Guide to the Papers of Vivian Smith, c.1931-2003

Request this via the Catalogue
 

Online content

Some materials from this collection are available online.
Show only online content

Online content

View online

Summary

Collection number:
MS 4853
Creator:
Smith, Vivian, 1933-
Extent:
(31 ms boxes + 1 medium folio box + 1 small phase box)
Language:
English and English
Preferred citation:
Items from this collection should be cited as '[Title or description of manuscript item], Papers of Dr Vivian Smith, National Library of Australia, MS 4853, [series and file number]'.
Availability:
Available
Access conditions:
Part available for research; part requires permission for research. Not for loan.

Background

Content Summary:
The content of this collection spans most of Dr Smith's career and consists of five different instalments between 1975 and 2004. It includes correspondence, manuscript poetry, transcripts of interviews, publications (including copies of Smith's published poems), articles by or about Smith, reviews, newspaper cuttings, works by other poets and writers, ephemera, notebooks, Smith's PhD thesis on Vance and Nettie Palmer, research notes relating to Smith's publications on the Palmers, (including original and photocopied letters of Vance and Nettie Palmer), notebooks and typescript drafts. Also included are papers relating to Smith's position in the English Department at the University of Sydney, and his role as literary editor of Quadrant. A major component of this collection is the correspondence which includes numerous letters from other poets, writers, academics and individuals involved or interested in Australian literature. Three appendices have been attached to highlight the range and names of principle correspondents.
Biographical Note:

Vivian Smith was born in Hobart in 1933. He graduated with an MA in French from the University of Tasmania, where he taught the language for 10 years. He moved to Sydney in the 1950, obtained a Ph.D in English and taught at the University of Sydney from 1967-1996, progressing to the position of Reader. From 1975 to 1990 he was the Literary Editor of Quadrant. Dr Smith has written, edited or co-edited numerous books on poetry and other subjects, such as Vance and Nettie Palmer. Some of his titles include The other meaning(1956), James McAuley's recent poetry(1964), An island south(1967), Vance Palmer (1971), Letters of Vance and Nettie Palmer (1977), Tide country(1982) (which won the New South Wales Premier's Prize for Poetry and the Grace Leven Prize), Quadrant, twenty-five years(1982, co-edited with Peter Coleman and Lee Shrubb), Selected poems (1985), Australian poetry(1986), Nettie Palmer: Her private journal "Fourteen Years", poems, reviews and literary essays (1988, edited by Smith),New selected poems(1995), Late news (2000), Patrick White: a Bibliography (2004, co-edited with Brian Huber), Windchimes: Asia in Australian poetry(1986, co-edited with Noel Rowe) and, most recently, Along the line (2007). Dr Smith also wrote the poetry section of The Oxford history of Australian literature and has contributed to many other reference works on Australian and world literature.

AustLit - The Australian Literature Resource: http://www.austlit.edu.au, cited 3 March 2009

Australia - Poetry International Web: http://australia.poetryinternationalweb.org, cited 3 March 2009

Provenance:

The papers arrived to the Library in a number of different instalments. Three instalments relating to the Palmer material were donated to the Library in 1974, 1977 and 1979. In 1983 20 boxes were acquired from Dr Smith; and in 2004 a further instalment of three boxes was donated to the Library under the Cultural Gifts Program.

Arrangement:

This collection has been arranged according to the order of each of the five instalments received from Dr Smith. The original list incorporated the 1974, 1977 and 1979 instalments, which make up the letters and papers relating to Vance and Nettie Palmer. The 1983 instalment was arranged and described by the donor into three series - Series 1 'Manuscripts, typesets and related correspondence'; Series 2 'Correspondence'; and Series 3 'Miscelleanous materials'. These series were added to the original boxlist.

In March 2009 the list was amended to incorporate the 2004 instalment. This instalment, arranged and described by Library staff, has been split. Parts have been added to the existing three series (Series 1-3); and a new series has been created for the audio cassette tapes (Series 5). At this time, the existing group of Palmer papers (received in the 1970s) was assigned a new series title. This is now Series 4.

Access and use

Conditions Governing Access:
Access conditions may apply to this collection, please refer to the collection's catalogue record for further information (http://nla.gov.au/nla.cat-vn1109700).
Conditions Governing Use:
Copying and publishing of unpublished manuscript material is subject to copyright restrictions. For such material, written permission to publish must be obtained from the copyright holder(s). Copying of unpublished material for research purposes is permissible 50 years after the death of the creator of the material.
Preferred citation:
Items from this collection should be cited as '[Title or description of manuscript item], Papers of Dr Vivian Smith, National Library of Australia, MS 4853, [series and file number]'.
Location of this collection:
Parkes Place
Canberra ACT 2600, Australia
Contact:
Contact us