David Fitzpatrick

The partition of Ireland created two states embodying rival ideologies and representing two hostile peoples. Despite their mutual antagonism, nationalist and Unionist revolutionaries actually had much in common: both rebelled against British authority; both relied on fraternal solidarity; both faced civil wars once they had secured local power; and, once in control, both proved intolerant of minorities and dissent. David Fitzpatrick's narrative begins with the Government of Ireland Bill of 1912 and closes with the imposition of the Emergency Powers Act in 1939. This is the first sustained integration of the political history of the two Irelands in the era of revolution and partition.

The Two Irelands, 1912-1939

"Endorphins sped through me. I spun around, growing dizzy, frantic, and silly. I wasn't drunk, but I felt a nice stoned feeling, sans paranoia, and I thought, 'I believe I've found my new pharmaceutical deep inside.' I giggled fearlessly, manically at this and looked down at myself; hands, arms, chest, and belly covered in crimson . . . " Sharp is the story of a young man who began his life with a loving family and great promise for the future. But in his early twenties, David Fitzpatrick became so consumed by mental illness it sent him into a frenzy of cutting himself with razor blades. In this shocking and often moving book, he vividly describes the rush this act gave him, the fleeting euphoric high that seemed to fill the spaces in the rest of his life. It started a difficult battle from which he would later emerge triumphant and spiritually renewed. Fitzpatrick's youth seemed ideal. He was athletic, handsome, and intelligent. However, he lived in fear of an older brother who taunted and belittled him; and in college, his roommates teased and humiliated him, further damaging what sense of self-esteem he still carried with him. As he shares these experiences, Fitzpatrick also recounts the lessons learned from the broken people he encountered during his journey—knowledge that led to his own emotional resurrection. Sharp also demonstrates the awakening of a writer's instinctive voice. With prose that is tough and gritty, profound and insightful, Fitzpatrick takes us inside his head while he manically cuts himself, but these episodes are presented with a dignity and insight that has never been seen before. His writing also possesses a lightness of touch that brings humor to a subject that doesn't naturally provide it. Above all else, Sharp is a tale of hope, a soul-baring quest of a lost man who returns to himself, overcomes his demons, and reclaims his life. It is destined to become a classic memoir.

A Memoir

Sharp

David Fitzpatrick’s Sharp is an extraordinary memoir—a fascinating, disturbing look into the mind of a man who, in his early 20s, began cutting himself due to a severe mental illness. A beautifully written treatment of a powerful subject, Fitzpatrick—whose symptoms included extreme depression and self-mutilation—writes movingly and honestly about his affliction and inspires readers with his courage, joining the literary ranks of Terri Cheney (Manic), Augusten Burroughs (Running with Scissors), Marya Hornbacher (Wasted), and Susanna Kaysen (Girl, Interrupted). “A harrowing journey from self-destructive psychosis to a cautious re-emergence into the flickering sunshine of the sane world….Fitzpatrick writes about mental illness with the unsparing intensity of Sylvia Plath and Anne Sexton but also with the hard-won self-knowledge of William Styron, Kay Jamison, and other chroniclers of disease, recovery, and management…. A must read, remarkably told.” —Wally Lamb, author of I Know This Much is True

Ernest Blythe (1889-1975) was a central figure in the Irish revolution and the first decade of the Irish Free State. He was a leading republican organiser before 1916, a Dáil minister from 1919, and a controversial member of Cosgrave's executive council, becoming vice-president after the murder of O'Higgins. He was widely regarded with interest and sometimes suspicion because of his Protestant and unionist background, a rarity in modern Irish republicanism. His judgements and opinions were typically intelligent and well-informed as well as unconventional. This project originated in David Fitzpatrick's discovery that Blythe, already a leading member of the IRB, joined the Orange Order while reporting for a unionist newspaper in County Down (1909-13). Had that fact become known, Blythe's political ambitions would have been dashed. Nowhere in his writings does he allude to this episode, though he indicated clearly his need to lead 'a double life' in the sense of appearing all things to all men. Blythe's account of his 'double life' is utterly inadequate. This book unveils the reality of his double life in Ulster, explains how it may have originated, and relates this episode to his subsequent views on partition, Ulster, and Fascism. Blythe may be regarded as a double agent, who sought to enlighten republicans about unionism, and unionists about Irish nationality. More broadly, the book uncovers important affinities between militant republicanism and unionism, especially during the pre-war crisis over Home Rule, when Ulster loyalists seemed the group best prepared and most likely to initiate an armed revolution in Ireland.

The Making of a Double Agent?

Ernest Blythe in Ulster

William Hall

Dale Purves

Michael Platt

George Augustine

Anthony LaMantia

Leonard White

Richard Mooney

For over 25 years, Purves Neuroscience has been the most comprehensive and clearly written neuroscience textbook on the market. This level of excellence continues in the 6th Edition, with a balance of animal, human, and clinical studies that discuss the dynamic field of neuroscience from cellular signaling to cognitive function.

