Ties a Canadian Flag Remarkably Close to the One Chosen Two Decades Later

Home , Rudy Wiebe

I91 Books in Review buildings, Nobbs designed furniture, coins, letterhead, tombstones, and in the for- ties a Canadian flag remarkably close to the one chosen two decades later. We dis- cover a consistency of philosophy. Nobbs's conviction that 'regionalism in architecture was inevitable and therefore a sensible source of inspiration ...,' is paralleled by Traquair's belief that 'architecture is a matter of building to meet real needs with real materials in a real place and therefore regional both from the point of view of its making and its meaning.' One wonders what they would make of the faddish homo- geneity all too evident in today's big cities. All men of strong views and personali- ties, Traquair in particular seems to have been a maverick. 'I think,' wrote a col- league, 'he is our most scholarly yet least academic member ...,' an accolade many would still be pleased to receive. He himself strove to make the architectural curric- ulum as eclectic as possible. 'The longer I work at it the vaguer my ideas become upon standardization....' He went so far as to remark that he would be 'very sorry indeed if the university training ever came to be regarded as the only entrance to the profession.' Physically these are attractive volumes. Care has obviously been taken with the choice of illustration. The pages are well laid out, the elements of each record are distinct, and the font is clear and readable. The inevitable typographical errors are few in number, and do not detract from a favourable overall imipression. If this reviewer has a concern it is a question of durability. These are large heavy volumes which one hopes will receive extensive use. The paper covers in particular, while handsomely designed, may not wear well, and one regrets that it was not possible, apparently, to provide more durable bindings for the results of so much dedicated hard work. Two other aspects of this ambitious project require mention. The volumes are bilingual, and, on request, the databases can be searched on-line. In this respect, those of us engaged with computerized projects will sympathize over the rigidity imposed by the machine. Those who are not yet so involved will learn that apostro- phes and hyphens can, on occasion, attain a power of their own that require special explanation (Traquair, p. 5II)· These volumes are to be highly recommended both for those interested in architecture and design in Canada, and for an audience that has a more general interest in Canadian culture.

JEAN F. TENER (Jean F. Tener is University Archivist at the University of Calgary.)

University of Calgary. Libraries. Special Collections Division. The Hugh M~acLennan Papers. Calgary: University of Calgary Press, 1986. xxx, 161 pp. Canadian Archival Inventory Series: Literary Papers, No. I. n.p.1. (paper). IsBN 0-919813-39-9-

University of Calgary. Libraries. Special Collections Division. The William Ormond Mitchell Papers. Calgary: University of Calgary Press, 1986. xxxix, 2I8 pp. Canadian Archival Inventory Series: Literary Papers, 192 Papers of the Bibliographical Society of Canada xxvI

No. 2. n.p.1. (paper). IsBN 0-9198I3-48-8.

University of Calgary. Libraries. Special Collections Division. The Robert Kroetsch Papers, First Accession. Calgary, University of Calgary Press, 1986. xlviii, 371 pp. Canadian Archival lnventory Series: Literary Papers, No. 3. n.p.1. (paper). IsBN 0-919813-45-3-

University of Calgary. Libraries. Special Collections Division. The Rudy Wiebe Papers, First Accession. Calgary: University of Calgary Press, 1986. xxxiv, 328 pp. Canadian Archival Inventory Series: Literary Papers, No. 4. n.p.1. (paper). IsBN 0-9I9813-36-4-

University of Calgary. Libraries. Special Collections Division. The Alice M\lunro Papers, First Accession. Calgary: University of Calgary Press, 1986. xxxy, 211 pp. Canadian Archival lnventory Series: Literary Papers, No. 7. n.p.1. (paper). ISBN 0-9I98I3-44-5-

University of Calgary. Libraries. Special Collections Division. The Joanna M1.Glass Papers. Calgary: University of Calgary Press, 1986. xxxviii, 278 pp. Canadian Archival Inventory Series: Literary Papers, No. 8. n.p.1. (paper). ISBN O-9I9813-42-9.

The Canadian Archival Inventory Series of Literary Papers produced by the Univer- sity of Calgary, now comprising six volumes with more promised, is a new and impressive effort to make literary collections accessible to a wide audience of researchers. Begun in 1982, under the series editorship of the late Charles Steele, the series is based on the Canadian literary papers (CanLit as we know it) of the Special Collections Division of the University of Calgary. Jean Tener, University Archivist, and Apollonia Steele, Special Collections Librarian, are the editors. These first six inventories, published in 1986, cover some of the major contemporary Canadian authors whose papers have been collected by Calgary: Hugh MacLennan, W.O. Mitchell, Robert Kroetsch, Rudy Wiebe, Alice Munro, and Joanna Glass. Originally intended to be an on-line system, the series are not yet associated with an automated entry system but are produced by text editor. Each volume fol- lows the same format. The introductory section contains a biocritical essay on the author (by various contributors) and an archival introduction which gives a general description of the collection, the reasons for its arrangement, and the necessary table of abbreviations. The archival inventory, following the principle of archival arrangement of inherent, not imposed order, is divided into series. First are the correspondence series, followed by the other series relevant to that particular collection (for example, short story, essay, sound cassette, and so on). Finally, the third section contains alphabetical listings of titles and outgoing letters, the chronological listing of letters, and a nominal, not subject, index. Occasionally there are appendices to cover additional material. 193 Books in Review

