funded by the cia
MORRIS, James. A collection of seven issues of Encounter containing travel writing and articles on imperial history by Jan Morris (two extracted from forthcomingbooks and one illustrated with his own drawings).travel writing and articles on imperial history by Jan Morris (two extracted from forthcomingbooks and one illustrated with his own drawings). London, William Clowes and Sons [and Watmoughs Limited], for Encounter Ltd., 1964-1972.
Seven issues, 4to. Original colour-printed wrappers, designed by Colin Banks and John Miles; some spines slightly faded, some light marking on wrappers, light rubbing and creasing at extremities, text occasionally a little toned, in very good condition overall.
‘The Spanish Helmet: Letter from Madrid’, in Stephen SPENDER and Melvin J. LASKY (editors). Encounter XXIII, No. 4 (October 1964), pp. 14-20. Pp. 96. According to the notes on contributors, Morris’s ‘article in this number will be included in his new book, The Presence of Spain, to be published in the autumn’ (p. 96).
‘The Air of Unity: Letter from India’, in Frank KERMODE and Melvin J. LASKY (editors). Encounter XXIV, No. 1 (January 1966), pp. 50-54. Pp. 96. 2 plates
‘Letter from Cranbury, N.J.’, in Melvin J. LASKY and Nigel DENNIS (editors). Encounter XXIX, No. 6 (December 1967), pp. 9-12. Pp. 96.
‘Stones of Empire’, in Melvin J. LASKY and Nigel DENNIS (editors). Encounter XXXI, No. 4 (October 1968), pp. 38-45. According to the notes on contributors, Morris’s essay ‘forms a chapter in his new book, Pax Britannica, which will shortly be published’ (p. 96).
‘Eyre: A Portrait’, in Melvin J. LASKY and Nigel DENNIS (editors). Encounter XXXV, No. 1 (July 1970), pp. 3-13. Pp. 96. Illustrated with 4 drawings after Morris in the text.
‘Out in Wyoming: Images of American Innocence’, in Melvin J. LASKY and D.J. ENRIGHT (editors). Encounter XXXVIII, No. 2 (February 1972), pp. 30-37. Pp. 96.
‘A Letter from France’, in Melvin J. LASKY and D.J. ENRIGHT (editors). Encounter XXXIX, No. 3 (September 1972), pp. 7-10. Pp. 96.
This collection of issues of Encounter, contains travel writing and pieces on imperial history by Jan Morris, relating to India, the United States, Australia, and Europe. Morris was a regular contributor to Encounter, which was one of the leading Anglo-American intellectual periodicals of the post-war era. In 1967, however, it was revealed that the publication had been covertly funded by the CIA - a revelation which lead Stephen Spender to resign as co-editor. Morris’s contributions in this series of issues span the years between 1964 and 1972, which saw the writer’s fame steadily increase, particularly after the appearance of the first volume of the Pax Britannica trilogy in 1968 (an extract from that book is included here). Although all of these pieces were published under the name James Morris, in 1964 Morris began transitioning to life as a woman before undergoing gender-reassignment surgery in 1972, and his contributions to Encounter after spring 1973 appeared under the name Jan Morris.
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