Earle Birney
Encyclopedia
Earle Alfred Birney, OC
, FRSC (13 May 1904 – 3 September 1995) was a distinguished Canadian poet
and novelist, who twice won the Governor General's Award, Canada
's top literary honor, for his poetry.
, and raised on a farm in Erickson, near Creston, British Columbia
, his childhood was somewhat isolated. After working as a farm hand, a bank clerk, and a park ranger, Birney went on to college to study chemical engineering
but graduated with a degree in English. He studied at the University of British Columbia
, University of Toronto
, University of California, Berkeley
and University of London
.
Through a brief and quickly annulled marriage to Sylvia Johnston, he was introduced to Trotskyism
. In the 1930s he was an active Trotskyist in Canada and Britain
and was the leading figure in the Socialist Workers League but drifted away from the movement during World War II
.
During the conflict, he served as a personnel officer in the Canadian Army (an experiences that he used in his 1949 novel, Turvey).
In 1946 Birney began teaching at the University of British Columbia, "where he founded and directed the first Canadian creative writing programme." His work led to the establishment of Canada's first Department of Creative Writing at UBC.
In 1995 Birney died of a heart attack.
. Turvey was a hit in Canada, selling 30,000 copies.
Birney published his second novel, Down the Long Table, a Marxist novel about the Great Depression
, in 1955. It did not match the first novel's success.
. The title work, "a poem about euthanasia, became quite a controversial poem, frequently anthologized and taught in Canadian literature courses." "A generation of Canadian schoolchildren and university students has grown up knowing the story," Al Purdy
wrote in 1974. "At one time or another in the last 25 years, David has been required reading for high schools and universities in every Canadian province."
His second book of poetry, Now Is Time, won Birney a second Governor General's Award in 1945
.
By the time of Birney's Trial of a City and other Verse in 1952, literary critic Northrop Frye
was calling him one of "Canada's two leading poets" (the other being E.J. Pratt
).
The Royal Society of Canada
awarded Birney its Lorne Pierce Medal
for literature in 1953.
Birney's typography became increasingly more experimental during the 1960s, and in his 1966 Selected Poems he revised many of his older poems, dropping punctuation and sentence structure. He explained his reasoning in the preface to that book:
In 1970 Birney was made an Officer of the Order of Canada
.
In 1974, Birney was still being called "one of the two best poets in Canada," this time by Al Purdy (the other being Irving Layton
).
In 1982 Birney recorded Nexus & Earle Birney, a triple-album collaboration with avant-garde percussion group Nexus
.
The Canadian Encyclopedia sums up: "In long poems and lyrics, sight poems, sound poems and found poems, whether on the page or in his collection of recorded poems with the percussion ensemble NEXUS (1982), Birney demonstrated his deep commitment to making language have meaning in every possible and eloquent way."
Except where noted, bibliographic information courtesy University of Toronto.
Actor (1 title)
Self (3 titles)
Except where noted, film information from Internet Movie Database.
Order of Canada
The Order of Canada is a Canadian national order, admission into which is, within the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, the second highest honour for merit...
, FRSC (13 May 1904 – 3 September 1995) was a distinguished Canadian poet
Canadian poetry
- Beginnings:The earliest works of poetry, mainly written by visitors, described the new territories in optimistic terms, mainly targeted at a European audience...
and novelist, who twice won the Governor General's Award, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
's top literary honor, for his poetry.
Life
Born in Calgary, AlbertaAlberta
Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...
, and raised on a farm in Erickson, near Creston, British Columbia
Creston, British Columbia
Creston is a town of 4,826 people in the Kootenay region of southeastern British Columbia, Canada. The town is located just a few kilometers north of the Porthill, Idaho border crossing into the United States and about a three-hour drive north from Spokane, Washington. It is about a one-hour drive...
, his childhood was somewhat isolated. After working as a farm hand, a bank clerk, and a park ranger, Birney went on to college to study chemical engineering
Chemical engineering
Chemical engineering is the branch of engineering that deals with physical science , and life sciences with mathematics and economics, to the process of converting raw materials or chemicals into more useful or valuable forms...
but graduated with a degree in English. He studied at the University of British Columbia
University of British Columbia
The University of British Columbia is a public research university. UBC’s two main campuses are situated in Vancouver and in Kelowna in the Okanagan Valley...
, University of Toronto
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...
, University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
and University of London
University of London
-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
.
