Arrangement
The finding aid is organized intellectually into eight series:
conference papers, correspondence, novels, photographs, poems (collected,
edited and miscellaneous), publicity, radioscripts, and translations.
Correspondence is arranged by date while the rest of the series are
organized alphabetically, by work.
Biographical Note
Alan
Brownjohn, of
London, England, is a novelist, critic, poet,
translator and editor. He was born in 1931 in the
Catford area of
South East London, an area known at that time for
its non-conformist and socialist political views.
Alan
Brownjohn graduated from
Merton College with a B.A. in 1953 and received a
M.A. from the school in 1961. He started his career as a writer in 1954, with
the publication of his first poetry pamphlet,
Travellers Alone, and served as a reviewer
for
The Truth and co-editor of
Departure. In 1961, his first collection
of poems,
The Railings was published to critical
acclaim.
The Times Literary Supplement called his
poem, "William Empson at Aldermaston," one of the best protest poems written
during the cold war.
To help support himself during the beginning of his writing career,
Alan
Brownjohn worked as a tutor and a full-time teacher at
Beckenham and
Penge Boys Grammar Schools. He later became a
lecturer in 17th-century poetry at the
Battersea College of
Education.
Brownjohn's
Catford upbringing always influenced his life and
work. This was evident in his first novel,
To Clear the River (1964), about a love
affair in the setting of CND (Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament). During that
year, he also ran (unsuccessfully) as a Labour candidate for the House of
Commons.
By 1978
Alan
Brownjohn had retired from teaching to become a full-time writer.
Along with his wife,
Sandy, he
wrote a series of teaching anthologies,
Meet and Write, and co-translated several
plays from German:
Peter Handke's
Quodlibet,
Gerhard
Rühm's
Ophelia and the Words, and
Goethe's
Torquato Tasso. The translation of
Torquato Tasso was later broadcast by the
BBC .
Alan
Brownjohn has long been active in the poetic circles of
England. He has a lengthy association with the
Poetry Society, having served as chairman and
editor of
Verse-Speaking Anthology.
Brownjohn also has been a
reviewer for the
Times Literary Supplement and a poetry
critic for the
New Statesman.
Alan
Brownjohn has written under the pseudonyms
John
Berrington and
John
Barrington. He enjoys sharing his work with others by giving poetry
readings throughout
London.
Scope and Content
This collection, although not comprehensive, contains the professional
and personal papers of
Alan
Brownjohn. The professional papers include the drafts and final
copies for six novels, thirteen poems, and two plays, most notably
The Long Shadows,
Meet and Write, and
Torquato Tasso. The collection also
contains many miscellaneous manuscripts and radioscripts, including the
interviews and and radioscript for
Something To Be Said.
The personal papers include correspondence with
John
Kaiser; professional photographs of the author and a business card;
and newspaper clippings, posters, programs, and flyers advertising or reviewing
Brownjohn's readings and work.
Index Terms
These materials are indexed under the following headings in the
catalog of the Pennsylvania State University. Researchers wishing to find
related materials should search the catalog under these index terms.
Personal Names
Brownjohn,
Alan, 1931- -- Archives
Topical Subjects
Authors, English--Correspondence
Authors, English--Manuscripts
Poets, English--Manuscripts
Correspondence
Manuscripts for publication
Poems
Radio scripts
Translations
