James Plunkett
James Plunkett was an influential Irish author, born on May 21, 1920, in Sandymount, Dublin. Growing up in a working-class neighborhood, he was deeply influenced by the diverse personalities around him, which later shaped the fictional characters in his writings. After leaving school at seventeen, he worked as a clerk at the Dublin Gas Company and became involved in labor activism, serving as branch secretary of the Workers' Union of Ireland. Plunkett is best known for his epic novel *Strumpet City* (1969), which explores the Dublin lockout of 1913, a significant event in Ireland's labor history. His literary works also include several short story collections and novels such as *Farewell Companions* and *The Circus Animals*. In addition to fiction, he wrote essays, plays, and scripts for radio and television, contributing to the cultural landscape of Ireland. A member of Aosdána, he received honorary life membership in the Irish Writers' Union in 2000. Plunkett passed away on May 28, 2003, leaving behind a legacy of rich storytelling and social commentary.
On this Page
Subject Terms
James Plunkett
Writer
- Born: May 21, 1920
- Birthplace: Sandymount, Dublin, Ireland
- Died: May 28, 2003
- Place of death: Dublin, Ireland
Biography
Irish author James Plunkett was born in Sandymount, Dublin, on May 21, 1920. He was raised on Upper Pembroke Street in Dublin and attended the Christian Brothers School and the Municipal School of Music. His family and neighbors were members of the working class, and the multitude of personalities he encountered as a young man had a profound impact on the fictional characters he would create later in life. In 1937, at the age of seventeen, he left school and became a clerk at the Dublin Gas Company. He became branch secretary of the Workers’ Union of Ireland in 1946 and worked for the labor leader Jim Larkin.
Plunkett is the author of the short story collections The Eagle and the Trumpets, and Other Stories (1954), The Trusting and the Maimed (1955), and Collected Short Stories (1977). His epic novel of Dublin, Strumpet City, was published in 1969. It was set against the backdrop of the Dublin lockout of 1913, Ireland’s worst industrial dispute. His other novels include the autobiographical Farewell Companions (1977) and The Circus Animals (1990). He wrote numerous essays which were collected in the volumes The Gems She Wore: A Book of Irish Places (1973) and The Boy on the Back Wall (1987). His play The Risen People was first produced in 1958 at the Abbey Theatre in Dublin; it was published in 1978. He also wrote radio, television, and film scripts, including the radio dramas Dublin Fusilier (1952), Mercy (1953), and Homecoming (1954). He was a member of Aosdána, an exclusive Irish artists’ affiliation. He was awarded honorary life membership in the Irish Writers’ Union in October, 2000. Plunkett died on May 28, 2003.