Ted Hughes Papers, 1957-1979 | MS Manuscripts

Title: Ted Hughes Papers, 1957-1979

ID: MS/MS/ms146

Extent: 8.0 Items

Predominant Dates: 1957-1979

Creators

Hughes, Ted (1930-1998)
Plath, Sylvia

Administrative/Biographical History

Edward James "Ted" Hughes (August 17, 1930 –October 28, 1998) was an English poet and children's writer. Critics routinely rank him as one of the best poets of his generation. Hughes was married to American poet Sylvia Plath, from 1956 until her death by suicide in 1963. His most significant work is perhaps Crow (1970). Despite being widely praised, Crow also divided critics, combining an apocalyptic, bitter, cynical and surreal view of the universe with what sometimes appeared simple, childlike verse. In addition to his own poetry, Hughes wrote a number of translations of European plays, mainly classical ones. His Tales from Ovid (1997) contains a selection of free verse translations from Ovid's Metamorphoses. Hughes also wrote both poetry and prose for children, one of his most successful books being The Iron Man, written to comfort his children after Sylvia Plath's suicide. In his last collection, Birthday Letters, Hughes broke his silence on Plath, detailing aspects of their life together and his own behavior at the time. Hughes' definitive 1,333-page Collected Poems appeared (posthumously) in 2003.

Languages of Materials

English

Administrative Information

Repository: MS Manuscripts

Acquired: 02/03/1967.

Restrictions: Open

Rights:

Users of the collection must read and agree to abide by the rules and procedures set forth in the Materials Use Policies.

Providing access to materials does not constitute permission to publish or otherwise authorize use. All publication not covered by fair use or other exceptions is restricted to those who have permission of the copyright holder, which may or may not be Washington University.

If you wish to publish or license Special Collections materials, please contact Special Collections to inquire about copyright status at (314) 935-5495 or spec@wumail.wustl.edu. (Publish means quotation in whole or in part in seminar or term papers, theses or dissertations, journal articles, monographs, books, digital forms, photographs, images, dramatic presentations, transcriptions, or any other form prepared for a limited or general public.)

Acquisition Note: Source: Purchase.

Accession number 807. Purchased from House of Books, Ltd., February 3, 1967. (ALS to Ackroyd)

Accession number 1073. Purchsed from Bertram Rota Ltd. Booksellers, August 27, 1969. (Correspondence to Olwyn Hughes)

Accession number 1140. Purchsed from Paul C. Richards, February 3, 1970. (ALS to Hamilton)

Accession number 22891. Purchased, October 12, 2002. (Adam and the Sacred Nine)

Preferred Citation: Name of the Collection, Washington University Libraries, Department of Special Collections

Collection Material Type: Manuscripts

Printer-friendly |

Email Us

Scope and Contents: Consists of correspondence from Sylvia Plath and Ted Hughes to Olwyn Hughes, Ted's sister. Also, included is correspondence from Hughes to Graham Ackroyd and Ian Hamilton and typescript and manuscript drafts of Adam and the Sacred Nine.

Detailed Description
Series 1: Correspondence
Series 2: Manuscripts