Frank O' Connor's Transcendent Dignity In His Early War Stories

Frank O'Connor (1903-1966) is a famous Irish writer in the twentieth century, known for his considerable short stories. In order to commemorate the master of short stories, Frank O'Connor International Short Story Festival and Frank O'Connor International Short Story Award were set up in 2000. O'Connor's war stories are fraction of his countless works. But his war stories record the historical details of Anglo-Irish war and Irish Civil War which were the most epoch-making and painful events in modern Irish history, depict the inability of Irishmen at war and reflect upon the nature of war and the meaning of life.O'Connor focalizes on the microcosm of the soldiers, displaying their lonely, impotent and lost status and disclosing that the parochial nationalism, a hidden power, controls what to do and how to do. Confronted with the society repressed by the parochial nationalism, O'Connor questions the values divinized by post-independent nationalists and achieves evolvement of views on nationalism from impartiality to transcendence, which shows his dignity as an individual. Meanwhile, he realizes the evil of the wars. Its trauma is as painful as traumatic experience in childhood, which impels him to evaluate trauma with reflection and to regain inner dignity. Thus he writes a group of marginalized submerged population being involved in wars. By portraying their real state of mind and fine qualities, O'Connor states that true dignity refers to one shining with humanity, rationality and morality. No matter when he deconstructs the values of nationalism or when he pursues dignity after war trauma has dented him, O'Connor always demonstrates a sense of transcendence that distinguishes him from contemporary writers. The thesis employs the historical-biographical method to explore soldiers'irrationality at the mercy of parochial nationalism and their inner humanity, so as to demonstrate O'Connor's sense of transcendence in terms of parochial nationalism and evil. As a spokesman of the submerged population, O'Connor conveys positive values and transcendent dignity.