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Amos Tutuola:

An Inventory of His Collection at the Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center



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Repository: The University of Texas at Austin, Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center
Creator: Tutuola, Amos
Title: Amos Tutuola Collection
Dates: 1940-1997
Extent: 11 boxes, 2 oversize boxes (4.58 linear feet)
Abstract: The Amos Tutuola Collection, 1940-1997, includes holograph and typed manuscripts, transcripts, galleys, and correspondence concerning Tutuola's works, as well as works about Tutuola.
RLIN Record #: TXRC 93-A101
Language: English and Yoruba.

Administrative Information

Acquisition:

Purchases and gifts,1988-2005

Processed by:

Wendy Bowersock (1993), Joan Sibley (1994), Chelsea Dinsmore (2002), Katherine Mosley (2006)


Restrictions

Access:

Open for research


Biographical Sketch

Amos Tutuola was born in 1920 in Abeokuta, Nigeria. He first entered his home village school at the age of twelve and in 1934 he entered the Lagos High School, under the sponsorship of a family friend. Trouble with the people he lived with sent Tutuola back to school in Abeokuta in 1936 and the death of his father in 1939 forced Tutuola to end his formal education. He returned to Lagos to learn blacksmithing and in 1942 he joined the R.A.F. as a blacksmith.

Despite a somewhat abbreviated formal education, Tutuola originally wrote all of his novels in English. The success of his stories prompted him to translate a number of his works into his native language, Yoruba. While working as a messenger for the Department of Labor, Tutuola wrote the first draft of The Palm-Wine Drinkard, a romance built out of elements of Yoruba folklore. Published by Faber and Faber in London in 1952, The Palm-Wine Drinkard is considered the first of all anglo-phone Nigerian novels. Due to the critical and popular success of this novel, Tutuola became the first Nigerian novelist to win international acclaim. The Palm-Wine Drinkard was followed by My Life in the Bush Ghosts (1954); Simbi and the Satyr of the Dark Jungle (1955); The Brave African Huntress (1958); Feather Woman of the Jungle (1962); Ajaiyi and His Inherited Poverty (1967); The Witch Herbalist of the Remote Town (1981); The Wild Hunter in the Bush of Ghosts (written in the late 1940s, but not published until 1982); Pauper, Brawler, Slanderer (1987); and The Village Witch Doctor and Other Stories (1990).

The initial purchase of Tutuola's papers was arranged by University of Houston professor Robert Wren, while additional accessions were facilitated by Tutuola's friend and professor of African and English literature at the University of Texas at Austin, Bernth Lindfors. A number of Tutuola-related materials were the gift of Lindfors, and other pertinent materials are located in the Bernth Lindfors Papers, including a photostat of his typed manuscript Critical Perspectives on Amos Tutuola (1975).

Amos Tutuola died in Nigeria in 1997.


Sources:

Collins, Harold R. Amos Tutuola. Twayne's World Author Series (TWAS 62). New York: Twayne Publishers, 1969.

Lindfors, Bernth. "Amos Tutuola" in Twentieth Century Caribbean and Black African Writers. Dictionary of Literary Biography, Vol. 125. Detroit: Gale Research, 1983.

Owomoyela, Oyekan. Amos Tutuola Revisited. Twayne's World Author Series (TWAS 880). New York: Twayne Publishers, 1999.


Scope and Contents

The Amos Tutuola Collection, 1940-1997, includes handwritten and typed manuscripts, transcripts, galleys, and correspondence concerning Tutuola's works, as well as works about Tutuola. The collection is arranged in four series: I. Works by Tutuola, 1952-1996 (5 boxes); II. Correspondence, 1950-1997 (2 boxes); III. Works about Tutuola, 1972-1975 (2 boxes); and IV. Personal Papers, 1954-1997 (2 boxes).

Although the Ransom Center's holdings include the handwritten manuscript of Tutuola's earliest published novel, The Palm-Wine Drinkard (1952), the remaining Tutuola manuscripts are much more recent, dating between 1980 and 1990. These include corrected typescripts of Tutuola's The Witch Herbalist of the Remote Town, Pauper, Brawler, and Slanderer, and The Village Witch Doctor and Other Stories. Tutuola's first work, The Wild Hunter in the Bush of Ghosts, written in the late 1940s but not published until 1982, is represented in this collection by photocopies of handwritten manuscripts, typescripts, printouts (some with corrections in Tutuola's hand), and galleys which were used by editor Bernth Lindfors. Also present are several notebooks with stories written in both English and Yoruba. Works from this series are listed in the Index of Works at the end of this guide.

