The Curse of Reason: The Great Irish Famine

by Enda Delaney

The Great Irish Famine of 1845-52 was the defining event in the history of modern Ireland. In proportional terms one of the most lethal famines in global history, the consequences were shocking: at least one million people died, and double that number fled the country within a decade.

The Curse of Reason is first and foremost a survey history of this great tragedy. In particular, the testimonies of four key contemporaries are used throughout to convey the immediacy of the unfolding disaster.

They are:

John MacHale - the Catholic Archbishop of Tuam

John Mitchel - the radical nationalist

Elizabeth Smith - the Scottish-born wife of a Wicklow landlord

Charles E. Trevelyan - the assistant secretary to the Treasury



Each brings a unique perspective, influenced by who they were, what they witnessed, and what they stood for. By counter-pointing the progress of the Famine with the experiences of these four individuals, we get an intimate and compelling portrayal of these hungry years. The book shows how misguided policies inspired by slavish adherence to ideology--the curse of reason--contributed to and worsened the effects of a natural disaster of catastrophic proportions.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Irish Literature, Ireland

293 pages, Hardcover

First published October 12, 2012

About the author

Enda Delaney is a Professor at the University of Edinburgh, where he holds a Chair in Modern History.

Having previously held posts at a number of British and Irish universities, he joined the University of Edinburgh in 2006, and was promoted to Senior Lecturer (2008), Reader (2010) and then Professor of Modern History in 2015. He was the Director of Research for the School of History, Classics and Archaeology between 2017 and 2020. In January 2024 he became the Director of Research for the Edinburgh Futures Institute. He is the recipient of awards from the Arts and Humanities Research Council, the British Academy and Economic and Social Research Council to support his research.

Reviews

[Peter Thew · Rating 4 out of 5]

The calamitous effects of the Great Irish Famine are well known and surveyed in this book. What differs it from others is its reliance on four different views of the unfolding tragedy - catholic Archbishop John McHale of Tuam, a constant thorn in the side of the British government: radical activist John Mitchell whose persistent call to arms lead to a lengthy sentence in Van Diemen's Land: Elizabeth Smith wife of a Wicklow landlord who made some efforts to assist her tenants: and Charles Trevelyan, assistant secretary to the Treasury whose strict adherence to laissez faire economic and social policy made matters so much worse in Ireland. It makes for a well written but haunting survey of this tragedy.

[Teresa Earl · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not easy reading.....

It started off quote well, but the minutiae of Trevelyan’s correspondence began to get a bit too much for me and I had to give up on it.

[Jana Keir · Rating 3 out of 5]

A pretty good overview of the Irish potato famine, though repetitive in some places and patchy in terms of the 'narrators' or people followed through the book.

[Grant · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enda Delaney does a fantastic job in this book by diving into the lives of four people during the Great Irish Famine with very different lives. By doing so, the author is able to open up the historical door to this time period and shed light on how the conditions for one person may not have been that for another. By taking from both Irish and English accounts, Delaney shows how starkly different the lives of the two groups were and how this changed the outcomes for many families during the famine. I must admit that it did become dry in a few parts but it made up for it in other parts that really give the reader this amazing look into the lives of these people. To hear their stories and have that paired with the helpful background knowledge from Delaney made this book one I would suggest to anyone wanting to read about the Great Irish Famine. I think many times people simply think of the famine as some way off historical event but reading this book shows just how emotionally gripping these real life stories are.

[Janine · Rating 3 out of 5]

The power of this book is seeing these politics of ideology, and the politics of resistance being expressed in the words of individuals, and watching their positions harden as the crisis continued.  If you're looking for 'getting to know' these individuals at an emotional or moral level, this is not the book for you. The book does work, however, at the level of personalizing the political. The original title of this book was 'The Curse of Reason', and although probably too vague as a title for a publisher, the orthodoxy of the free market and individualism was indeed a curse.  Hard-baked ideology, of any kind, is really not an edifying sight.

For my complete review, please visit
https://residentjudge.com/2019/12/09/...

[Ivan Mulcahy · Rating 5 out of 5]

BIAS ALERT: I am the author's literary agent. I love both the book and the author. That is why I represent them. So please don't annoy me by expecting objectivity.

Enda Delaney takes a highly original approach by telling the stories of four people at the centre of events during The Irish Famine. His history is authoritative and he works hard to bring to us a sense of people's perspectives at that time. This is a fresh clear examination of the greatest catastrophe in Ireland's history. A riveting read. Well done Enda.

[Albertine67 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good as an overview of the Famine, and I liked the idea of exploring the history through the lives of four very different people. The idea is better than its execution here: despite some biographical background and selections from their writings, none of the people 'really came alive for me and when I put it down I found it hard to pick up again. Certainly worth reading but more a straightforward history of the famine than I anticipated.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Worth reading if you have an interest in Irish history, or why so many died during the Famine. This is an historical veiw of four people who oversaw the lies of the millioons of Irish who were perishing. The history of the Irish/English discord over centuries iss explained, as well as the English attitude toward the Irish people. Very informative.

[Jane Massy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent way to examine the terrible years by seeing them through such different perspectives