Through a brief and quickly annulled marriage to Sylvia Johnston, he was introduced to Trotskyism
Trotskyism
Trotskyism is the theory of Marxism as advocated by Leon Trotsky. Trotsky considered himself an orthodox Marxist and Bolshevik-Leninist, arguing for the establishment of a vanguard party of the working-class...
. In the 1930s he was an active Trotskyist in Canada and Britain
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and was the leading figure in the Socialist Workers League but drifted away from the movement during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
During the conflict, he served as a personnel officer in the Canadian Army (an experiences that he used in his 1949 novel, Turvey).
In 1946 Birney began teaching at the University of British Columbia, "where he founded and directed the first Canadian creative writing programme." His work led to the establishment of Canada's first Department of Creative Writing at UBC.
In 1995 Birney died of a heart attack.
Fiction
Birney's World War II experiences inspired the creation of the title character of his comic military novel, Turvey (1949), a saga of one hapless soldier's struggle to get to 'the sharp end' of the fighting in Holland and Germany during 1944-45. The character of Turvey is a fascinating melange of country boy innocent, common sense utilitarian and town fool, and seems to have been fashioned as a foil to the eccentrically pseudo-sophisticated Canadian military life as illustrated in the novel. The book has been described as "uproariously ribald", winning the Stephen Leacock Medal for HumourStephen Leacock Memorial Medal for Humour
The Stephen Leacock Memorial Medal for Humour is an annual literary award presented to the best work of humorous literature in English by a Canadian writer. The award is a tribute to well-known Canadian humorist Stephen Leacock , and is accompanied by a cash prize of $15,000...
. Turvey was a hit in Canada, selling 30,000 copies.
Birney published his second novel, Down the Long Table, a Marxist novel about the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
, in 1955. It did not match the first novel's success.
Poetry
"Beginning with David and Other Poems (1942), Birney's poetry consistently explored the resources of language with passionate and playful curiosity." That first volume won Birney a Governor General's Award in 19421942 Governor General's Awards
In Canada the 1942 Governor General's Awards for Literary Merit were the sixth such awards. The awards in this period had no monetary prize and were just an honour for the authors.-Winners:*Fiction: G...
. The title work, "a poem about euthanasia, became quite a controversial poem, frequently anthologized and taught in Canadian literature courses." "A generation of Canadian schoolchildren and university students has grown up knowing the story," Al Purdy
Al Purdy
Alfred Wellington Purdy, OC, O.Ont was one of the most popular and important Canadian poets of the 20th century. Purdy's writing career spanned more than fifty years. His works include over thirty books of poetry; a novel; two volumes of memoirs and four books of correspondence...
wrote in 1974. "At one time or another in the last 25 years, David has been required reading for high schools and universities in every Canadian province."
His second book of poetry, Now Is Time, won Birney a second Governor General's Award in 1945
1945 Governor General's Awards
In Canada, the 1945 Governor General's Awards for Literary Merit were the ninth such awards. The awards in this period had no monetary prize and were just an honour for the authors.- Winners :*Fiction: Hugh MacLennan, Two Solitudes....
.
By the time of Birney's Trial of a City and other Verse in 1952, literary critic Northrop Frye
Northrop Frye
Herman Northrop Frye, was a Canadian literary critic and literary theorist, considered one of the most influential of the 20th century....
was calling him one of "Canada's two leading poets" (the other being E.J. Pratt
E. J. Pratt
Edwin John Dove Pratt, FRSC , who published as E. J. Pratt, was "the leading Canadian poet of his time." He was a Canadian poet originally from Newfoundland who lived most of his life in Toronto, Ontario...
).
The Royal Society of Canada
Royal Society of Canada
The Royal Society of Canada , may also operate under the more descriptive name RSC: The Academies of Arts, Humanities and Sciences of Canada , is the oldest association of scientists and scholars in Canada...
awarded Birney its Lorne Pierce Medal
Lorne Pierce Medal
The Lorne Pierce Medal is awarded every two years by the Royal Society of Canada to recognize achievement of special significance and conspicuous merit in imaginative or critical literature written in either English or French...
for literature in 1953.
