Australian Scholarly Editions Centre Projects (ASEC)

Sydney Literary Societies of the 1920s

Dr Lesley Heath

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In cultural and literary histories of Australia which deal with the self-conscious construction of a national literature, the 1920s and early 1930s is a period which is comparatively undisturbed by critical and historical research. Generally speaking, it has been sandwiched between accounts of two periods of radicalism which have received much more attention: the heady days of 1890s radical nationalism associated with the Bulletin writers and A.G. Stephens, and the radicalism of the anti-fascist writers of the late 1930s. Apart from relatively recent work on women writers of the period, the notable exceptions of 1920s research also celebrate unorthodoxy in that they centre on Norman Lindsay and his Vision poets and Sydney's Bohemia. The concentration on these areas leads to the view that radicalism in Australia has been the motivating force which accomplished the recognition of Australian literature. This view is confirmed by descriptions of the 1920s as 'a period of comparative cultural stagnation É[when there] was little encouragement for literary activity of any kind within Australia'; and that the quarter of a century to 1935 was possibly 'the saddest phase of Australian culture', that there was no authoritative 'centre' presiding over intellectual and cultural thought as had been provided in the 1890s by the Bulletin, and that in the 1920s and 1930s writers gave way to 'an uneasy, over-the-shoulder squinting towards England.'

In Sydney, in the 1920s, six literary societies were established all of which had some kind of commitment to Australian literature. The new societies were distinctive from the earlier, informal male-oriented literary societies such as the Dawn and Dusk Club and the Casuals Club which have attracted some attention, mainly in relation to their Bohemian qualities. Unlike the Dawn and Dusk and the Casuals, the new societies were constitutionally established, charged membership fees, held regular meetings, and included women. The women writers, in fact, formed a society of their own and were routinely elected as office-bearers in the other societies. In their memberships, these societies also had in common a loose network of educated, middle-class writers and influential cultural nationalists who fostered and disseminated the notion of an Australian literature to a wide section of society. Many of these writers had been published in the Bulletin's heyday of radicalism.

Within these literary societies there is a strong presence of figures associated with the University of Sydney; this is of considerable interest because the university of this period has been criticised for its perceived indifference, hostility, or disdain towards Australian literature. During the 1920s and early 1930s, these literary societies spearheaded the push for the recognition of Australian literature, and the support they attracted and their successes were due in large part to the prestige which attached to the university connection and to the network of influence which members of its community could tap.

The activities of these cultural nationalists within the various literary societies dissolve the stark ideological boundaries within the Sydney literary community which have been historiographically constructed: that is to say that writers who are identified usually with the Bulletin, with Vision, or with the radicalism of the later 1930s intermingle and interact with the cultural nationalists in a battle to gain the interest and support of a public largely uninterested in prescribed literature of any kind-Australian or English.

The literary societies established in the 1920s were the Australian English Association, the Society of Women Writers, the Junior Literary Society, the Sydney University Literary Society, the Henry Lawson Literary Society, and the Fellowship of Australian Writers.

The Australian English Association, established in 1923, was the first of these societies to be established and although its primary purpose was the study of English literature, the encouragement of Australian literature formed part of its program. Teachers from the high schools of New South Wales, particularly those from the private schools, made up the bulk of membership. Australian literature was made eminently respectable by being associated with the University of Sydney where the Australian English Association had its headquarters, and its principal office bearers were English Language and Literature academics from the university. The Australian English Association holds the key to the middle class culturalist activity which provided the impetus for the work of these societies. It is contained in the association's direct link to Matthew Arnold, the architect of the grand design of elevating and unifying a nation through its literature. There are enough references throughout the societies to support the notion that Arnold's ideas were not confined to the institutions of the establishment, but were deeply embedded in a broad section of the educated population. The notion of a flourishing national literature as some sort of benchmark of national well-being combined happily with the personal aspirations of individual writers who lent their efforts to the cause of Australian literature.

