Ireland’s history is so rich and similar to Navajo culture.
Today we went to visit the Kilmanham Jail in Dublin. It was historically the
first of its kind (at the time) to change the way that jails were operated.
Originally jails housed many convicted persons, men/women/children, into one
large room. This was not conducive to setting a precedent of “punishment”,
often times it was social, drinking, fighting, and one large group of people
who housed for an amount of time. When the new Irish officials realized this
was not necessarily teaching them a lesson, they enforced stricter punishment.
A new form to be
used: isolation, constant surveillance, and reflection. Thus the jail was built
to house one felon per cell, built to be viewed by the guards at all times, and
to enforce them to only see light when thinking of how to reform themselves. In
theory this seemed like the solution to the strict Irish officials however it
soon became a problem in numbers, the famine, and the limestone additionally
not accounted for to house those convicted. (guilty or not) A lot of the jail
did house women and children who were caught stealing food during the famine.
It was a very strong somber presence and to see the jail and feel the cold
dampness in the summertime, only made me think about the winter conditions.
Hearing the more serious topics of Ireland first really
helped me to grasp the history and to think of the country in its context.
Before arriving I really did not know much at all! This gave me more of a
connection to Irish history and to the sacrifices they had to pay for their
country. Especially for those who died in signing the Irish Declaration of
Independence. It was a stark contrast to the signing of the American Independence.
Afterward we switched up the mood by touring the Guinness
factory. It was really fun to see the factory after hearing so much about it,
and see all of the Guinness signs outside of pubs. The factory itself was
loaded with tons of people and guides had said that it was a slow day. It seems
to be a good source of revenue, information, and to learn more about how Irish
people made Guinness. It is a fascinating process, but my favorite part of the
tour was learning about the wooden barrels. They make 1,000+ handmade a week.
It’s insane, how they made the barrels without any measurements or some sort of
sap to make it water resistant. Overall I really enjoyed the day learning more
about the beginning of Irish independence and to set the stage for the trip.
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