Birney's typography became increasingly more experimental during the 1960s, and in his 1966 Selected Poems he revised many of his older poems, dropping punctuation and sentence structure. He explained his reasoning in the preface to that book:
- Our intricate system of speckles between words evolved comparatively recently and merely to ensure that prose became beautifully unambiguous -- Instant Communication. For a while the poets went along with this, even though what they were shooting at was the art of indefinitely delayed communication -- Indefinite Ambiguity. Belatedly but willingly influenced by contemporary trends, I've come to surround my pauses with space rather than with typographical spatter, and to take advantage of the new printing processes to free my work occasionally from the tyranny of one-direction linotype.
In 1970 Birney was made an Officer of the Order of Canada
Order of Canada
The Order of Canada is a Canadian national order, admission into which is, within the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, the second highest honour for merit...
.
In 1974, Birney was still being called "one of the two best poets in Canada," this time by Al Purdy (the other being Irving Layton
Irving Layton
Irving Peter Layton, OC was a Romanian-born Canadian poet. He was known for his "tell it like it is" style which won him a wide following but also made enemies. As T...
).
In 1982 Birney recorded Nexus & Earle Birney, a triple-album collaboration with avant-garde percussion group Nexus
Nexus
-Fiction:* Nexus, the final novel in The Rosy Crucifixion trilogy by Henry Miller* The Nexus, the central plot element in the film Star Trek Generations* Nexus: The Jupiter Incident, a 2004 science fiction themed real-time tactics computer game...
.
The Canadian Encyclopedia sums up: "In long poems and lyrics, sight poems, sound poems and found poems, whether on the page or in his collection of recorded poems with the percussion ensemble NEXUS (1982), Birney demonstrated his deep commitment to making language have meaning in every possible and eloquent way."
Poetry
- David and Other Poems. Toronto: Ryerson Press, 19421942 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:* George Oppen forces his induction into the U.S. Army....
. - Now Is Time. Toronto: Ryerson Press, 19451945 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:* Benjamin Britten's opera Peter Grimes, based on George Crabbe's The Borough...
. - The Strait of Anian. Toronto: Ryerson Press, 19481948 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:* Sometime this year, Jack Kerouac introduced the phrase Beat Generation to describe his friends and as a general term describing the underground, anti-conformist youth gathering in New York at that...
. - Trial of a City and Other Verse. Toronto: Ryerson, 19521952 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:* November — The Group British poetry movement of the 1950s and 1960s began at Downing College, Cambridge University, Philip Hobsbaum along with two friends — Tony Davis and Neil Morris...
. - Ice Cod Bell or Stone. Toronto: McClelland and Stewart, 19621962 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:* Writers in the Soviet Union this year were allowed to publish criticism of Joseph Stalin and were given more freedom generally, although many were severely criticized for doing so...
. - Near False Creek Mouth. Toronto: McClelland and Stewart, 19641964 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:* Among the many books of poetry published this year, Robert Lowell's For the Union Dead is greeted with particular acclaim...
. - Two Poems. Halifax, 19641964 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:* Among the many books of poetry published this year, Robert Lowell's For the Union Dead is greeted with particular acclaim...
. - Selected Poems: 1940-1966. Toronto: McClelland and Stewart, 19661966 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:* Raymond Souster founds the League of Canadian Poets...
. - Memory No Servant - 1968
- The poems of Earle Birney: a New Canadian Library selection. (New Canadian library original N06.) Toronto: McClelland and Stewart, 19691969 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:* FIELD magazine founded at Oberlin College...
. - pnomes jukollages & other stunzas - 1969
- Rag & Bone Shop. Toronto: McClelland and Stewart, 19701970 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:* May – "La nuit de la poésie", a poetry reading in Montreal bringing together poets from French Canada to recite before an audience of more than 2,000 in the Théâtre du Gesu, lasting until 7...
. - The Bear on the Delhi Road: selected poems. London: Chatto & Windus, 19731973 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:* Canadian poet and author, Michael Ondaatje adapts his 1970 book of poetry, The Collected Works of Billy the Kid, into a play which this year is first produced in Stratford, Ontario; it will appear in...
. - what's so big about GREEN?. Toronto: McClelland and Stewart, 19731973 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:* Canadian poet and author, Michael Ondaatje adapts his 1970 book of poetry, The Collected Works of Billy the Kid, into a play which this year is first produced in Stratford, Ontario; it will appear in...
. - The collected poems of Earle Birney. Toronto: McClelland and Stewart, 19751975 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:* With the 1974, fall of the dictatorship in Greece, poets, authors and intellectuals who had fled after the coup of 1967 returned, and this year many began publishing in that country.* Brick Books, a...
