Gender, Intimacy and Contemporary Ireland

This edited collection explores the dramatic transformations in intimate life that have taken place in Ireland in recent years. A new multiculturalism, availability of divorce and the introduction of civil partnership for same sex couples all herald significant changes in Irish life. Divorce and solo parenthood are no longer the taboos they once were. Women participate in employment after marriage in far greater numbers than ever before. Yet certain patterns of intimate life remain entrenched. Abortions must still be obtained abroad. Lengthy separations are required before divorce can be formalised. An emphasis on traditional family forms underpins people’s experiences of infertility and assisted reproduction. The contemporary landscape for intimate life in Ireland offers fascinating insights into new and old family forms, the influence of the media, and changing cultural and social norms. This edited book explores these changes in a collection of chapters by leading scholars showcasing cutting edge theory and research.

Introduction by Róisín Ryan-Flood Part 1: Family Change 1. Nuclear Fallout: Changing Demography and Families in Ireland by Eileen Drew 2. Performing Gender through Parenthood: Infertility as a Deviant Status in Contemporary Ireland by Noelle Cotter 3. Intimacy as Democracy and the Notion of Autonomy in Irish Divorcees’ Narratives by Elena Moore 4. Irish Abortion Politics: Domestic and Transnational Tensions by Katherine Side 5. Irish Motherhood Revisited by Evelyn Mahon Part 2: Gender 6. Nine Year Old Boys and Girls: On Different Paths? by Sheila Greene 7. ‘Deeds Not Words’ Imagining the Irish Countrywomen’s Association and Women’s Civic Friendships by Lia Kinane 8. Gender and Senior Management in Irish Universities by Pat O’Connor 9. A Tale of Two Eras: Women and Migration in Ireland by Siobhan O’Connor 10. Marginally Central Geographies: Negotiating Gender and Sexuality within Ireland’s Education Contexts by Aideen Quilty Part 3: Sexuality 11. Grá Gheal No More?: International Couples in Ireland by Rebecca Chiyoko King-O'Riain 12. Making Camp in Ireland: The Annual Alternative Miss Ireland Contest and Narratives of Nation and Home by Katherine O’Donnell 13. Relationships and Sexuality Education (RSE) in Ireland: A Feminist Perspective by Paula Mayock and Leslie Sherlock 14. Sexuality, Citizenship and Migration: A View from the Diaspora by Róisín Ryan-Flood

Róisín Ryan-Flood is a Senior Lecturer in Sociology and Director of the Centre for Intimate and Sexual Citizenship (CISC) at the University of Essex. Her research interests include gender, sexuality, citizenship, kinship and critical epistemologies. She is the author of Lesbian Motherhood: Gender, Families and Sexual Citizenship (Palgrave, 2009) and (with Rosalind Gill) Secrecy and Silence in the Research Process: Feminist Reflections (Routledge, 2010), as well as numerous journal articles and book chapters. She recently completed an ESRC funded project on sexual citizenship and diaspora. Her current research explores the experiences of donor egg recipients. She is co-editor of the journal Sexualities: Studies in Culture and Society (Sage).