Edita Morris
Encyclopedia
Edith Dagmar Emilia Morris, born Toll (5 March 1902 - 15 March 1988) was a Swedish-American writer
and political activist.
in Sweden
. Her parents were Reinhold Toll, an agronomist who had published books on dairy and cattle farming, and Alma Prom-Möller. The Toll family was well known in Sweden. Her grandfather was a general. She grew up in Stockholm
as the youngest of four sisters. When she was still a child her father left the family and emigrated to England
.
She married in 1925 the journalist and writer Ira Victor Morris (1903–1972), whose father, Ira Nelson Morris, served as the U.S.
envoy in Stockholm
. He gave them a manor house in the small village of Nesles-la-Gilberde
, 60 kilometers outside Paris
. Ira and Edita had several homes and traveled widely throughout the world. They spent the Second World War
years in the United States. They were political activists committed to nuclear disarmament
and opposed to many U.S policies of the Cold War
.
Edita started her literary career with short stories published in the Atlantic Monthly, Harper's Bazaar
and other publications. In 1943 she published her first novel, My darling from the Lions. During the 1930s and until his death in 1943 in New York
she shared much of her life with the Swedish painter Nils von Dardel
. She figures on many of his paintings from 1930 onwards.
She is mostly known for her novel The Flowers of Hiroshima (1959). The novel was partly influenced by the experiences of her son, Ivan Morris
, later a distinguished japanologist, as an intelligence officer in the U.S. Navy visiting Hiroshima
immediately after the dropping of the atomic bomb on the city
. The book has been translated into 39 languages. In 1978 she published Straitjacket: autobiography which was followed in 1983 by a second volume, Seventy Years' War, published in Swedish only under the title Sjuttioåriga kriget.
With her husband, who came from a wealthy family background, she founded a rest house in Hiroshima for victims of the bomb. After her death, the Edita and Ira Morris Hiroshima Foundation for Peace and Culture, usually known as the Hiroshima Foundation, was established. The purpose of the Foundation is to promote peace by supporting efforts in the cultural sphere to favor peace and reconciliation. The Foundation presents awards to women and men who contribute, in a cultural field, to fostering dialogue, understanding and peace in conflict areas. Edita died in Paris
in 1988. She is buried, with her husband and her son, in the village of Nesles
.
:
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
and political activist.
Biography
Edita Morris was born in ÖrebroÖrebro
-Sites of interest:Örebro's old town Wadköping is located on the banks of Svartån . It contains many 18th and 19th century wooden houses, along with museums and exhibitions....
in Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
. Her parents were Reinhold Toll, an agronomist who had published books on dairy and cattle farming, and Alma Prom-Möller. The Toll family was well known in Sweden. Her grandfather was a general. She grew up in Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
as the youngest of four sisters. When she was still a child her father left the family and emigrated to England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
.
She married in 1925 the journalist and writer Ira Victor Morris (1903–1972), whose father, Ira Nelson Morris, served as the U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
envoy in Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
. He gave them a manor house in the small village of Nesles-la-Gilberde
Lumigny-Nesles-Ormeaux
Lumigny-Nesles-Ormeaux is a commune in the Seine-et-Marne department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France.The commune was created in 1973 by the fusion of three villages: Lunigny, Nesles and Ormeaux....
, 60 kilometers outside Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
. Ira and Edita had several homes and traveled widely throughout the world. They spent the Second World War
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...
years in the United States. They were political activists committed to nuclear disarmament
Nuclear disarmament
Nuclear disarmament refers to both the act of reducing or eliminating nuclear weapons and to the end state of a nuclear-free world, in which nuclear weapons are completely eliminated....
and opposed to many U.S policies of the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
.
Edita started her literary career with short stories published in the Atlantic Monthly, Harper's Bazaar
Harper's Bazaar
Harper’s Bazaar is an American fashion magazine, first published in 1867. Harper’s Bazaar is published by Hearst and, as a magazine, considers itself to be the style resource for “women who are the first to buy the best, from casual to couture.”...
and other publications. In 1943 she published her first novel, My darling from the Lions. During the 1930s and until his death in 1943 in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
she shared much of her life with the Swedish painter Nils von Dardel
Nils von Dardel
Nils Elias Christoffer von Dardel , was a Swedish post-impressionist painter.-Biography :Nils von Dardel was born in Bettna, Södermanland, Sweden in 1888...
