English Literature
The largest portion of the literary collections is English-language literature of the British Isles, including Scotland, Ireland, and Wales. Printed works and manuscripts range from the 15th through the mid-20th century and include poetry, drama, novels, periodical publications, and some nonfiction; as well as letters and other documents by and about authors. Among the most significant holdings are two 15th-century manuscripts of Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales; an important group of 16th-and 17th-century poetical commonplace books; more than 450 books and pamphlets by Daniel Defoe, including the rare first edition of Robinson Crusoe; the largest extant collection of Robert Burns’s letters, manuscripts, and early editions; a growing collection of Romantic literature including the recent acquisition of five of Mary Shelley’s novels, including a first edition of Frankenstein; one of the world’s most important Lewis Carroll collections, including more than 600 of his letters, his early drawings, his own copy of the first edition of Alice in Wonderland, and first editions of most of his other books, and rare photographs; Bram Stoker’s autograph notes and outlines for Dracula; the manuscripts of two-thirds of Joseph Conrad’s literary works, including Lord Jim and 60 letters in his hand; and the manuscript and early editions of James Joyce’s Ulysses, along with other works by Joyce and a growing collection of objects related to the creation of Ulysses.
Illustrations in many of these books are also represented in the fine art collections by separate prints and original drawings by artists including William Blake, John Tenniel, and George Cruikshank.
