Crossing Ireland's boundaries, real and imagined

The social, political, and economic landscape of contemporary Ireland has inspired extensive scholarly debate both within and well beyond the interdisciplinary field of Irish studies. National and international academic research has struggled to stay apace with a rapidly transforming demographic where shockwaves of economic upheaval and rapid social change have complicated ongoing projects of identity construction. Remarkable about this scholarly work, however, is its distinct lack of a self-consciously philosophical voice. In this introduction, we trace some of the boundaries that may lie at the heart of such an absence of philosophical intervention on the broad themes encompassing “contemporary Ireland”, while examining why the disciplines of Irish studies and philosophy have largely remained elusive to each other. Ultimately, we argue against disciplinary disciplining and present Philosophical Perspectives on Contemporary Ireland as an undisciplined, extended effort to place contemporary Ireland on the philosophical stage.