Northern Ireland’s Interregnum. Anna Burns’s Depiction of a (Post)-Troubles State of (In)security

This paper aims to present the main contours of Burns’s literary output which, interestingly enough, grows into a personal understanding collective mindset (post)-Troubles Northern Ireland. It is legitimate, I argue, construe her fiction (No Bones, 2001; Little Constructions, 2007; Milkman, 2018) as body work shedding light on certain underlying mechanisms (post-)sectarian violence. Notwithstanding lapse time between 1998 and 2020, Troubles’ toxic legacy has indeed woven an unbroken thread in social fabric region. My reading novelist’s selected works intends show how local public have been fed by (or themselves upon) unjustified—maybe even false—sense security. Burns, that regard, positioned herself amongst aggregate writers who feel anxious rather than placated, hence their persistence returning roots Irish societal divisions. writing, above context, though immersed world Troubles, paradoxically communicates “an idiosyncratic spatiotemporality” (Maureen Ruprecht Fadem’s phrase), namely experience beyond self-imposing, historical limits. As such, it gains ability provide insightful commentaries conflict-prone relations, patterns which can be repeatedly observed Ireland’s socio-political milieu. Overall, idea here discuss narrative realm proposed Burns (in)determinate, liminal terms space, positioning readers “then” “now”