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Daniel Hoffman collection of poetry imprints, plays, and writings

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Held at: University of Pennsylvania: Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts [Contact Us]3420 Walnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6206

This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held at the University of Pennsylvania: Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in their reading room, and not digitally available through the web.

Overview and metadata sections

Daniel Hoffman (1923-2013) was an American poet and essayist. He received his B.A. (1947), M.A. (1949), and Ph.D. (1956) from Columbia University. He taught at Columbia as well as Swarthmore College prior to beginning his career at the University of Pennsylvania in 1966. From 1973 to 1974, he was named Poet Laureate of the United States. His poems vary greatly in structure, ranging from sonnets to an epic poem about the founding of Pennsylvania; but he is best known for his work, "Poe Poe Poe Poe Poe Poe Poe" (1972), which his New York Times obituary describes as "an unusual study melding biography, criticism and bits of his own autobiography in a highly personal analysis of the American writer whose literary reputation is wildly diffuse." Hoffman lived primarily in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania with his wife, poet and esteemedLadies' Home Journal editor, Elizabeth McFarland. Hoffman and McFarland spent their summers in Cape Rosier, Maine, which Hoffman used as a setting for many of his poems.

This collection includes books, chaplets, published lectures, journal issues, and exhibition catalogues from the personal library of Daniel Hoffman. Series I: Books contains mostly small press poetry collections, some of which feature Hoffman as a translator, others of which include a preface by Hoffman. In addition to these collections, there are also anthologies of poetry and prose, some of which include Hoffman's work. Series II: Chaplets contains broadsides from the Backwoods Broadsides Series that include many notable poets, including Anne Waldman and Diane di Prima. Series III: Published Lectures includes transcripts of lectures given at the Library of Congress, and provides an interesting if selective overview of the critical reception for prose and poetry in the latter half of the twentieth century. Series IV: Journal Issues contains single issues of contemporary literary journals, none of which include work by Hoffman. Series V: Exhibition Catalogs contains catalogs from university library exhibitions concerning twentieth century authors, including Ezra Pound and John Steinbeck. More information can be found at the series level.

Gifts of Daniel Hoffman, 2005 and 2009.

Publisher
University of Pennsylvania: Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts
Finding Aid Author
Sam Allingham
Finding Aid Date
2018 June 1
Access Restrictions

This collection is open for research use.

Use Restrictions

Copyright restrictions may exist. For most library holdings, the Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania do not hold copyright. It is the responsibility of the requester to seek permission from the holder of the copyright to reproduce material from the Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts.

Collection Inventory

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Series I: Books

This series contains books from Hoffman's library, broken into two subseries: "Single author," containing collections of poetry, plays, and memoirs, and "Anthologies," containing anthologies of of prose and poetry. Some of the poetry collections feature Hoffman as a translator, such as A Play of Mirrors by Ruth Domino (2002)), or include a preface written by Hoffman, such as Over the Summer Water by Elizabeth McFarland. Some of the anthologies include poems by Hoffman, such as The Dolphin's Arc: poems on endangered creatures of the sea (1989) and The Gift of Experience: Atlanta Review 10th anniversary anthology (2005). The single-author volumes are arranged alphabetically by author. The anthologies are arranged alphabetically by title.