. She figures on many of his paintings from 1930 onwards.
She is mostly known for her novel The Flowers of Hiroshima (1959). The novel was partly influenced by the experiences of her son, Ivan Morris
Ivan Morris
Ivan Ira Esme Morris was a British author and teacher in the field of Japanese Studies.Ivan Morris was born in London, of mixed American and Swedish parentage, to Ira Victor Morris and Edita Morris. He studied at Gordonstoun, before graduating from Phillips Academy...
, later a distinguished japanologist, as an intelligence officer in the U.S. Navy visiting Hiroshima
Hiroshima
is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture, and the largest city in the Chūgoku region of western Honshu, the largest island of Japan. It became best known as the first city in history to be destroyed by a nuclear weapon when the United States Army Air Forces dropped an atomic bomb on it at 8:15 A.M...
immediately after the dropping of the atomic bomb on the city
Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki
During the final stages of World War II in 1945, the United States conducted two atomic bombings against the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in Japan, the first on August 6, 1945, and the second on August 9, 1945. These two events are the only use of nuclear weapons in war to date.For six months...
. The book has been translated into 39 languages. In 1978 she published Straitjacket: autobiography which was followed in 1983 by a second volume, Seventy Years' War, published in Swedish only under the title Sjuttioåriga kriget.
With her husband, who came from a wealthy family background, she founded a rest house in Hiroshima for victims of the bomb. After her death, the Edita and Ira Morris Hiroshima Foundation for Peace and Culture, usually known as the Hiroshima Foundation, was established. The purpose of the Foundation is to promote peace by supporting efforts in the cultural sphere to favor peace and reconciliation. The Foundation presents awards to women and men who contribute, in a cultural field, to fostering dialogue, understanding and peace in conflict areas. Edita died in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
in 1988. She is buried, with her husband and her son, in the village of Nesles
Nesles
-Geography:Nesles is situated about south of Boulogne, at the junction of the D940 and D215 roads. The A16 autoroute straddles the middle of the commune's territory.-Population:-Places of interest:* The church of Notre-Dame, dating from the sixteenth century....
.
Foundation Awardees
The following persons have received awards:- 2010 Kim LonginottoKim LonginottoKim Longinotto is a British documentary film maker, well known for making films which highlight the plight of female victims of oppression or discrimination...
, British documentary filmmaker - 2008: K.V. Wimalawardana and K. Kumaraveloo, principals of respectively a Sinhalese and a TamilTamil languageTamil is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by Tamil people of the Indian subcontinent. It has official status in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and in the Indian union territory of Pondicherry. Tamil is also an official language of Sri Lanka and Singapore...
school in Sri LankaSri LankaSri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
, for their joint efforts to foster mutual understanding for Sinhalese and TamilTamil peopleTamil people , also called Tamils or Tamilians, are an ethnic group native to Tamil Nadu, India and the north-eastern region of Sri Lanka. Historic and post 15th century emigrant communities are also found across the world, notably Malaysia, Singapore, Mauritius, South Africa, Australia, Canada,...
cultures. - 2006: Elena Nemirovskaya, founder and Director of the Moscow School of Political Studies, for the development of civic culture, political dialogue, deliberative democracy and respect for human rights in RussiaRussiaRussia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
and other post-Soviet countries. - 2004: Borka Pavićević, founder of the Centre for Cultural DecontaminationCentre for Cultural DecontaminationThe Centre for Cultural Decontamination is an independent cultural institution located in Belgrade, Serbia...
in BelgradeBelgradeBelgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...
, for her cultural activities in order to promote tolerance, reconciliation and respect for human rights in the former YugoslaviaYugoslaviaYugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....
