Biographical note

Scope and contents

Series I: Manuscripts

Box 1 An Accidental Man

Box 2 The Bell

Box 3 The Black Prince

Box 6 The Book and the Brotherhood

Box 8 Bruno's Dream

Box 9 "The Darkness of Practical Reason,'A Fairly Honourable Defeat

Box 12 Flight from the Enchanter

Box 13 "Freedom of the Individual," The Good Apprentice

Box 15 Henry and Cato

Box 17 "A House of Theory," "The Idea of Perfection," The Italian Girl (novel)

Box 18 The Italian Girl (play) -- The Nice and The Good

Box 20 "A Note on the Novel in the New Utilitarian Age: Existentialists and Mystics" -- Nuns and Soldiers

Box 22 "On 'God' and 'Good,'" The Philosopher's Pupil

Box 25 Poetry published in Boston University Journal, 1975 -- The Red and the Green

Box 27 Reynolds Stone Memorial Service Eulogy -- The Sacred and Profane Love machine

Box 28 "Salvation of Words" -- The Sandcastle

Box 29 Sartre: Romantic Rationalist -- The Sea, The Sea

Box 31 The Servants and the Snow (play)

Box 32 A Severed Head

Box 33 "Something Special" -- The Time of the Angels

Box 34 Under the Net

Box 35 The Unicorn

Box 36 An Unofficial Rose

Box 37 "The Voice of Philosophy in the World of Today"

Box 38 A Word Child

Box 39 The Green Knight

Box 42 Jackson's Dilemma

Box 44 A Message to the Planet [original title: The Language of the Planet]

Series II: The Gifford Lectures

Box 1

Box 2

Iris Murdoch, novelist and philosopher, was born in Dublin on July 15, 1919, and was educated at Oxford University and later at Cambridge. In 1948 she became a Fellow of St. Anne’s College, Oxford. Her first novel, Under the Net, was published in 1954. This book was followed by many others and Murdoch won most of the major literary awards, including the James Tait Black Memorial Prize, the Whitbread Prize, and the Booker Prize. She also wrote plays, poetry, and philosophical works. In 1956 she married John Bayley, an Oxford don and literary critic. She was created a Dame of the British Empire in 1987. She died February 8, 1999, in Oxford.

Scope and Contents

Since the 1960s the University of Iowa has been collecting her books and manuscripts. The papers of Iris Murdoch consist of twenty six linear feet of her literary manuscripts, which are arranged alphabetically by book title. The manuscripts include mostly handwritten drafts of her novels (usually in notebooks), along with some typescripts, galley proofs, working notes and correspondence. Some of the books included are: An Accidental Man, The Bell, The Nice and the Good, The Sea, the Sea, and A Word Child. There is also correspondence between Iris Murdoch and John Fletcher.

Related Materials

The Center for Iris Murdoch Studies at Kingston University

For audio recordings of Murdoch, please see the collection of Janine Canan, MsC 792, Box 13.

Series I: Manuscripts

Box 1

An Accidental Man

Holograph notebooks, nos. 1 -- 14

Later holograph draft, pp. 1 -- 150

Box 2

An Accidental Man (cont.)

Later holograph draft, pp. 151 -- 734.

"Art should make us happy. . ."

The Bell

Holograph notebooks, nos. 1 -- 7

The Bell (cont.)

Holograph notebooks, nos. 8 -- 11.

Later holograph draft. (4 folders)

The Black Prince

Holograph notebooks, nos. 1 -- 2

The Black Prince (cont.)

Holograph notebooks, nos. 3 -- 14.

Later holograph draft, pp. 1 --150

The Black Prince (cont.)

Later holograph draft, pp. 151 -- ?

Reader's report by Marshall Best and a second copy with Murdoch's comments.

Box 6

The Book and the Brotherhood

Holograph notebooks, nos. 1 -- 8

The Book and the Brotherhood (cont.)

Holograph notebooks, nos. 9 -- 15

Later holograph draft, pp. 1 -- 150

The Book and the Brotherhood (cont)

Later holograph draft, pp. 151 -- 752

Bruno's Dream

Holograph notebooks, nos. 1 -- 4

Box 9

Bruno's Dream (cont.)