The Society of Women Writers was established in 1925 and very quickly had a membership of some sixty writers and journalists from the spectrum of the middle class, many of whom were relatively well educated, and most of whom had influential connections through family, marriage and/or social networks. The Sydney society had in its foundation membership a group of older women writers who had been influential in the nineteenth century and early twentieth century women's movement when the study of literature had been integrated with social reform. Many of the older women had combined creative writing with their journalistic work, the bulk of the journalistic work being in the form of paid 'contributions' rather than permanent employment. In the early years, the influence of the older women guided the society which provided a focus for other reformist societies to enlist support, but the growing number of the younger members in full-time journalism influenced the nature of the society's activities. With less free time for good works due to professional commitments, the society developed into a weekly luncheon club which entertained overseas and Australian writers. The records of the Society of Women Writers demonstrates that the idea of working for the national literature was a rather novel concept in its foundation years and one not of immediate relevance to the majority of members: this fact alone is significant in explaining the lack of interest in the wider community-if the notion of a national literature did not seem of instant appeal to the writers themselves, why would one expect the wider community to be interested? It was due to the efforts of the small minority of cultural nationalists who were members of this and other societies that the notion became commonplace, so that by the end of 1934 the notion of an Australian literature was one which the members regarded with comfort.

The Junior Literary Society, also established in 1925, was for young writers between the ages of 16 and 23, many of whom aspired to careers in journalism and all of whom had embarked early on their literary endeavours writing for the children's columns of newspapers. This membership was of great interest to the cultural nationalists in their role as potential journalists editors, and copywriters for advertising. The society's weekly meetings were held in Sydney but it was a state-wide network which encouraged membership from country writers who could visit the clubrooms when in Sydney, correspond with other members, and receive the society's publications. The cultural nationalists were involved here as patrons, speakers, and judges of competitions. Many of the activities replicated those taught in the upper levels of selective high schools-the Monthly Manuscript mirrored the school magazines which the more sophisticated schools encouraged their students to produce, and criticism of the creative work written for these manuscripts was an important activity. Excursions, debating, poetry speaking, playmaking, paper-giving, and lectures from visiting writers and other guests were all features of the society's program. Only a tiny minority of the membership were students at the university or Teachers' College and the cultural nationalists found fertile ground for the notion of contributing to a national literature in these young and rather earnest members of the junior literary community. As a group, these young writers were extremely receptive to the precepts and models urged by their distinguished mentors. This society underwent a factional split which produced the Free-Lance Club and both societies provided a ready-made core of young literary enthusiasts which the later-established Fellowship of Australian Writers approached for recruitment to its own membership.

The Sydney University Literary Society was established in 1928 and was directed to a more elite section of Sydney's youth. Although two hundred scholarships to the University of Sydney were awarded annually by the State, these were not means-tested and the undergraduate body was still representative overwhelmingly of the spectrum of middle and upper class society. These students would be the future academics, professionals, and teachers and were important to Australian literature for their role as the future proselytisers, writers, researchers and book-buyers. The Sydney University Literary Society began with John Le Gay Brereton as its President and in the early years, when the society was under his influence, Australian literature was the core concern of the society. One of the primary aims was to improve the literary output of members through the advice, encouragement and criticism of their elders and peers. The young writers were encouraged and imbued with the idea that they were contributing to the national literature, and guests included Australian writers from the network of cultural activists. University magazines and journals were used to promote Australian literature: the work of Australian poets was published as were reviews of Australian books; advertisements appeared urging the purchase of Australian books for Christmas giving. Australian literature was introduced into the Arts English course and topics chosen for English prize essays became slanted towards Australian literary history and criticism. As the broader community became more politicised leading up to and during the Depression, so too did this society, and the influence of John Le Gay Brereton was supplanted by that of John Anderson, resulting in the focus on the national literature being supplanted by a focus on European and American literature. Likewise, Brereton's successor in the chair of English Literature had little interest in Australian literature and abandoned Brereton's interventions on its behalf.

