For decades Ireland presented itself as the land of hospitality, until the 1990s, when the 'Celtic Tiger' exposed its racist underbelly. In Race in Modern Irish Literature and Culture, John Brannigan argues that race and racism have longer histories in the Irish state, histories which have often been exposed and critiqued by Irish writers and artists. He revisits the role of racial ideologies in the foundation and development of the state, offering original historical insights, and inspired new readings of literary and cultural works ranging from Ulysses to The Commitments.