Drawing upon post-colonial critiques of the provincial nature of metropolitan theory, this book approaches Scotland's shame debate as, in many ways, itself a classic metrocentric cultural struggle over the true and essential telos of a once colonised population.

Contents: Preface: liberating nausea; Provincialising the Scotland's Secret Shame debate: an enquiry into the meaning of the Irish Catholic adventure in Scotland. Part I Topological Mappings and Their Limits: Metropolitan anxieties: a critical appraisal of Sartre's theory of colonialism; The Scotland's Secret Shame debate: approach and method. Part II Topographical Mappings of the Irish Catholic Adventure in Scotland: Prologue: the oral history archive; National identity, estrangement and belonging: who are the Irish Catholics in Scotland?; Imagining home: holidays, the farm, and the craic; The politics of anti-imperialism: activists, agitators, and advocates; Ways of life and the life of ways: culture, faith and family; Immigrant advancement: poverty, education and equality. Part III Cartographical Reflection: Method and Dialogue Under Scrutiny: Masses, spontaneity and tribe: in search of the intelligibility of the Irish Catholic adventure in Scotland; References; Index,

'The people about whom this book is written come across as real human beings with all their hopes and sentiments, foibles and resentments, connections and alterities, memories and imaginings. This is the first major work by a geographer to apply a Sartrean lens to understand the complexities of human adventure. Boyle expands the Sartrean lexicon to encompass a range of topological and topographical conditions that define human being in situ: on the ground, in the messy, complicated, sometimes tragic and humiliating, but often touching or celebratory situations in which they live their lives and come to terms with what remains of a powerful and resilient colonialism. He shows that historical actions have consequences. Jean-Paul Sartre would surely approve.' Audrey Kobayashi, Queen's University, Canada 'Entangled geographies of Scotland and Ireland narrated with verve and sympathy. Metropolitan Anxieties looks set to become a landmark in Irish studies, postcolonial geographies and diaspora studies.' James D. Sidaway, University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands 'A book of great integrity, rigour and compassion that combines a wealth of original source material and an equally original framework for exploring its subject. An undoubted success in its ambitions to explore the complexity of the Irish Catholic community in Scotland and to develop and deploy Sartre's insights about the possibilities of progressive cultural politics.' Catherine Nash, Queen Mary, University of London, UK 'Mark Boyle offers a refreshing new approach to theoretical understandings of wider issues in the Irish diaspora, which requires careful reading, and a very detailed oral history archive, which is thoroughly documented and will appeal to a wider audience.' Australasian Journal of Irish Studies