Feb 28, 2011

Gordimer, Fugard and South African Connections

For phase two, I decided to stay with the works of Nadine Gordimer. I went to online to the Lilly Library website and clicked manuscripts under “The Collections”. I figured that was a good place to start to see if there was anything else in the Gordimer collection that had not been pulled for our class. On the next page I clicked “G” for Gordimer which brought me to a long list of ‘G” authors. I found Gordimer’s name which took me to a page of information on her. I clicked the “guide” option on the bottom of the page and it gave me the table of contents to her collection which has over 6700 pieces. I thought “Diaries and Notebooks” sounded interesting so I clicked that link and it took me to a list of the folders, specifically box 15 folders 81-87 containing her notebooks and a description of what each folder held. I found that the notebooks ranged from many different years and that it would be easy for me to find whichever era of her writing that I wanted.

I then decided to try to find out more about the apartheid and other people who wrote about it. I went back to the Lilly Library home page and in the search box typed “apartheid”. The search brought up six different links but all of them were Gordimer except for one. I clicked the link that brought me to a biography of Athol Fugard. I found out that he was a South African playwright and that his collection at the library has over 1200 items. I clicked the link for “inventory” and it gave me a list of the whole collection broken down by box then folder. Through my web browser I searched for “apartheid” on the page but it was not in the title of any of the works. Then I searched “South Africa” and that returned six items. I found in box four, folder 48, a New York Times article from September 1964 that I thought looked interesting. I decided to have it pulled.

I went into the reading room and a staff member gave me a slip of red construction paper that I used to write what I wanted pulled. I wrote “Fugard Mss. Box 4, Folder 48. New York Times Article” and returned it to the staff member. I little later she came and brought the folder to my table. I skimmed over the article and it was about how African theatre was making an impact on the rest of the world. I also learned that Fugard used to be a professor at IU. It could be something that I could use later for my longer paper. This was the first time I had tried to get a resource from the Lilly Library but I thought it was pretty easy and simple to find something useful to my research.

3 comments:

Charlotte said...

t sounds like you got a lot out of your research! I think it was really great that you got to see something at the Lilly Library, and I know that can be very useful in gaining a greater understanding of you collection.

The large Gordimer collection that you found may prove to be very insightful, and I think learning more about her and her other works will help your understanding and ability to analyze the materials you are focusing on.

I am really interested in learning more about the Fugard collection you came across-especially due to his links with IU! I am also interested in discovering which authors we have looked at in class that you feel reflect Gordimer's views

Alyssa said...

I love how descriptive you were! You explained every step very clearly and I completely understand how to replicate your search. I would have followed the exact same steps you made to further my research.

I especially thought that finding other authors who also wrote about the apartheid was a great idea. That will really help you to contextualize Gordimer and contrast her work with the other author's.

I would definitely look into the larger collection of Gordimer's writing that is at the Lilly Library. You may be able to find some really interesting texts there that can help you figure out how her views may have changed throughout her lifetime, or whether the tactics she used to convey her thoughts changed at all through her life.

Katharine Yugo said...

Britt,

It seems like you have got a good handle on navigating The Lilly! With a collection of 1200 items I bet you could find other works by Fugard that may prove to be helpful. I wonder if through more research on Gordimer you might think of another phrase or key word to use to look for works by Fugard and other writers/playwrights.
The fact that Fugard was playwright made me want to know what impact other art forms may have had on the movement against apartheid. What kind of controls did the government have over the arts and media at that time?
It looks like you are off to a great start Britt, good luck with the rest of your research!

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