Leslie Marmon Silko papers

Collection

Call Number: YCAL MSS 637

Scope and Contents

The papers consist of writings, research material, and audiovisual material documenting Leslie Marmon Silko's literary activity and output since the early 1970s. Writings in the collection include drafts and proofs for most of Silko's major works, the three novels Ceremony (1977), Almanac of the Dead (1991) and Gardens in the Dunes (2000), the poetry and short story collections, Laguna Woman (1974), Storyteller (1981), Sacred Water (1994), and Rain (1996), and the essays Yellow Woman and the Beauty of the Spirit (1997). In addition to other shorter and untitled works, there are clippings, photographs, personal papers, and correspondence. Audiovisual materials in the collection consist chiefly of 35mm film for projects identified as "Telarana" and "Arrowboy."

Dates

1971-2004

Creator

Silko, Leslie Marmon, 1948-

Language

English

Conditions Governing Access

The materials are open for research.

Boxes 27-44 (audiovisual material): Restricted fragile material. Reference copies may be requested. Consult Access Services for further information.

Conditions Governing Use

The Leslie Marmon Silko Papers is the physical property of the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale University. Literary rights, including copyright, belong to the authors or their legal heirs and assigns. For further information, consult the appropriate curator.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Acquired through various purchases, 1992-2004.

Arrangement

Organized chronologically by acquisition into six groupings: May 1992 Acquisition, 1971-1980. June 1992 Acquisition, 1974, undated. July 1992 Acquisition, undated. August 1992 Acquisition, 1978-1981. July 2001 Acquisition, 1996-1999. August 2004 Acquisition, 1977-2004.

Extent

36.48 Linear Feet (45 boxes)

Catalog Record

A record for this collection is available in Orbis, the Yale University Library catalog

Persistent URL

http://hdl.handle.net/10079/fa/beinecke.silko

Additional Description

Overview

Papers consist of writings, research material, and audiovisual material documenting Leslie Marmon Silko's literary activity and output since the early 1970s. Writings in the collection include drafts and proofs for most of Silko's major works, the three novels Ceremony (1977), Almanac of the Dead (1991), and Gardens in the Dunes (2000), the poetry and short story collections, Laguna Woman (1974), Storyteller (1981), Sacred Water (1994), and Rain (1996), and the essays Yellow Woman and the Beauty of the Spirit (1997). In addition to other shorter and untitled works, there are clippings, photographs, personal papers, and correspondence. Audiovisual material in the collection consists chiefly of 35mm film for projects identified as Telarana and Arrowboy.

Leslie Marmon Silko (1948-)

Leslie Marmon Silko was born in 1948 in Albuquerque, New Mexico, raised on the Laguna Pueblo Reservation, New Mexico, and educated at the University of New Mexico. She is the author of novels, poetry and short story collections, and other works, and the recipient of numerous awards, including the National Endowment for the Arts and poetry award (1974), Pushcart Prize for poetry (1977), and John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation grant (1981).

Biographical information taken from "Leslie Silko." Encyclopedia of World Biography. Detroit: Gale, 1998. Gale Biography In Context. Web. 3 Oct. 2012.

Processing Information

This collection received a basic level of processing, including rehousing and in some instances minimal organization. Various acquisitions associated with the collection have not been merged and organized as a whole. Each acquisition is described separately in the contents list below according to month and year of acquisition.

The finding aid for this collection is compiled from individual preliminary lists for each acquisition that were created at or around the time of receipt by the library. The preliminary lists were migrated to comply with current archival descriptive standards and merged into a single file in 2007-2008. As part of the migration, modifications were made to the formatting of individual lists; however, the content of the lists was neither modified nor verified.

As a rule, descriptive information found in the Collection Contents section is drawn in large part from information supplied with the collection and from an initial survey of the contents. Folder titles appearing in the contents list below are often based on those provided by the creator or previous custodian. Titles have not been verified against the contents of the folders in all cases. Otherwise, folder titles are supplied by staff during initial processing.

This finding aid may be updated periodically to account for new acquisitions to the collection and/or revisions in arrangement and description.

Former call numbers: Uncat ZA MS 231, Uncat ZA MS 232, Uncat ZA MS 233, Uncat ZA MS 234, Uncat MSS 156, and Uncat MSS 705.