Post-crash fiction and the aesthetics of austerity in Kevin Barry’s City of Bohane

Abstract

ABSTRACTSince 2008, the phrase “age of austerity” has become commonplace in political, economic, and sociocultural discourse across Europe and the globe. This article contributes to interdisciplinary studies of austerity, a political and material phenomenon, from a literary studies perspective. The essay proposes Irish writer Kevin Barry’s acclaimed 2011 novel City of Bohane as an exemplar of “post-crash fiction,” as the text develops a trenchant critique of the age of austerity via its literary aesthetics. Foregoing realism in favor of speculative fiction, City of Bohane presents a foreboding view of what contemporary Ireland might look like 40 years in the future. The article examines Barry’s use of allegory and ekphrasis, demonstrating how these techniques develop an “aesthetics of austerity” that impels readers to view austerity not merely as a response to fiscal crisis, but rather as a humanitarian issue with deep roots in the historical operations of colonialism and sectarian division.