Diaries, scrapbooks and journals in library exhibit
Vol. 17, No. 2Sept. 11, 1997

Diaries, scrapbooks and journals in library exhibit

The 19th-century American schoolboy who used his daily diary to improve his spelling, the young 19th-century British bachelor who toured Europe for cultural appreciation and the 20th-century Irish artist who creatively worked out his thoughts and ideas in scrapbooks are but a few of the individuals who share their stories in "Self Works: Diaries, Scrapbooks and Other Autobiographical Efforts," on display now through Dec. 18 in the Special Collections Exhibition Gallery in the Morris Library.

Scholars have long focused their attention upon the diaries and journals of important historical and literary figures. However, during the past several decades, they have turned their attention to a broader range of autobiographical efforts created by everyday men and women, and occasionally children, who have chosen to record their lives and thoughts, often without ever intending anyone else to read them.

Relatively recent areas of scholarship such as gender studies, popular culture, the "new historicism" and interdisciplinary approaches have helped foster a renewed interest in original manuscripts and other primary resources.

"Self Works" presents a diverse array of research materials in the area of life writing and suggests strategies for examining them.

A selection of 69 original works from 61 individuals is presented in the exhibition. Also included are the British teenage girl who sensitively portrayed family life and the grace of nature while enduring a fatal illness, the 1870s society woman who collected press clippings and correspondence related to her sensational divorce in a scrapbook, the American repatriated writer whose later diaries reflected her desperate spiritual searches and the African-American woman who struggled to publish a newspaper and to effect change in civil rights through political activism in the 1920s.

Curated by L. Rebecca Johnson Melvin, associate librarian, the exhibition borrows an idea from the Irish poet Brian Coffey's "self books" and terms these sources "self works," because they are such strongly reflective creations of individuals who communicate the significance of their lives and their selves.

Diaries, journals, personal scrapbooks, travel narratives, autobiographies, memoirs and reminiscences are included in the exhibition, and examples range from 18th and 19th century.

The genres of self works are represented are as diverse as the individuals who created them and their reasons for putting pen to paper.

Some of these noted literary or historical characters, others are nearly anonymous figures from the past. But each passes on the message that they, too, were real people with common human experiences. The works reflecting their lives will also be available on the World Wide Web version of the exhibition, which will be available using the URL: http://www.lib.udel.ud/spec/exhibits/selfwork/

"'Self Works: Diaries, Scrapbooks, and Other Autobiographical Efforts' presents a diverse array of materials in an imaginative, visually appealing display and introduces this unique collection of primary research materials to a wider audience," Susan Brynteson, director of libraries, said.

A copy of the exhibition catalog is available to visitors of the exhibition. To purchase a catalog by mail ($17.50 including $2.50 for postage and handling), send a written request to the Office of the Director, University of Delaware Library, Newark, DE 19717-5267. Payment should be made to the University of Delaware Library Associates.

An opening reception, sponsored by the Library Associates, will be held at 4:30 p.m., Wednesday, Oct. 8, in the Class of 1941 Lecture Room of the Morris Library. The event is open to the public by reservation.

To request a printed invitation, send an e-mail request to UDLA@mvs.udel.edu or call 831-2231. Visit the University of Delaware Library Web page at: http://www.lib.udel.edu

-Beth Thomas