George Bernard Shaw postcard to Daphne Harwood

Collection

Identifier: MSS 0099-F0671

Staff Only

Scope and Content Note

This collection consists of a postcard from George Bernard Shaw to Daphne Harwood along with two photographs: one of Shaw in later life and one of that shows a dark-haired younger Shaw, seated on the grass and reading a book, with Harwood seated behind him trimming Shaw's hair.

Dates

Creation: 1929 July 1

Creator

Shaw, Bernard, 1856-1950 (Person)

Language of Materials

Materials entirely in English.

Access Restrictions

The collection is open for research.

Terms Governing Use and Reproduction

Use of materials from this collection beyond the exceptions provided for in the Fair Use and Educational Use clauses of the U.S. Copyright Law may violate federal law. Permission to publish or reproduce is required from the copyright holder. Please contact Special Collections, University of Delaware Library, http://library.udel.edu/spec/askspec/

George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950)

Prominent critic and playwright, George Bernard Shaw, was born on July 26, 1856, in Dublin, Ireland.

In 1876 Shaw followed his mother and sister to London where he began his literary career by experimenting with short fiction, drama, and several novels (all rejected by publishers). The 1880s were a decade in which Shaw underwent extensive development. During this time he adopted socialism, became a vegetarian, developed as an orator and polemicist, and began seriously writing drama. He helped to found the Fabian Society, a middle-class socialist group which sought to transform English society, in 1884.

In addition to being a renowned critic and later playwright, Bernard Shaw is also remembered for the challenging prefaces he wrote to his plays and books. Prefaces, published in 1934, is a collection of a number of these works.

One of Shaw's greatest achievements was his invention of the theater of ideas, by insisting that the theater provide some moral instruction. In the process he also created a new genre, the serious farce. The serious farce consisted of using the techniques of comedy to advance serious views on humanity, society, and political systems. His plays, criticism, and political conscience all helped shape the theater of his time and after.

In 1898, during his recuperation from major illness, he married his unofficial nurse, Charlotte Payne-Townshend, an Irish heiress and friend of Beatrice and Sidney Webb. Their marriage lasted until Charlotte's death in 1943. Bernard Shaw died on November 2, 1950, at the age of 94.

"Shaw, George Bernard."The Dictionary of National Biography, 1941-1950. Edited by L. G. Wickham Legg and E. T. Williams. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1985). Pages 773-782."Bernard Shaw."Dictionary of Literary Biography. Volume 10. Written by Stanley Weintraub. Pages 129-148.