Bartlett, Elizabeth: Behold the Dreamer (1959), Poetry Concerto (1961), Dialogue of Dust (1977), In Search of Identity (1977), 1959-1977.
Box 1 Folder 1
Bartlett, Elizabeth: A Zodiac of Poems (1979), Address in Time (1979), The Gemini Poems (1984), Candles (1988), 1979-1988.
Box 1 Folder 2
Domino, Ruth, translated by Daniel Hoffman: A Play of Mirrors (2002), 2002.
Box 1 Folder 3
Dunster, Mark: Emily Part 1. Charles, 1975.
Box 1 Folder 4
Eaton, Charles Edward: The Labyrinth, 2005.
Box 1 Folder 4
Enslin, Theodore, drawings by Basil King: Sequentiae (signed by author), 1999.
Box 1 Folder 5
Grossman, Richard: A Year with Emerson, 2003.
Box 1 Folder 6
Hailji: Blue Meditation of the Clocks, 1994.
Box 1 Folder 6
Keys, Kerry Shawn: Decoy's Desire (1993), Fingerlings (1993), Warm Springs (1995), The Nearing Notebooks (1996), 1993-1996.
Box 1 Folder 7
Keys, Kerry Shawn: Narrow Passage to the Deep Light (1996), Blues in Green (1996), 1996.
Box 1 Folder 8
Maher, Sergeant Marty: Bringing Up the Brass, 2002.
Box 1 Folder 9
Mandel, Oscar: Reinventions, four plays , 2008.
Box 1 Folder 10
McFarland, Elizabeth: Over the Summer Water (preface by Daniel Hoffman), 2008.
Box 1 Folder 11
Nakazawa, Keiji: Barefoot Gen, 1995.
Box 1 Folder 12
Siegel, Robert: In a Pig's Eye , 1980.
Box 1 Folder 13
Tabios, Eileen: Reproductions of the Empty Flagpole, 2002.
Box 1 Folder 13
Todd, J.C.: Nightshade, 1995.
Box 1 Folder 13
Turco, Lewis: A Cage of Creatures (1984), A Book of Fears (1998), 1984-1998.
Box 1 Folder 14
Vitiello, Justin: Subway Home , 1994.
Box 1 Folder 15
Witek, Terri: Fools and Crows, 2003.
Box 1 Folder 15
Yuce, Ali: Voice Lock Puppet, 2002.
Box 1 Folder 15
The Dolphin's Arc: poems on endangered creatures of the sea, edited by Elisavietta Richie; contains Daniel Hoffman's poem "The Seals in Penobscot Bay", 1989.
Box 1 Folder 16
The Gift of Experience: Atlanta Review 10th anniversary anthology, edited by Daniel Veach; contains Daniel Hoffman's poem "A Rose D'Isfahan in Maine", 2005.
Box 1 Folder 17
Pushcart Prize XXVII: the best of the small presses, edited by Bill Henderson, 2002.
Box 2 Folder 1
Literary Olympians 1992: an international anthology, edited by Elizabeth Bartlett, 1992.
Box 2 Folder 2

Series II: Chaplets

This series contains a large number of chaplets from the Backwoods Broadsides Series, a series of multi-poem broadsides by individual authors produced by Sylvester Pollett. Hoffman's collection of these chaplets includes many notable poets, including Anne Waldman, Carl Rakosi, and Diane di Prima. The chaplets are arranged alphabetically by author.

Backwoods Broadsides Series: Abrams-Lignell, 1994-2001.
Box 2 Folder 3
Backwoods Broadsides Series: Mac Low-Williams, 1994-2000.
Box 2 Folder 4

Series III: Published Lectures from the Library of Congress

This series contains published transcripts of lectures on literature delivered at the Library of Congress. In most cases, these lectures were delivered by a single poet, historian, or scholar; notable examples include Richard Ellman, Stanley Kunitz, and James Dickey. In some cases, the transcript is of a panel discussion on a given topic, such as "George Orwell and 1984" or "The Publication of Fiction and Poetry." The lectures are arranged chronologically.