The Henry Lawson Literary Society, established in 1928, attempted to tap into the labour movement and working class politics on behalf of Australian literature. Its membership was dominated by teachers from the public school system through the involvement of the Teachers' Federation. The study of this society is important because it shows the dearth of interest in Australian literature in the general community and the significance of the work of the middle class activists. Although the labour movement and the Labor Party later appropriated Henry Lawson as a symbol for its own nationalist rhetoric, in truth very few 'workers' were interested in the Henry Lawson Literary Society. The Henry Lawson Literary Society demonstrates the fate of true political radicalism-in the initial stages, supporters deserted in droves over the actions of their one political revolutionary, to the despair of the few working class activists who welcomed the involvement of the influential middle class network. Of more influence was the Henry Lawson Memorial Fund, whose committee included representation of the network of influential cultural activists. The Henry Lawson Memorial Fund was responsible for constructing Henry Lawson as national poet, packaging him as the 'representative' of Australian Literature, erecting a memorial to him, and having his and other Australian work included in the School Magazine. Lawson's books which had been slow sellers after the initial interest late in the nineteenth century were reprinted and introduced into school libraries as prizes awarded to schools for fundraising for the Lawson Memorial. The Fund appointed office bearers of the Teachers' Federation to its own committee in a successful bid to gain support and these went on to become office-bearers in the Henry Lawson Literary Society to which they gave Teachers' Federation support. The success of the Fund contrasts with the lack of success of the literary society, the Fund having greater access to influential members of government and the broader community through its network.

The Fellowship of Australian Writers was established in 1928 and drew together representatives from all of the previously formed societies. Its membership was made up of writers, journalists and supporters of Australian writing, many of whom were part of the network of influence and therefore members of one or more of the other societies. Its leadership in the foundation years issued from the ranks of the cultural nationalist network whose members were recognised by contemporaries as promoters of Australian literature and individuals of influence. In these early years, lectures were given on Australian literature at the monthly meetings; the press reported the society's activities; various campaigns were initiated relating to the promotion of Australian writers and their work; deceased writers were commemorated; government was lobbied to secure pensions for indigent Australian writers. Interaction between writers, journalists and academics was negotiated in relative harmony in the early years, although factionalism was evident from the start. As the Depression exacerbated financial stress and political strife throughout the wider community, though, the Fellowship's reasonably cohesive fabric was also affected, but the turbulence created within the Fellowship stemmed more from a clash of personalities and generations than from political ideology. The Masefield luncheon at the end of 1934 marks the close of a period of relative consensus within the literary community generally when many of its representatives worked on behalf of the national literature; the luncheon also marks the end of a shorter period of relative consensus within the Fellowship specifically. The Old Guard of literary nationalism in which the university had been influential was overturned and a New Guard led by journalists and popular writers took over, though briefly. Tom Inglis Moore and Flora Eldershaw, Mackaness' successors, were both former pupils of Brereton. As a consequence of the 1934 Masefield controversy, much of the work of the earlier office-bearers and supporters-particularly the work of George Mackaness, the president deposed after the Masefield luncheon-was credited subsequently to others, giving rise to the idea that nothing much had happened before the Fellowship's 'palace revolution'.

In 1931, Dorothea Mackellar and Ruth Bedford established the Sydney branch of the London-based international literary society, PEN-an acronym for Poets, Essayists, Novelists. To recruit members, they wrote letters of invitation to eligible writers within the Sydney literary community. One of these was A.G. Stephens, who replied:

Dear Miss Mackellar

Unluckily I differ from your opinion.

I believe that the number of existing literary societies in Sydney is ample to defend and to extend the interest of NSW authors, and that the present time is inopportune to add to the number. There are, for example, the Australian English Association, the English-Speaking Union, the FAW [Fellowship of Australian Writers], the [Henry] Lawson Literary Society. These may co-operate in the journalistic field with the Institute of Journalists, the Journalists' Association, the Women Writers' Club [Society of Women Writers], the Press Club; and internationally with the Authors' Society in London and in New York-long established with eminent authority to deal with copyright and publication.