The second series, Correspondence, covers a fairly even mix of personal and business letters. Most of the Faber and Faber correspondence arrived at the HRHRC, as a group, arranged chronologically. Some groups of letters relating to various of Tutuola's works are also separated by topic. All other correspondence, including letters to and from family, friends, fans, and publishers is arranged chronologically. Some of the more frequent correspondents include Peter du Sautoy, Alan Pringle, and others at Faber and Faber; Donald Herdeck of Three Continents Press; Bernth Lindfors; and Robert Wren. Correspondents are listed in the Index of Correspondence at the end of this guide.

The third series, Works about Tutuola, consists of materials relating to the writing and publication of Bernth Lindfors' Critical Perspectives on Amos Tutuola (1975). The material includes research and notes, typescripts, corrected galley proofs, page proofs, correspondence with his editor, Donald E. Herdeck, and permission letters.

The final series, Personal Papers, contains a wide variety of materials including bank records, employment papers, tax papers, programs for and articles about Tutuola's funeral in 1997, royalty statements, and various identity cards. Also present are several photographs of Tutuola and his family.

Other materials associated with Amos Tutuola may be found in the Robert Wren and Bernth Lindfors collections.


Related Material

Other materials associated with Amos Tutuola may be found in the Robert Wren and Bernth Lindfors collections.



Index Terms

People

Du Sautoy, Peter.
Herdeck, Donald E., 1924- .
Lindfors, Bernth.
Pringle, Alan.
Wren, Robert.

Organizations

Faber & Faber, Ltd.
Nigerian Broadcasting Corporation.

Subjects

African fiction (English).
Authors, African.
Authors, Nigerian.
Folklore--Nigeria--Fiction.
Nigerian fiction (English).
Short stories, Nigerian.
Yoruba (African people)--Fiction.

Document Types

First drafts.
Galley proofs.
Scripts.

Container List

Series I. Works by Tutuola, 1952-1996

BoxFolder
1 1 Ajaiyi and the Witch Doctor (Playscript), corrected typescript, 1964
2 "A Brief Explanation of My Journey to America and London" (1983), typescript with handwritten revisions, [1983]
3* The Palm-Wine Drinkard (1952), photocopy of handwritten manuscript, nd (*original moved to oversize folder 12.1)
The Palm-Wine Drinkard (Yoruba translation, titled Omemu [Omuti] Ni Ilu Awon Oku)
BoxFolder
1 4 Typescript with handwritten revisions, nd
5 Typescript, 1980, with additional handwritten and typescript pages, nd
6 Typescript with handwritten revisions, with additional typescript pages, 1980, nd
7 The Palm-Wine Drinkard, playscript adaptation by E. K. Ogunmola, photocopy of program for premiere, nd
8 The Path of Death, handwritten manuscript in six notebooks, 1954
Pauper, Brawler, and Slanderer
BoxFolder
2 1 Handwritten manuscript, 1985, with corrected typescript fragments, 1986 (on some versos: Ise Baba Osi and declaration of guardianship typescript pages, 1985)
2 Typescript with handwritten revisions, 1986
3 Corrected typescript, typesetting copy, 1987
Pauper, Brawler, and Slanderer (Yoruba, titled Ise Baba Osi, Aso Ati Elenini)
BoxFolder
2 4 Handwritten manuscript, [1985], with corrected typescript pages, nd
5 Typescript with handwritten revisions, 1985 (on some versos: Pauper, Brawler, Slanderer typescript pages)
6 Typescript with handwritten revisions, 1985
7 Typescript with handwritten revisions, 1995
8 The Pupils of the Eyes (Playscript), corrected typescript, nd
Short Stories
BoxFolder
3 1 A-D
2 E-P
3 R-Z
4 Handwritten notebook in English and Yoruba, 1956, nd
5 Handwritten notebooks in English and Yoruba, 1954
6 Handwritten notebook in English and Yoruba, 1958-1960
The Sword of Vengeance (Playscript)
BoxFolder
3 7 Handwritten manuscript, nd
8 Typescript with handwritten revisions, 1982
9 Photocopy of typescript with handwritten revisions, 1982
The Village Witch Doctor and Other Stories
BoxFolder
4 1 Corrected photocopy typescript, typesetting copy, 1990
2 Corrected photocopy page proofs, 1999
Western Yoruba Folktales [Tort stories]
BoxFolder
4 3 Handwritten and typescript fragments, 1983
The Wild Hunter in the Bush of Ghosts (facsimile edition edited by Bernth Lindfors, 1982)
BoxFolder
4 4-5 Two photocopies of handwritten manuscripts, nd
6 Typescript, nd
7 Photocopy of typescript, nd
8 Typescript with handwritten corrections pasted in, nd
9 Incomplete computer printout with handwritten corrections, nd
10-12 Title page, table of contents, introduction, postscript, and typesetting material, 1981-82
   
