Flann O'Brien's dialogue with modernity: Authorship and the political unconscious

This dissertation aims to explore the politics of authorship in O'Brien's work, and is based on the central premise that idiosyncrasies of O'Brien's authorship manifest a deep concern with the causes and consequences of Ireland's belated modernity, and conceal certain desires and anxieties which can be uncovered only by revealing the political unconscious of his writing. Politics of authorship in O'Brien's work, in this respect, is discussed in line with the problematic relationship between Irish Modernist writing and insular politics of post-independence Ireland. It is argued that Irish Modernist writing is characterized by ambivalence which stems from Ireland's peculiar relationship to Modernity; and Flann O'Brien's authorship is explored from this historical and conceptual perspective, introducing individual readings of his works through various theoretical aspects of authorship. Peculiarities of form and content are discussed with conceptual focus on "writing and speech", "authorship and originality", authorship and the anxiety of influence", "pseudonymous writing", "autobiographical writing and authorship", "invention of tradition and authorship", "culture industry and authorship", "archive, history writing and authorship" and "authorship and identity", and they are interpreted as symptoms that reveal the political unconscious of O'Brien's work.