Haunting the Text: Nicola Pierce’s Spirit of the Titanic and Irish Historical Children’s Fiction

Abstract

My article explores representations of Irish identity, history, and trauma in the Irish writer Nicola Pierce’s contemporary children’s novel, Spirit of the Titanic (2011). I examine the representation of Irish society and culture around the time of the construction of the Titanic, with a particular emphasis on the portrayal of marginalised individuals and groups. My article analyses the representation of history and the portrayal of trauma and affective ties, and concludes that Spirit of the Titanic provides an example of how contemporary Irish women writers offer alternative historical narratives to new readerships, through genres such as children’s literature.