Holograph notebooks, nos. 5 -- 8

Later holograph draft, pp. 1 -- 436

"The Darkness of Practical Reason"

A Fairly Honourable Defeat

Holograph notebooks, nos. 1 -- 3

A Fairly Honourable Defeat (cont.)

Holograph notebooks, nos. 4 -- 11.

Later holograph draft, pp. 1 -- 450

A Fairly Honourable Defeat (cont.)

Later holograph draft, pp. 451 -- 700

Marked typescript. (3 folders)

Galley proofs. (1 folder)

The Flight from the Enchanter:

Holograph notebooks, nos. 1 -- 6.

Later holograph draft, pp. 1 -- 150.

The Flight from the Enchanter (cont.)

Later holograph draft, pp. 151 -- 507

"Freedom of the Individual." Holograph draft of a book review.

The Good Apprentice

Holograph notebooks, nos. 1 -- 5

The Good Apprentice (cont.):

Holograph notebooks, nos. 6 -- 12

Later holograph draft, pp. 1 -- 185

The Good Apprentice (cont.):

Later holograph draft, pp. 186 -- 986

Henry and Cato

Holograph notebooks, nos. 1 -- 3

Henry and Cato (cont.)

Holograph notebooks, nos.4 -- 12

Later holograph draft, pp. 1 -- 150

Henry and Cato (cont.)

Later holograph draft, pp. 151 -- 703

"A House of Theory: A Study in Moral Energy"

"The Idea of Perfection." Holograph drafts of an article.

The Italian Girl [novel]

Holograph notebooks, nos. 1 -- 5.

Box 18

The Italian Girl [novel], (cont.)

Later holograph draft.

"The Italian Girl" [play]:

Holograph notebooks:

Draft one.

Draft two. (2 notebooks)

Draft three.

The Italian Girl. Playbill Programme. Wyndham's Theatre. February 1, 1968.

"A Lovely Woman is a Work of Nature"

"Ludvig..." Murdoch's draft of a blurb for a novel.

"The Magic Brothel"

"Morality and the Bomb." From Women Ask Why: An Intelligent Woman's Guide to Nuclear Disarmament. London: The Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, [1962?]

The Nice and the Good

Holograph notebooks, nos. 1 -- 6.

The Nice and the Good (cont.)

Holograph notebooks, nos. 7 -- 11.

Later holograph draft, pp. 1 -- 559

Box 20

"A Note on the Novel in the New Utilitarian Age: Existentialists and Mystics." Holograph drafts of an essay.

Nuns and Soldiers

Holograph notebooks, nos. 1 -- 9

Nuns and Soldiers (cont.):

Holograph notebooks, nos. 10 -- 14

Later holograph draft, pp. 1 -- 300

Nuns and Soldiers (cont.)

Later holograph draft, pp. 301 -- 978

"On 'God' and 'Good'"

The Philosopher's Pupil

Holograph notebooks, nos. 1 -- 3

The Philosopher's Pupil (cont.)

Holograph notebooks, nos. 4 -- 10.

The Philosopher's Pupil (cont.)

Holograph notebooks, nos. 11 -- 16.

Later holograph draft, pp. 1 -- 300

The Philosopher's Pupil (cont.)

Later holograph draft, pp. 301 -- 1083

Poetry published in the Boston University Journal, 1975.

The Red and the Green

Holograph notebooks, nos. 1 -- 2

Box 26

The Red and the Green (cont.)

Holograph notebooks, nos. 3 -- 7

Later holograph draft, pp. 1 -- 485

Box 27

Reynolds Stone Memorial Service Eulogy

The Sacred and Profane Love Machine

Holograph notebooks, nos. 1 -- 13

Editor's comments (Marshall Best) on Murdoch's blurb

The Sacred and Profane Love Machine (cont.)

Later holograph draft, pp. 1 -- 628

"Salvation of Words" Typescript of a speech.

The Sandcastle

Holograph notebooks, nos. 1 -- 6

Box 29

The Sandcastle (cont.)

Holograph Notebooks, nos. 7 -- 8

Later holograph draft, pp. 1 -- 495

Sartre: Romantic Rationalist

Holograph draft.