I cannot help feeling that it is unwise to risk frittering energy in what I understand from your description will be a new organisation with literary aims. The present need of Sydney literary societies is union-not further division. The fact that a considerable number of P.E.N. members whose names appear on your roll are already members (several in official positions) of one or more of these societies may be taken as evidence that it is now emphatically necessary to concentrate and not scatter exertions on behalf of Australian Literature in our narrow domain of authorship.

But that I am grateful for your kind invitation pray believe me,

PEN MEMBERS 1931
J.M.H. Abbott, Prof. L.H. Allen, Ethel Anderson, Marjorie Barnard, Flinders Barr, Ruth Bedford, C.E.W. Bean, E.J. Brady, Prof. le Gay Brereton, A.H. Chisholm, Zora Cross, John Dalley, Miss Eldershaw, Dr. Firth, C. Brunsdon Fletcher, H.M. Green, Nora Kelly, Amy Mack, G. Mackaness, Wm. Moore, Dorothea Mackellar, Elliott Napier, Shaw Neilson, Marjorie Quinn, Steele Rudd, Professor Sadler, Kenneth Slessor, Ethel Turner, Paul Wenz, Dora Wilcox.1

The significance of Stephens' letter lies in the fact that it serves to reinforce a key element of this paper. The list of PEN members which Stephens appended to his letter includes the names of many members of the network identified as activists on behalf of Australian literature. Stephens' references to the overlapping of membership and to 'several' people holding office in more than one society are valuable as they demonstrate that the loose network of cultural nationalists was known as such to contemporaries. Although almost all of those named in Stephens' letter were involved in more than one society, some were more active than others but all could be depended on for support. The notable omission from Stephens' list is Mary Gilmore, but this must have been an oversight as PEN's current information leaflet names Mary Gilmore as a foundation member. 2 Of those named by Stephens, John Le Gay Brereton, Marjorie Barnard, Ruth Bedford, Zora Cross, Flora Eldershaw, H.M. Green, Nora Kelly, George Mackaness, William Moore, Dorothea Mackellar, Marjorie Quinn, Steele Rudd, Ethel Turner, and Dora Wilcox were all actively involved as was Mary Gilmore; while Ethel Anderson, Brunsdon Fletcher, Amy Mack, Elliott Napier, and Kenneth Slessor provided support to varying degrees. All were writers and the majority had been published in book form.

To see these societies as established primarily to 'extend and protect the interest of NSW authors' is to miss the point, as did Stephens' conclusion that, because 'a considerable number of P.E.N. members É are already members (several in official positions) of one or more of these societies', this was evidence that it was 'now emphatically necessary to concentrate and not scatter exertions on behalf of Australian Literature.'

While the creation of a national literature requires encouragement and opportunities for the nation's writers, it also requires an audience and readership which will make publishing a profitable enterprise. Through the public and private schools of the state, through letters to editors urging readers to buy Australian books, through writing competitions for adults and children, through the university and Workers Educational Association lectures, through radio talks and the publication of textbooks for use in the schools, the seeds to cultivate an audience for Australian literature were dispersed through these societies each of which targeted a separate audience.

NOTES

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1. Carbon copy of letter A.G. Stephens to Dorothea Mackellar [not dated but in reply to Dorothea Mackellar's letter of 3 August, 1931.], Constance Robertson Papers, ML MSS 1105/1. return
2. Pamphlet, PEN Sydney Centre. This leaflet was available at the Sydney Writers' Centre, Rozelle, at the presentation of the 1995 Premier's Award for Literature. return

Dr Lesley Heath
1002/7 Rockwall Crescent,
Potts Point, NSW 2011
email: L.Heath@unsw.edu.au

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Last Updated : 29 September 1998