. - Alphabeings and Other Seasyours. London, Ont.: Pikadilly Press, 19761976 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:* Two poems written in 1965 by Mao Zedong just before the Cultural Revolution, including "Two Birds: A Dialogue", are published on January 1-Works published in English:Listed by nation where the work...
. - The Rugging and the Moving Times: poems new and uncollected 1976. Coatsworth, ON: Black Moss Press, 19761976 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:* Two poems written in 1965 by Mao Zedong just before the Cultural Revolution, including "Two Birds: A Dialogue", are published on January 1-Works published in English:Listed by nation where the work...
. - Ghost in the Wheels: selected poems. Toronto: McClelland and Stewart, 19771977 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:* January – James Dickey, composed a poem he read at new United States President Jimmy Carter’s inaugural gala although not at the inauguration itself.* British publication Gay News successfully...
. - Fall by Fury & Other Makings. Toronto: McClelland and Stewart, 19781978 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:* L=A=N=G=U=A=G=E Magazine, edited by Bruce Andrews and Charles Bernstein, first published...
. - The Mammoth Corridors. Okemos, MI.: Stone Press, 1980.
- Copernican Fix. Toronto: ECW Press, 19851985 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:* The term "New Formalism" was first used in the article "The Yuppie Poet" in the May 1985 issue of the AWP Newsletter in an attack on the poetry movement...
. - Last Makings: Poems. Toronto: McClelland & Stewart, 19911991 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:* Forward Poetry Prize created...
. - One Muddy Hand: Selected Poems, Sam Solecki ed. - 20062006 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:* French public notary Patrick Huet unveils Pieces of Hope to the Echo of the World in Lyon...
Fiction
- Turvey: a military picaresque. Toronto: McClelland & Stewart, 1949.
- Down the Long Table. Toronto: McClelland & Stewart, 1955.
- Big Bird in the Bush: Selected stories and sketches. Oakville, ON: Mosaic Press, 1978.
Non-fiction
- The Creative Writer - 1966
- The Cow Jumped Over the Moon: The writing and reading of poetry'. Toronto: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1972.
- Essays on Chaucerian Irony - 1985
- Spreading Time: Remarks on Canadian Writing and Writers, 1904-1949. 1989.
Plays
- The Damnation of Vancouver. New Canadian Library original; N 011. Toronto: McClelland & Stewart, 1977.
- Words on Waves: selected radio plays of Earle Birney. Kingston, ON: Quarry Press & CBC Enterprises, 1985.
Edited
- Twentieth Century Canadian Poetry, an anthology with introduction and notes. Toronto: Ryerson Press, 1953.
- Four parts sand. New Canadian poets. [Ottawa]: Oberon Press, 1972.
Except where noted, bibliographic information courtesy University of Toronto.
Discography
- Nexus & Earle Birney (Nexus, 1982)
- Celebration: Famous Canadian Poets on CD (with Irving LaytonIrving LaytonIrving Peter Layton, OC was a Romanian-born Canadian poet. He was known for his "tell it like it is" style which won him a wide following but also made enemies. As T...
)(Canadian Poetry AssociationCanadian Poetry AssociationThe Canadian Poetry Association began as a grass-roots organization dedicated to promoting the reading, writing, publishing and preservation of poetry in Canada through the individual efforts of members; promoting communication among poets, publishers and the general public; encouraging leadership...
2001) ISBN 1-55253-029-9
Filmography
Writer (4 titles)- 1995: Trawna Tuh Belvul
- 1993: David (short) (poem)
- 1983: Aloud (short) (poem)
- 1970: Espolio (short) (poem)
Actor (1 title)
- 1983: Aloud (short) Reciter
Self (3 titles)
- 1993: View from the Typewriter; Himself
- 1981: Earle Birney: Portrait of a Poet; Himself
- 1965: Ladies and Gentlemen, Mr. Leonard Cohen (documentary)(uncredited)
Except where noted, film information from Internet Movie Database.
External links
- Canadian Poetry Online: Earle Birney - Biography and 6 poems (Vancouver Lights, From the Hazel Bough, Sestina for the Ladies of Tehuántepec, The Bear on the Delhi Road, El Greco: Espolito, Plaza de la Inquisición)
- Earle Birney in The Canadian Encyclopedia
- Order of Canada Citation
- Earle Birney fonds at University of British Columbia Archives
- Earle Birney Papers at the Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library