The Sea, the Sea

Holograph notebooks, nos. 1 -- 4 (Together with a xerox copy of notebook no. 1)

The Sea, the Sea (cont.)

Holograph notebooks, nos. 5 -- 14.

Later holograph draft, pp. 1 -- 142

The Sea, the Sea (cont.):

Later holograph draft, pp. 143 -- 947.

Discarded holograph pages.

"The Servants and the Snow" [play]:

Holograph notebooks:

Draft one. (3 notebooks)

Box 32

"The Servants and the Snow" [play] (cont.)

Draft two. (2 notebooks)

Later holograph draft.

A Severed Head

Working notes.

Holograph notebooks, nos. 1 -- 6.

Later holograph draft, pp. 1 -- 150.

A Severed Head (cont.)

Later holograph draft, pp. 151 -- 308.

Baldanza, Frank. The Manuscript of Iris Murdoch's *A Severed Head*. Journal of Modern Literature. Vol.3:no.1 (February 1973), pp.75 -- 90. Offprint.

"Something Special." Holograph draft.

"The Three Arrows" [play] Holograph draft.

The Time of the Angels:

Holograph notebooks, nos. 1 -- 9

The Time of the Angels (cont.):

Later holograph draft, pp. 1 -- 386

Under the Net

Holograph notebooks:

Draft one, nos. 1 -- 6 (incomplete)

Box 35

Under the Net (cont.)

Holographic notebooks

Draft two, nos. 1-7

The Unicorn

Holograph notebooks, nos. 1 -- 9.

Later holograph draft, pp. 1 -- 402

An Unofficial Rose

Working notes.

Holograph notebooks, nos. 1 -- 9

Later holograph draft, pp. 1 -- 150

Box 37

An Unofficial Rose, (cont.)

Later holograph draft, pp. 151 -- 449

Miscellaneous pages of revision.

"The Voice of Philosophy in the World of Today" Holograph draft of an essay.

Box 38

A Word Child

Holograph notebooks, nos. 1 -- 12

A Word Child (cont.)

Holograph notebooks, no. 13

Later holograph draft, pp. 1 -- 727

Miscellaneous pages of revision.

Editor's summary with a description of the book, jacket suggestions and an excerpt from John Updike's review, 1975

The Green Knight:

Holograph notebooks, no. 1

Box 40

The Green Knight (cont.)

Holograph notebooks, nos. 2- -- 9

Box 41

The Green Knight (cont.)

Holograph notebooks, nos. 10 -- 11

Box 42

Second holograph draft with corrections and revisions, pp. 1 -- 698

Jackson's Dilemma

Holograph notebooks, nos. 1 -- 2

Box 43

Jackson's Dilemma (cont.)

Holograph notebooks, nos. 3, 5 -- 10. [Notebook no. 4 missing]

Second holograph draft with corrections and revisions, pp. 1 -- 168

Box 44

Jackson's Dilemma (cont.)

Second holograph draft with corrections and revisions, pp. 169 -- 389.

Holograph notes about "Sequence".

The Message to the Planet [original title: The Language of the Planet]

Holograph notebooks, nos. 1 -- 6

Box 45

The Message to the Planet (cont.):

Holograph notebooks, nos. 7 -- 15

Box 46

The Message to the Planet (cont.)

Second holograph draft with corrections and revisions, pp. 1 -- 778

Series II: The Gifford Lectures

Box 1

Holograph notes.

Holograph notes and precis from a close reading of Heidegger's Introduction to Metaphysics.

Gifford Lecture I. Holograph draft with corrections and revisions, pp. 1 -- [883].

Gifford Lecture II.

Holograph draft with corrections and revisions, pp. 1 -- 184.

Holograph draft with corrections and revisions, pp. 513 -- 584

Incomplete holograph drafts with corrections and revisions, pp. 187 -- 680.

Box 2

Incomplete holograph drafts with corrections and revisions

Pages 879 -- 1072.

Pages 1015 -- 1060.

Miscellaneous pages.

"Heidegger" Holograph draft with corrections and revisions.

"Plato" Holograph draft with corrections and revisions.