; additional awards: Biljana SrbljanovićBiljana SrbljanovicBiljana Srbljanović is a Serbian playwright and politician.She has written seven plays for the theater and one TV screenplay for Otvorena vrata TV series that ran on Radio Television of Serbia during the mid-1990s. Her plays have been staged in some 50 countries. Srbljanović is also a part-time...
and Jasmina TesanovićJasmina TešanovicJasmina Tešanović is an author, feminist, political activist , translator, and filmmaker....
, Serbian authors and peace activists. - 2001: Donald Kenrick, Valdemar Kalinin and Rahim Burhan for their work in promoting understanding for the Roma culture and language.
- 1998: John KaniJohn KaniBonsile John Kani is a South African actor, director and playwright.He was born in New Brighton, South Africa.Kani joined The Serpent Players in Port Elizabeth in 1965 and helped to create many plays that went unpublished but were performed to a resounding reception.These...
, playwright and theatre director, for his work with cultural integration in cooperation with people from different ethnic communities, and Antjie KrogAntjie KrogAntjie Krog, born October 23, 1952 in Kroonstad, Orange Free State, South Africa, is a prominent South African poet, academic and writer. In 2004 she joined the Arts faculty of the University of the Western Cape.- Early life :...
, poet and investigating journalist, for her efforts to make the truth and reconciliation process in South AfricaSouth AfricaThe Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
understood. - 1996: Xavier Albó and Félix Layme Pairumani for their work on the SpanishSpanish languageSpanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
-QuechuaQuechua languagesQuechua is a Native South American language family and dialect cluster spoken primarily in the Andes of South America, derived from an original common ancestor language, Proto-Quechua. It is the most widely spoken language family of the indigenous peoples of the Americas, with a total of probably...
and SpanishSpanish languageSpanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
-AymaraAymara languageAymara is an Aymaran language spoken by the Aymara people of the Andes. It is one of only a handful of Native American languages with over three million speakers. Aymara, along with Quechua and Spanish, is an official language of Peru and Bolivia...
dictionaries in BoliviaBoliviaBolivia officially known as Plurinational State of Bolivia , is a landlocked country in central South America. It is the poorest country in South America...
and for translating BoliviaBoliviaBolivia officially known as Plurinational State of Bolivia , is a landlocked country in central South America. It is the poorest country in South America...
n and Peruvian laws, and Carolyn ForchéCarolyn ForchéCarolyn Forché is an American poet, editor, translator, and human rights advocate.-Life:Forché was born in Detroit, Michigan, on April 28, 1950, to Michael Joseph and Louise Nada Blackford Sidlosky. Forché earned a B.A...
, American poet, for her efforts to combat torture and genocide in El SalvadorEl SalvadorEl Salvador or simply Salvador is the smallest and the most densely populated country in Central America. The country's capital city and largest city is San Salvador; Santa Ana and San Miguel are also important cultural and commercial centers in the country and in all of Central America...
. - 1995: Akihiro Takahashi, atom bomb survivor and former Head of the Hiroshima Peace Memorial MuseumHiroshima Peace Memorial MuseumHiroshima Peace Memorial Museum is located in Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park, in central Hiroshima, Japan.It was established in August 1955 with the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Hall ....
and Director of the Hiroshima Peace Culture FoundationHiroshima Peace Culture FoundationThe Hiroshima Peace Culture Foundation was established in April 1998 by the City of Hiroshima to promote peace, and to consolidate the city's activities in peace promotion, globalization, and international cooperation. It integrates the Hiroshima International Relations Organization and the...
. - 1994: Aziz NesinAziz NesinAziz Nesin was a famous Turkish writer and humorist of Crimean Tatar origin and author of more than 100 books.-Pseudonyms:...
, TurkishTurkeyTurkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
writer, for his resistance to political and religious fundamentalism, and Mohamed Talbi, TunisianDemographics of TunisiaThe majority of modern Tunisians are Arab-Berber orArabized Berber, and are speakers of Tunisian Arabic. However, there is also a small population of Berbers located in the Jabal Dahar mountains in the South East and on the island of Jerba...
historian, for his efforts to promote dialogue between Muslims and Christians. - 1993: Marion Kane and Vivienne Anderson, for their efforts to promote dialogue between Catholic and Protestant womenThe TroublesThe Troubles was a period of ethno-political conflict in Northern Ireland which spilled over at various times into England, the Republic of Ireland, and mainland Europe. The duration of the Troubles is conventionally dated from the late 1960s and considered by many to have ended with the Belfast...
in Northern IrelandNorthern IrelandNorthern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
. - 1992: Sonja LichtSonja LichtSonja Licht is a sociologist and political activist. Currently, she is president of the Foreign Policy Council at the Serbian Ministry of Foreign Affairs....
for promoting peaceful cooperation between the different communities in former YugoslaviaYugoslaviaYugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....
, and Tanja Petovar, lawyer and human rights activist. - 1991: Muhammad Abu-Zaid, PalestinianPalestinePalestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
doctor and founder of the Palestinian Centre for Jewish Studies, for his work on promoting cultural understanding as means for peace, and Galit Hasan-RokemGalit Hasan-RokemGalit Hassan Rokem is a full professor in the Hebrew Literature department in the Hebrew University.Hassan Rokem completed her doctorate at Hebrew University under Prof. Noy, is a specialist in the proverb genre...
on behalf of the Israeli Women's Peace Net, for their efforts to promote cooperation between PalestinianPalestinePalestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
and IsraelIsraelThe State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
i women. - 1990: Kerstin Blomberg, Swedish district nurse and promoter of international understanding among young persons round the BalticBaltic SeaThe Baltic Sea is a brackish mediterranean sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and...
, Jesús Alcalá, Swedish lawyer and human rights activist, Eva MobergEva MobergEva Moberg is a Swedish orienteering competitor. She received a silver medal in the relay event at the 1978 World Orienteering Championships in Kongsberg, together with Karin Rabe and Kristin Cullman.-References:...
, Swedish writer and journalist, Harald Ofstad, university professor and philosopher, Peter WatkinsPeter WatkinsPeter Watkins is an English film and television director. He was born in Norbiton, Surrey, lived in Sweden, Canada and Lithuania for many years, and now lives in France. He is one of the pioneers of docudrama. His movies, pacifist and radical, strongly review the limit of classic documentary and...
, British film director and writer.
Morris Collection
The following published short stories are mentioned in the list of papers within the Morris Collection at Columbia UniversityColumbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
:
- After the Ball, short story, published in Harper's Bazaar, Nov. 1943
- Amar-to Love, short story, published in Harper's Bazaar, 15 Sept. 1941
- Auntie Ninna, short story, published in Harper's Bazaar, April 1943
- Ball of Yarn, short story, published in Selected Writing, no. 5
- A Blade of Grass, short story, published in Story Magazine, Aug. 1936
- Caput Mortuum, short story, published in Harper's Bazaar, June 1941
- Dress Rehearsal, short story, published in Mademoiselle, April 1943
- The Gateway to India, short story, published in Eastern Horizon, Dec. 1961
- Heart of Marzipan, short story, published in Mademoiselle, Oct. 1943
- Hiroshima Man, article, published in The Mennonite, 25 May 1965
- Horse with Hoof of Fire, short story, published in The New Mexico Quarterly Review, 1945
- Let's Remember Together, short story, published in Good Housekeeping, May 194
- Lili Died in April, short story, published in Lovat Dickson's Magazine, Vol.3, no. 6, Dec. 1934
- The Melody, short story, published in Mademoiselle, Feb. 1945
- Nature's Child, short story, published in The Reader's Digest, Sept. 1944
- The Open Mouth, short story, published in Harper's Bazaar, July 1943
- The Pagan, short story, published in Harper's Bazaar, July 1944
- The Sorrow of Ape-in-pants, short story, published in American Dialog, 1964
- The Survivors of the Bombs, article, published in the New Statesman, 2 Aug. 1958
- Survivors of the Bombs, article, published in Opinion, 1961
- Young Man in an Astrakhan Cap, short story, published in Harper's Bazaar, Dec. 1942