History 246 - May Term Travel Course
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History 246
“By Force, By Famine, and by Fabled Story”:
Irish Emigration to the U.S.
GEN ED: Cultural and Historical Change
DESCRIPTION: Between 1815 and 1920, five and a half million Irish emigrated from Ireland to the United States, a number unequalled by any other European nationality. This emigration (or exile, as the Irish more often referred to it) had an enormous impact on American society, of course, but it had just as significant an impact on Irish society, both demographically and culturally.
In a two-week stay in Ireland at the Allihies Language and Arts Centre, Beara Peninsula, County Cork, students will live with host families and study together the historical, cultural, musical and literary impact of Irish emigration on both the Irish in Ireland and in the United States. These studies will be supplemented by the presentations of visiting Irish scholars and artists, as well as visits to local sites that are steeped in the history of the Great Famine and emigration.
Before we arrive in Allihies, we will travel the West of Ireland, an area with a rich sense of Gaelic and Irish history. Our trip will include several days in Galway, from where we will explore 19th-century Irish history, including trips to the Irish Famine Museum in Strokestown, the National Famine Memorial at Croagh Patrick, and the Aran Islands. We will then move on to the Dingle peninsula where we will explore the Irish musical traditions and visit the Blasket Islands.
TRAVEL DATES: Depart Tuesday, May 6; Return Thursday, May 29.
SPRING: We will be meeting as a group three or four times during spring semester to prepare for the course and for the trip.
COSTS: The estimated cost of the trip is $5370. The cost includes a round-trip, non-stop flight from Chicago to Shannon; all group transportation within Ireland; room and board for two weeks in Allihies; rooms and breakfast for the travel portion of the course; some group dinners; and all entrance fees and tickets to group activities; and several IWU administrative fees.
SIGNING UP: Please call and/or come by my office (CLA 216) to pick up an application form ASAP. They will be due back to the May Term office on November 5, along with a short statement letting me know why you want to take this course. Office phone #: 3414; E-mail: aschultz@iwu.edu; office hours: MWF, 10-11; TTH, 10-11.
