Our final report from the 2024 BAIS Bursary Prize winners comes from Declan Houten (University of Liverpool). Declan’s bursary enabled him to attend and present at two conferences:

Due to the bursary, I was able to attend four days of the Joyce Symposium in Glasgow, where I was presenting on the final day. This symposium brought together some of the most prominent members in the field of Joyce studies, meaning that I was able to receive valuable feedback on my research project. The BAIS grant enabled me to stay for four days and so I was able to view a variety of panels relevant to my research, directing to me towards useful resources and concepts to enrich my project.

The grant also allowed me to stay for the duration of an EFACIS PhD Seminar in Irish Studies in Leuven. In contrast to the Joyce conference this was comprised only of fellow PhDs, meaning that I was able to have many helpful discussions with my peers about the research process and shape my own accordingly. There was also an emphasis on Irish Studies here rather than on Joyce studies, allowing me to consider how my research project fits into the broader aims of Irish Studies. Finally, this seminar also featured various workshops led by senior academics, which were invaluable in providing me with different concepts to think about my research through.

The most important outcome of the connections I was able to make through this grant, as well as the conversations that I had and the panels I saw at both conferences, was that I was fortunate enough to have my first academic publication accepted. This publication will explore some of the themes covered in chapter 3 of my PhD thesis.

Declan is a PhD candidate at the Institute of Irish Studies, University of Liverpool. His thesis aims to portray Joyce’s Ulysses and Finnegan’s Wake as defined by key transitional moments, responding dynamically to the turbulence of the Revolutionary Period.

Illustration of Finnegan’s Wake courtesy of Stephen Crowe