E X T E N S I O N THE IRISH REVIVAL The Irish Revival was a movement that sought1 to create, promote, and sustain Irish culture in the late 19th and early 20th century. It had its roots in the earlier Celtic revival of the late 18th century, which developed a keen interest in Irish history and the traditions, music and poetry of ancient Ireland. The The Abbey Theatre. later Irish revival, by contrast, aimed to restore Irish cultural forms in literature, music and art, though the works produced were distinctly modern in theme and treatment. This movement was also encouraged by the political need for an individual Irish identity as distinct from the British one, in the struggle for the independence of Ireland. The spirit of rebellion was kept alive by invoking Ireland s historic past, its myths, legends and folklore. In 1893, the Gaelic League was founded with the express purpose of maintaining the Irish language (Irish Gaelic) as a living spoken language. Figures such as Lady Gregory, William Butler Yeats, John Millington Synge, Se n O Casey wrote many plays and articles about the political state of Ireland at the time. These were connected with another great symbol of the literary revival, The Abbey Theatre, which served as the stage for many new Irish writers and playwrights of the time. Although the term is most often used to refer to the literary movement, the exploration and affirmation of Irish identity was evident in other areas such as sports, music, architecture, and visual arts. The development of the Gaelic Athletic Association, established in 1884, aimed to promote national sports. The Irish-American designer Thomas Augustus Gus O Shaughnessy made a conscious choice to connect his art with Irish design roots. Louis Sullivan, the Chicago architect of Irish origin, incorporated dense Celtic-inspired ornaments in his buildings. The ethos2 of the revival that is, the creation of an idealistic image of Ireland or Irish spirit decidedly not British was in turn 1. sought (seek-sought-sought): tried to achieve. 2. ethos: the set of ideas and moral attitudes typical of a particular group. 117