How to Prove the Existence of God [a version of this text is found in Metaphysics as a Guide to Morals]

"Groningen" text. Corrected carbon typescript with holograph title-page and notes.

"The Ontological Proof." Corrected carbon typescript.

"Structuralism" Carbon typescripts. (2 copies)

Box 3

Metaphysics as a Guide to Morals [The Gifford Lectures were the basis of this book]:

Original holograph draft with corrections and revisions, pp. 1 -- 939. (6 folders)

Miscellaneous pages with letters from Iris Murdoch concerning their auction at St. Anne's College, Oxford.

Series III: Correspondence

Box 1

To Miss Batchelor. Steeple Ashton [May 1968] Thanking her for, and commenting on, her article in Books at Iowa, on a novel of Murdoch's, Under the Net. Photocopy.

To Enid Bagnold. Oxford n.d. Three letters and a postcard

To Baker. Oxford. April 7 n.y. Regretting that she lost the photostat; agreeing to let him publish one of her stories. Postscript asking that he postpone publishing her work

To [David] Beams. [1969?] Thanking Mr. Beams for his letter concerning Bruno's Dream

To [David] Beams. Oxford. September 17 and October [1969?] Thanking Mr. Beams for his letters; mentioning Simone Weil, Leslie Stephens, Shakespeare, and Jane Austen

To [David] Beams. Steeple Aston, Oxford. Seven letters

1. February 21, 1969. Thanking him for the letters

2. June 25, 1972. Concerning whether or nor T. S. Eliot knows of her work

3. July 29, 1973. Thanking him for sending a journal; inquiring as to his teacing post and work

4. April 4 n.y. Discussing oriental philosophy and influences with regard to Bruno's Dream. Photocopy

5. June 2, n.y. Congratulating him on the completion of his thesis; hoping that he will find a publisher. Photocopy

6. n.d. Thanking him for his letter; disagreeing with some of his comments about her writing

7. n.d. Thanking him for sending his article about Muhammad Ali. Contains an incomplete copy of the article. Photocopy

Correspondence. Primarily correspondence between Murdoch and her American editor at Viking Press, Marshall Best, regarding her publications. 20 items

To [Ronald Duncan]. Steeple Aston, Oxford .n.d. Apologizing for not being able to contribute to his book

To Mr. Findletter. Steeple Aston, Oxford. June 5 n.y. Regretting that she is unable to write anything for him

Correspondence between Murdoch and John Fletcher, 1977 -- 1994. (2 folders).

To Michael Goldman. n.p. May 23, 1967. Concerning the meaning of her book The Unicorn. Contains a carbon copy of a handwritten letter from Goldman

Answers to questions by Ronald Hayman

To Miss Kenny. Oxford. August 12 n.y. Giving permission to publish the Reynolds Stone eulogy address given by Murdoch

To Margaret. Oxford. Three letters

1) February 26 n.y. Accepting her invition to speak

2) April 25 n.y. Arranging a time for her talk

3) September 19 n.y. Confirming the lecture arrangements

To Ann Marreco. 32 letters

1) n.d. [Paris] Thanking her for sending Boat Boy

2) [Aurangabad] Thanking for her the letter

3. n.d. [Cambridge] Regretting having missed her; mentioning that she gave Wignall's address to a student

4. n.d. Harcourt Terrace S.W. [London] Inviting her for drinks

5. n.d. [London] Thanking her for the letter; inviting her for drinks celebrating the Labor victory

6) n.d., n.p. Wishing her step-daughter a speedy recovery; hoping to meet after Christmas

7) n.d. Steeple Aston. Hoping her mother and Sarah are better; expressing interest in her novel

8) n.d. Steeple Aston. Thanking her for the letter; urging her to send her typescript to Viking

9) n.d. Steeple Aston. Accepting a dinner invitation

10) n.d., n.p. Concerning their recent meeting; enclosing a belated birthday gift

11) n.d. Steeple Aston. Discussing dishwashers; appreciating her re-reading of Under the Net

12) January 5 n.y. Oxford. Discussing how much she enjoyed Boat Boy and the characterizations