5 1-2* Corrected galley proofs, nd (*four sets, one set removed to oversize folder 12.3)
3 Photocopy of published text; additional photocopy fragment with handwritten revisions, nd (see also folder 5.10)
The Wild Hunter in the Bush of Ghosts (first standard version edited by Bernth Lindfors, 1989)
BoxFolder
5 * Corrected computer printout, 5 Dec. 1983, with corrections in the hand of Tutuola (*removed to oversize folders 12.2 and 13.1)
* Computer printout, 5 Dec. 1983 (*removed to oversize folder 13.2)
* Computer printout, 11 May 1984 (*removed to oversize folder 13.3)
The Witch Herbalist of the Remote Town (1981)
BoxFolder
5 4 Handwritten and typescript pages, 1978, nd
5 Incomplete typescript with handwritten revisions, with additional typescript fragment, nd
6 Typescript with handwritten revisions, [1978]
7 Typescript with handwritten revisions, typesetting copy, 1981
Yoruba Folktales
BoxFolder
5 8 Incomplete typescript with handwritten revisions, 1982
Unidentified manuscript fragments
BoxFolder
5 9 English
10 Yoruba



Series II. Correspondence, 1948-1997

BoxFolder
6 1 1948-1959, nd
2 1960-1969
3 1970-1975
4 1976-1979
5 1980-1981
6 1982-1983
7 1984-1989
   
7 1 1990-1997
Faber & Faber
BoxFolder
7 2 1951-1964
3 1965-1974
4 1975-1980
5 1981-1983
6 1984-1997
7 My Life in the Bush of the Ghosts, 1952-54
8 The Palm Wine Drinkard, 1951-1954
9 The Palm Wine Drinkard (Yoruba translation, titled Omemu [Omuti] Ni Ilu Awon Oku), 1966-1968
10 The Palm Wine Drinkard (film version), 1967-1969
11 Pauper, Brawler, Slanderer ( Yoruba, titled Ise Baba Osi), 1986-1987
12 The Wild Hunter in the Bush of the Ghosts, 1981-1982



Series III. Works about Tutuola, 1972-1975

BoxFolder
8 1 "Amos Tutuola's Earliest Long Narrative" by Bernth Lindfors, mimeograph typescript
2 "Amos Tutuola's Search for a Publisher" by Bernth Lindfors, photocopy typescript, 1980
Critical Perspectives on Amos Tutuola edited by Bernth Lindfors (1975)
BoxFolder
8 3-6 Drafts and notes
7 Corrected galley proofs; first run
   
9 1-2 Corrected galley proofs; second run
3-4 Corrected page proofs
5 Correspondence and agreements, 1972-1975
6 Permission letters, 1972-1975



Series IV. Personal Papers, 1954-1997

BoxFolder
10 1 Agreements with publishing companies, 1973, 1980-1986
2 Articles and pamphlets about Tutuola's funeral, 1997
3 Automobiles and motorcycles, papers and receipts, 195?-1994
4-5 Banking checkbooks, deposit slips, savings account passbooks, statements, 1954-1996
6 Biographical information, typescripts and printed Materials, 1962-1996, nd
7 Employment papers, Nigerian Broadcasting Corporation and University of Ife, 1958-1984
8 Course notes, "Management of Stores and Stock Control," handwritten and printed notes, 1967
9 Identity cards, baptism card, licenses, registrations, 1958-1979
10 Medical registration cards, prescriptions, and receipts, 1992-1997
11 Photographs and negatives of Tutuola and family, 1947, 1960-1983, nd
   
11 1 Printed materials from conferences and interviews, 1983-1996
2 Receipts and invoices, 1955-1990
3 Royalty statements from City Lights Press, 1990-1996
Royalty statements from Faber & Faber
BoxFolder
11 4 1978-1979
5 1980-1987
6 1988-1992
7 1993-1996
8 Royalty statements from Three Continents Press, 1983-1991
9 Tax receipts, 1952-1995
10 Tenancy agreements, 1959, nd
 
12-13 Oversize materials



Amos Tutuola Collection--Index of Works


Amos Tutuola Collection--Index of Correspondents

Names in bold appear in the RLIN record.