Folklore & Women: The power of folklore in reclaiming female stories

We often say history is written by the victors, and more often than not, those victors were men. For centuries, men’s lives were more visible, more documented, and more likely to be recorded in public and written spaces. As a result, history tends to reflect their experiences far more than those of women.

This talk isn’t about blame; it’s about alternatives. Folklore, oral narratives, and myth offer powerful ways to explore the lives, beliefs and aspirations of women across time. From stories of the otherworld to rituals, customs, and tales passed down through generations, these narratives open up new ways of understanding voices that history often overlooks. In re-examining these stories, we not only reclaims hidden aspects of the past – we gain a richer, more layered view of the present, and the possibilities of the future. 

Doors open at 7pm, talk starts at 7.30pm - come down early to grab a good seat!

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Dr Deirdre Nuttall is a folklorist/ethnologist who works in the fields of oral history, folk religion, and narrative. She has a Master’s in Social Anthropology with a specialisation in the Anthropology of Religion from the University of Durham and a PhD in folklore from University College Dublin with a focus on migratory legends of the supernatural. She has carried out field research in Ireland, Newfoundland and Guatemala. In 2020 her book, A Folk History of the Protestants of Independent Ireland (Eastwood), was one of the Irish Independent’s Books of the Year. Other recent publications include Swimming Upstream: One Man’s Fight to Save the Atlantic Wild Salmon, co-authored with Patsy Peril (O’Brien) and A People’s History of Dún Laoghaire Rathdown (Eastwood).

Deirdre is also a writer, ghostwriter and book doctor with experience and expertise across a wide range of non-fiction disciplines, particularly memoir and biography.

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