street  •  Durham, NH 03824  •  Ph 603-862-1288  •  Fax 603-862-0844For questions about this websiteProfessor McKinsey, honorary Scotsman on Edinburgh's North BridgeMartin McKinseyAssociate Professor of English - College of Liberal ArtsProfessor McKinsey traveled to Scotland in July to present a paper at the annual conference of the International Association for the Study of IrishLiterature.There is something to be said for armchair travel. You are not liable to have your walletsnatched out of your pocket, as was mine on my way to catch a flight from Athens toLondon. Nor are you likely to spend a sleepless night in the airport because of a missedconnection, as I did at London-Stansted during my return trip. Still, for all thedisadvantages of actual travel, more than likely what you experience between suchmishaps will make you glad you left your armchair behind.This past July, with the help of a CIE travel grant, I attended the annual conference of theInternational Association for the Study of Irish Literature (IASIL) in Glasgow, Scotland. Itwas the third IASIL conference I had attended. The first two had been in Ireland. That thisyear's conference was being held in Scotland had a symbolic dimension. Not only did itreinforce the "World Perspectives" theme of the conference, it also hinted at a mending offences in Scottish-Irish relations, long strained by differences over the Northern Irishquestion. The location was lucky for me personally as well, since despite a growingacademic interest in Scottish literature, I had never set foot in the country. The IASILconference allowed me to gracefully fill that gap.Not surprisingly, given the economic downturn, attendance was lower this year, especiallyamong Americans. I myself had flown in from Athens, where with the help of a researchfellowship from the Onassis Foundation I was completing a book on the twentieth-century Greek poet C.P. Cavafy. The theme of the conferenceallowed me to combine my Greek project with my research interests in contemporary Irish literature, as I compared two poems by Cavafy withpoems by Northern Irish poet Michael Longley. The subject of my talk, as it evolved in the weeks beforehand, had to do with how war victims arecommemorated in verse. The fact is, you never really know what your subject is, and what its true dimensions will be, until you sit down to write. Iplan to spend some of my sabbatical year researching scholarship on public monuments – especially war monuments – and to use this to developmy discussion into a journal article.In addition to presenting my own paper, I was also called in to serve as chair on two other panels. Outside conference hours, I grabbed theopportunity to meet Alan Riach, head of the Department of Scottish Literature at University of Glasgow and current president of the Association forScottish Literary Studies. Both he and conference organizer Paddy Lyon brought me up to speed on "literary Glasgow," from poet Tom Leonard("wirraw init thigithir missyz") to novelist James Kelman ("There was a wee bit of hallucinating going on, but no that much, no when ye come toconsider it.") Fortunately, these and other conversations were conducted in standard English, not the near impenetrable Glaswegian variety yousometimes hear on the streets, that writers like Leonard have attempted to capture. Glasgow itself is an impressive Victorian edifice of stone: theEmpire's "Second City" in its nineteenth-century heyday, but fallen on hard times since the post-war industrial decline. Urban renewal has erasedall but a few traces of its industrial past, and left great rips in its urban fabric; nevertheless the freshly sandblasted city is making a comeback ashabitat and destination, and beginning to live down its gritty "mean streets" reputation.I took advantage of a free weekend to hop over to Edinburgh, an hour away by train. Edinburgh is Scotland's more recognizable cultural capital,home to an internationally famous summer arts festival. The festival was still a week away, but between the Scottish Poetry Library, where I spentthe better part of one day, and sights like Edinburgh Castle and the Scottish National Gallery, there was more than enough to distract me. As ithappened, my visit coincided with the Edinburgh trip of the UNH Cambridge Summer Program, so I was able to rendezvous with Englishdepartment colleagues for a delightful meal of mussels and oysters. (Thanks to Andy Merton for snapping my picture.)Now what was that I was saying about the pitfalls of travel?About OISS Int'l Affairs Dual Major / Minor Study Abroad The World at UNH UNH Int'l Travel Policies & Resources Faculty AlumniMartin McKinsey | Center for International Education and Global Engagementhttp://unh.edu/cie//martin-mckinsey[6/14/2016 1:54:26 PM]          For UNH main directory dial 603-862-1234ADA Acknowledgement | Contact the UNH Webmaster

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Martin McKinsey, Associate Professor of English, travels to Scotland

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