The aim of the inventory and indexing is to provide access to the principal person (author). The entries, at file not individual item level, include collection number and box and file number, so scholars at home or abroad can pinpoint their research. As explained in the general archival introduction, the descriptive rules are based on Anglo American Cataloguing Rules, 2nd edition (AACR II), indexed to all archival levels by Steven L. Hansen in Archives, Personal Papers and M/anuscripts (APPM). Entries for correspondence are indexed both by writer and recipient, and, where relevant, corporate affiliation. Principal's letters are indexed, but with little cross- referencing. Topical indexing has not been attempted. Careful use of the indexes is essential for the use of the inventory. The six volumes naturally reflect the distinctive work of each author. The papers of Hugh MacLennan, the senior author in age, contain a significant amount of correspondence covering more than thirty years (1939-1973). There is both personal correspondence and correspondence relating to the publication of his workts, although only one literary manuscript is included in the collection. In contrast, W.O. Mitchell's papers contain his novels, including the well-beloved Who Has Seen the Wind. While not complete, there is a large collection of scripts of Mitchell's popular Jake and the Kid radio plays of the 1950s. The papers also include family papers dat- ing back to 1888 which explains why the covering dates so exceed Mitchell's own dates, something that might puzzle those not accustomed to archival inventories. Postmodern writer Robert Kroetsch's papers document his career not only as writer but as editor and academic critic. The complexity of the arrangement also illustrates that the diverse activities of an author reveal his development but may tax a researcher. It is also very clear from the papers of Rudy Wiebe, strong represen- tative of the West, that the use of inventory indexes is indispensable. His manu- scripts exist in numerous drafts and some even originated in Wiebe's work at the University of Alberta or may be found as a portion of a manuscript attached to a letter. For evidential values material must remain where it was found, so the index is needed to draw works together. By the time one reaches The Alicei Munro P3apers, First Accession, the general description of the papers has grown from two pages in the MacLennan inventory to five pages. Munro's papers presented the challenge of much undated material, unti- tied fragments, and variant titles (these are cross-referenced). Again it is the development of Munro's career and the fact that her genre is the short story that are docu- mented by the arrangement. The Joanna Glass papers are the smallest in extent and cover a relatively short period, I967 to 1977. Glass has prairie roots though much of her adult life has been spent in the United States. A playwright and novelist, her papers include a sound cassette series, the only inventory to date to do so. This series will be a boon for the scholarly community. Some questions may be asked about the wider audience. The biocritical essay, while an ornament for each volume, will hardly be intended to direct the serious scholar's research. Undergradu- ates and less experienced researchers will, however, be grateful. What is distinctive to each volume, and essential to be read (especially by those not familiar with archival inventories), is the second half of the archival introduction, the general 194 Papers of the Bibliographical Society of Canada xxvI description of the papers. It explains how the arrangement reflects the unique development and working style of each author and so merits study itself. The printed format admittedly has some drawbacks, mainly in the repetitiveness required to utilize best the electronic record. The editors explain but quite rightly do not apologize. Although the document facsimiles in the volumes are interesting, only one volume, that on W.O. Mitchell, has illustrations. Could not illustrations be included in others? A second volume has already been promnised for Robert Kroetsch and surely will be required for other authors. This is the review of an archivist who is pleased to see manuscript collections made accessible by archival arrangement and current technology. We wait for users' responses. SHIRLEY C. SPRAGGE (Shirley C. Spragge is Assistant Archivist [Processing], Queen's University Archives and Diocesan Archivist, Anglican Diocese of Ontario.)

Alvin Kernan. PrintingTechnology, Letters e), Samuel Johnson. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1987. xvi, 357 PP-; $29·50 (cloth). IsBN o-691-o6692-2.

Alvin Kernan's Printing Technology, Letters ed, Samuel Johnson is an essay in the history of the book, in its broadest sense, with its principal focus on the evolution of the modern print system in eighteenth-century England. Kernan's interests cover the whole spectrum of book history: improvements in printing and papermaking, the market for and distribution of printed material, and the evolution of the modern figure of the author. 'We could not,' says Kernan in his final chapter, 'have our present literary system if the printing press had not m~ade available the library of canonical texts, ancient and modern, that is the substantial fact of romantic literature; imparted to those texts the typographical fixity which enables us to think of them as literary monuments ...; and established the public market for books which freed writers from patronage ...' (p. 294). In order to trace how our modern literary system took its present form, which Kernan believes to be little changed in its essen- tials since the Romantic period, he chooses to focus on some major works and important episodes in eighteenth-century literature and authorship. Since Kernan's gaze is a broad one, we can appreciate it best as a series of generalities. It is certainly true that the knowledge explosion of the eighteenth century, as the Eighteenth- Century Short-Title Cataloguepermits us to trace it, expanded print technology and distribution tremendously. It is equally true that this phenomenon allowed authors to deal directly with publishers and diminished their reliance on the personal patronage of the wealthy and the titled. And, finally, it is true that the ktnowledge explosion led to the creation of the modern library, its catalogues, and its methods of classifying books. When Kernan sticks to these generalities, he is an effective commentator on literary systems and imaginary libraries. But generalities must have the support of particular evidence and, in assembling a credible structure to sustain his broad thesis, Kernan is sometimes less persuasive than he is in his