13) April 25 n.y. Steeple Aston. Regarding the leasing of the London flat

14) May 22 n.y. Steeple Aston. Thanking her for the wonderful weekend holiday

15) October 3 [1961] Steeple Aston. Congratulating her on her recent marriage; wishing her success on her novel

16) [1961] Oxford. Thanking her for letting Murdoch read her novel; accepting a dinner invitation

17) [May 15, 1962] Steeple Aston. Congratulating her on her novel; discussing the characters at length

18) June 17, 1963 [Helsinki] Regarding their trip

19) [August 8, 1963] [Stratford, Ontario] Comparing Canada to Ireland

20) February 10 [1961] Apologizing for not having written sooner; hoping to visit her in Ireland soon

21) February 19 [1964] Oxford. Regretfullly declining an invitation; hoping to make other arrangements

22) April 12 [1964], Steeple Aston. Anticipating their visit; discussing the itinerary

23) September 9, [1965] Steeple Aston. Concerning Caroline's automobile accident; hoping to meet soon

24) [September 26, 1964] [Oxford] Giving bus directions for Oxford

26) [September 16, 1966] Steeple Aston. Mentioning a recent trip to the USA and Italy; accepting an invitation

27) [March 16, 1972] [Oxford] Concerning their recent meeting

28) Autumn 1972, Steeple Aston. Encouraging her to send The Spanish Princess to Viking for publication

30) February 1973, Steeple Aston. Congratulating her on the book

31) January 6, 1974, Steeple Aston. Thanking her for the luncheon party; mentioning her new novel

32) February 14 [1974], Steeple Aston. Congratulating her on having a publisher; suggesting that she submit some of her earlier novels; discussing her latest work

To Eddie McCrory. Concerning McCrory's poetry; mentioning a foreword she is writing for him. 14 items. Includes a photograph of Iris Murdoch

To [Jeffrey] Meyers. Steeple Aston, Oxford. Thanking him for his letter and review; mentioning another review; inviting him to write and visit with her when in London

To Andrew Mylett. July 13, 1970. Steeple Aston, Oxford. Regretting that she is unable to write the Poe review; asking if he needs a good secretary

To Mr. Norbutt. January 23, n.y. Steeple Aston, Oxford. Discussing the writer's art and what it means; advising young people to study the great books and poetry of the 19th century along with history, foreign languages and mathematics

To Charles Osborne. 2 letters

1) n.p., n.d. Inviting him to join them

2) February 16 [1969] Steeple Aston. Suggesting Chatto & Windus for a photograph of her. Includes a carbon of a letter from Osborne to Murdoch

To Timothy O'Keefe. September 28, n.y. Steeple Aston, Oxford. Concerning her reticence to write on any more political matters at the moment

To Frank Paluka. 24 items. Regarding the disposition of her manuscripts

To Derek Stanford. February 16, n.y. Oxford. Thanking him for his letter and review praising Bruno's Dream

To Mladen Turcinovic. 3 items. 1986. Two postcards thanking him for letters; one letter in which Murdoch states that she will try to have her publisher find out of print copies for Turcinovic

To Mr. Wall. Oxford. 2 letters

1) June 29, n.y. Thanking him for a copy of XX Century; regretting that she will be unable to contribute to his women's number

2) August 22, n.y. Declining an invitation to attend a conference in Rome

Series IV: Miscellaneous

Box 1

Huesal, Barbara Stevens. Patterned Aimlessness: Iris Murdoch's Novels of the 1970s & 1980s. Athens, GA: University of Georgia Press. Book jacket and press materials.

Newspaper and magazine clippings

Articles about Iris Murdoch, 1959 -- 2004.

Articles concerning Iris Murdoch's diagnosis of Alzheimer's Disease, 1997 -- 1999.

Obituaries and eulogies, 1999.

Reviews of books about Iris Murdoch, 1998 -- 2003.

Reviews of books authored by Iris Murdoch, 1962 -- 1991.

Postcard of the Tom Phillips portrait (1984 -- 1986) of Dame Iris Murdoch.

Miscellaneous.

Series V: Foreign language editions of Murdoch's works

Box 1

The Book and the Brotherhood. French. Gallimard paperback

 

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