Us and Them

Snaggs

Hi There,

I was reading some of the recent posts here (the CCCP shirts, one exploring religeous indentity, ect) and it occured to me that this would be a good place to ask about Dubliners and who we are.

I'm researching a documentary on 'Dubliners' and how they have changed, particularly in the last 10 or 15 years.

Exploring the opinion that Dublin has become a segmented city, I realized UCD is a perfect place to find newly emerging social groups within the city; goths, sk8ers, even internet communities like this one.

Do you think dubliners still share a common identity or have we become a segmented city?

I'm looking for opinions but I'll also be looking for people to interview at some stage in the future.

Thanks,

DadaKopf

Cities tend to be structured around commercial activities - work and consumption. Each of these activities tend to differentiate segment urban societies into different groups. But they're never really totally segmented. And I never was convinced that there's anything you could call 'Dublinness'.

So a lazy answer would be Dubliners are the totality of everyone who lives in it, each one who's a member of any one or more self-conscious identities. I think things have moved on to the point where, with cities, it's difficult to talk of a singular identity. In the past, it seems to me, being a Dubliner was either a word for 'working class' or 'West Brit' depending on where you lived. That doesn't apply to Dublin anymore, unless its another invention people decide to buy into.

What do you think?

Mr.Nice Guy

Dublin is just like Ireland in general in that we have become too influenced by outside culture.The Celtic Tiger boom and increased employment plus greater integration within Europe has seen Ireland change dramatically.The influx of foreign nationals into Dublin has also been a big change for the city.
Ultimately the price for prosperity has been patriotism to an extent.We watch mostly American TV nowadays with Irish programmes decreasing in importance.Even the language is declining rapidly even in Gaeltacht areas.
Dublin has always lacked the closeness that other Irish counties possess and that is abundantly clear at present.

What's the answer?In my view greater funding from the government into promoting the city.Bloomsday came and went without much fanfare.Why weren't there celebrations for the whole city?
Dublin,like Ireland in general,lacks pride in my opinion.Ireland's national day is the celebration of a saint.That's all well and good but there should be celebration of our history.France has Bastille day,America has the fourth of July,what do we have?
They should reintroduce the celebrations in Dublin for the Easter Rising.Parades could be held and the city of Dublin could take pride in its role in establishing our independence from Britain.

That's my two cents on the matter,anyway.

DadaKopf

An interesting part of the debate is to find out about how immigrants themselves see Irish culture. How they try to fit in, or don't.

They're the ones who are better at recognising what 'Irish culture' is, they and us oblivious to the fact that it's the interactions between people living in Dublin that's where our culture is!

chewy

mr nice guy? makes me wanna not be a anywhere' er...

there was huge amount of hoohaa for bloomsday, who does bloomsday represent anyway... although you have a point about st patricks day... but sure that was something else before that wasn't it, i guess easter rising is our "independance day" but thats too caught up with republicism, maybe this will lessens as things go forward in the north

don't we have instead of west brits if i were to be crude

d4 er's
cappucini drinkers
faux hippies
dart line accenters' - i think im in this category
west dublin'ers
county dubliners
northside posh, howth/malahide

i reckon we're still cynics and begrudgers... we more open minded, more open to influence...

Mr.Nice Guy

chewy wrote:

mr nice guy? makes me wanna not be a anywhere' er...

there was huge amount of hoohaa for bloomsday, who does bloomsday represent anyway...

Huge amount of hoohaa?Where exactly?

Bloomsday represents James Joyce and Dublin.It would be easy to base celebrations for Dublin around Bloomsday.That was my point.