"A Bibliography of Modern Prosody" by Karl Shapiro, 1948.
Box 2 Folder 5
"Anni Mirabiles, 1921-1925" by R.P. Blackmur, 1956.
Box 2 Folder 5
"Anniversary Lectures" by Robery Hillyer, Richard Wilbur, Cleanth Brooks, 1959.
Box 2 Folder 5
"The Imagination in the Modern World" by Stephen Spender, 1962.
Box 2 Folder 5
"Edwin Arlington Robinson: a reappraisal" by Louis Untermeyer, 1963.
Box 2 Folder 6
"Ways of Misunderstanding Poetry" by Reed Whittemore, 1965.
Box 2 Folder 6
"The Little Magazine and Contemporary Literature" , 1966.
Box 2 Folder 6
"The Art of History" by Allan Nevins and Catherine Drinker Bowen , 1967.
Box 2 Folder 7
"Spinning the Crystal Ball" by James Dickey, 1967.
Box 2 Folder 7
"Metaphor as Pure Adventure" by James Dickey, 1968.
Box 2 Folder 7
"Carl Sandburg" by Mark Van Doren, 1969.
Box 2 Folder 7
"Saint-John Perse: praise and presence" by Pierre Emmanuel, 1971.
Box 2 Folder 8
"The Translation of Poetry", 1972.
Box 2 Folder 8
"The Publication of Fiction and Poetry: a conference", 1975.
Box 2 Folder 8
"From Feathers to Iron" by Stanley Kunitz, 1976.
Box 2 Folder 8
"Wallace Stevens: the poetry of earth" by A. Walton Litz, 1981.
Box 2 Folder 8
"Reasons for Poetry & the Reason for Criticism" by William Meredith, 1982.
Box 2 Folder 9
"James Joyce's Hundredth Birthday: side and front views" by Richard Ellman, 1982.
Box 2 Folder 9
"Oscar Wilde at at Oxford" by Richard Ellman, 1984.
Box 2 Folder 9
"George Orwell & 1984: the man and the book", 1984.
Box 2 Folder 9
"William Carlos Williams: the happy genius of the household" by RReed Whittemore, 1984.
Box 2 Folder 9
"W.B. Yeats's Second Puberty" by Richard Ellman, 1985.
Box 2 Folder 9
"Science and Literature: a conference", 1985.
Box 2 Folder 10
"The Pathetic Fallacy" by Anthony Hecht, 1985.
Box 2 Folder 10
"Samuel Beckett: nayman of boland" by Richard Ellman, 1986.
Box 2 Folder 10
"Poets and Anthologists" by Reed Whittemore, 1986.
Box 2 Folder 10

Series IV: Journal Issues

This series contains issues of literary journals. Each journal is represented by only one issue, and none of the issues contain work by Hoffman. The series is arranged alphabetically by journal title.

Hiram Poetry Review, issue #64, 2003 Spring.
Box 2 Folder 12
No: a journal of the arts, issue 1, 2003 Winter.
Box 2 Folder 13
The Southern Quarterly, volume XXI, number 1, "Conrad Aiken's Prose", 1982 Fall.
Box 2 Folder 11
Talisman: a journal of contemporary poetry and poetics: the Theodore Enslin issue, #12, 1994 Spring.
Box 3 Folder 1
U.S. 1 Worksheets: US 1 poets' cooperative, Princeton New Jersey, volume 51, 2006.
Box 3 Folder 2
Viet Nam Generation: a journal of recent history and contemporary issues, volume 4, #1-2, 1992 Spring.
Box 3 Folder 3

Series V: Exhibition Catalogs

This series contains catalogs for exhibitions produced by libraries, museums, and galleries. Most of them concern literary figures, such as John Steinbeck, William Styron, and Ezra Pound; the photographer Harry Callahan is a notable exception. The catalogs are arranged alphabetically by subject.

"Paul Bowles at 80," University of Delaware Library, 1990.
Box 3 Folder 4
"Harry Callahan, 38th Venice Biennial 1978", 1978.
Box 3 Folder 5
"Hugh Macdiarmid: an exhibition celebrating the centenary of his birth," University of Delaware Library, 1992.
Box 3 Folder 6
"Ezra Pound: in his time and beyond," University of Delaware Library, 2006.
Box 3 Folder 7
"A Time to Live: the life and writings of Erich Maria Remarque" Fales Library, New York University, 1998.
Box 3 Folder 8
"John Steinbeck: from Salinas to Stockholm," Stanford University Libraries, 2000.
Box 3 Folder 9
"In Solitude and In Company: the writings of William Styron," Duke University, 1998.
Box 3 Folder 10

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