Neuroscience

This book examines Protestant loss of power and self-confidence in Ireland since 1795. David Fitzpatrick charts the declining power and influence of the Protestant community in Ireland and the strategies adopted in the face of this decline, presenting rich personal testimony that illustrates how individuals experienced and perceived 'descendancy'. Focusing on the attitudes and strategies adopted by the eventual losers rather than victors, he addresses contentious issues in Irish history through an analysis of the appeal of the Orange Order, the Ulster Covenant of 1912, and 'ethnic cleansing' in the Irish Revolution. Avoiding both apologetics and sentimentality when probing the psychology of those undergoing 'descendancy', the book examines the social and political ramifications of religious affiliation and belief as practised in fraternities, church congregations and isolated sub-communities.

Irish Protestant Histories since 1795

Descendancy

George J Augustine

Anthony-Samuel LaMantia

Léonard White

Richement illustré et particulièrement pédagogique, accompagné de ses compléments en ligne, cet ouvrage, un classique du domaine, est la référence en neurosciences pour tout étudiant en psychologie, sciences cognitives, médecine et biologie. Qu'est-ce que le système nerveux ? Comment fonctionne-t-il ? Qu'est-ce que la mémoire ? Le langage ? L'intelligence ? Cet ouvrage répond à toutes ces questions et bien d'autres. Il présente les concepts et théories les mieux étayés des neurosciences, mais aussi les méthodes, techniques et données expérimentales et cliniques issues des recherches les plus récentes. Exhaustif tout en étant accessible, il constitue la référence tant pour les étudiants de 1er cycle en médecine que pour ceux de biologie, de sciences biomédicales, de psychologie et de sciences cognitives. Autorité dans le domaine, il est également adapté à des étudiants de cycles supérieurs ainsi qu'aux professionnels des neurosciences. Un appareil pédagogique développé : résumé du chapitre, encadrés, tableaux synoptiques, conseils de lecture, index détaillé, glossaire, synthèses pour l'étude en annexe NOTO, enrichi d'exercices, de QCM et de vidéos explicatives Accès compris au Sylvius, atlas de neuroanatomie interactif particulièrement puissant et fonctionnel Nouveautés de cette édition : Une iconographie enrichie, notamment grâce aux dernières techniques d'imagerie numérique Une mise à jour de tous les chapitres pour refléter les recherches en cours De nouveaux chapitres proposant l'étude plus précise de certaines fonctions cognitives De nouveaux cas cliniques pour mieux comprendre les processus neuronaux

Neurosciences

"An ocean of consolation" was what one young Irish emigrant in rural Australia called a letter from his father in County Clare in 1855. Similar strength of feeling is often found in the intriguing letters that David Fitzpatrick has unearthed for this extraordinary collection. Oceans of Consolation offers historians and family researchers novel and sophisticated ways of reading old letters. It opens to us the daily preoccupations of ordinary women and men with little education and fewer material possessions, as they try to overcome the separation from family and friends created by emigration. Fitzpatrick includes the personal correspondence of fourteen families of Irish emigrants in the Australian colonies, giving equal attention to letters to and from Australia. He reproduces in full more than one hundred letters dating from 1843 to 1906, and includes a generous selection of contemporary engravings and photographs. Fitzpatrick's detailed commentaries offer biographical narratives for all of these emigrants, tracing their Irish backgrounds and Australian careers. Parting company with editors of comparable collections, he pays special attention to the words and idiom by which letterwriters expressed their everyday concerns and sought or offered reassurance and advice. He believes that personal letters provide not only unique evidence of the hopes and fears of emigrants but also an important avenue for exploring popular Irish culture.

Personal Accounts of Irish Migration to Australia

Oceans of Consolation

Along with his close comrades Michael Collins and Eamon de Valera, Harry Boland (1887-1922) was probably the most influential Irish revolutionary between 1917 and 1922. His sway extended to almost every aspect of republican activity. Already prominent as a hurler before 1916, he was convicted and imprisoned after an energetic Easter Week. He subsequently became Honorary Secretary of Sinn Fein, T.D. for South Roscommon in the First Dail, President of the Irish Republican Brotherhood's Supreme Council, and a republican envoy in the United States between May 1919 and December 1921. He broke with Collins over the Treaty, but became the chief intermediary between the factions. Early in the Civil War, however, he was killed by National army officers in the Grand Hotel, Skerries. Boland's influence was the product of charm, gregariousness, wit, and ruthlessness. After his rebel father's early death, Boland's mother raised him in a spirit of intransigent hostility to Britain. Yet he was also stylish, cosmopolitan, and humane. His celebrated contest with Collins for the love of Kitty Kiernan is perhaps the most intriguing of all Irish political romances. Attractive yet elusive, his personality helped shape the Irish revolution. David Fitzpatrick's biography draws upon documents in Irish, British, and American archives, including his American diaries and thousands of letters to, from, and about Boland. Extensive use has been made of family papers and de Valera's vast archive on the Irish campaign in America. These and other recently released documents illuminate the inner workings of Irish republicanism, and the critical importance of brotherhood in the revolution. As an old-fashioned republican and advocate of 'physical force', Boland is still venerated as a martyr by revolutionary republicans. Yet, in his conduct, he practised the ambiguities associated with Sinn Fein in today's Northern Ireland. Doctrine was subordinated to the twin quests for republican unity and political supremacy, entailing reiterated compromise, systematic duplicity, and mastery of propagandist techniques. If his outlook seems archaic, his practice was astonishingly modern. Harry Boland was a forerunner for Adams and McGuinness. -- Publisher description.

David Fitzpatrick

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