Editing Sam Selvon

{{Short description|Trinidadian writer (1923–1994)}}
{{EngvarB|date=August 2014}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2019}}
{{Infobox writer
|name = Samuel Selvon
|image = File:Sam Sevlon, 1952 (cropped).jpg
|caption = Selvon in 1952
|birth_name = Samuel Dickson Selvon
|pseudonym = Michael Wentworth; Esses; Ack-Ack; Big Buffer
|birth_place = [[San Fernando, Trinidad and Tobago|San Fernando]], [[Trinidad and Tobago]]
|birth_date = {{Birth date|1923|5|20|df=y}}
|death_date = {{Death date and age|1994|4|16|1923|5|20|df=y}}
|death_place = [[Piarco International Airport]], [[Piarco]], [[Tunapuna–Piarco]], Trinidad and Tobago
|notableworks = ''[[The Lonely Londoners]]'' (1956)
|education = [[Naparima College]]
|children=Two daughters and two sons
|spouses = Draupadi Persaud<br>Althea Daroux
}}

'''Samuel Dickson Selvon'''  (20 May 1923 – 16 April 1994)<ref name=Britannica>[http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/533759/Samuel-Selvon "Samuel Selvon"], ''Encyclopædia Britannica''.</ref> was a [[Trinidad and Tobago|Trinidad]]-born writer, who moved to London, England, in 1950.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Baynes |first=Chris |date=20 May 2018 |title=Sam Selvon: The ground-breaking author who gave voice to the Windrush generation |url=https://www.the-independent.com/arts-entertainment/books/news/sam-selvon-lonely-londoners-author-windrush-generation-google-doodle-novelist-a8360221.html |work=The Independent}}</ref> His 1956 novel ''[[The Lonely Londoners]]'' is groundbreaking in its use of creolised English, or "[[nation language]]", for narrative as well as dialogue.

==Life and work==
Samuel Dickson Selvon was born in [[San Fernando, Trinidad and Tobago|San Fernando]] in the south of Trinidad, the sixth of seven children.<ref name=ODNB>Ramchand, Kenneth, [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/printable/69606 "Selvon, Samuel Dickson (1923–1994)"], ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, 2004; online edition, October 2006. Accessed 19 November 2014.</ref>  His father was a first-generation [[Christians|Christian]] [[Tamils|Tamil]] [[Indo-Trinidadian|Indian]] immigrant from [[Madras]] and his mother was a [[Christians|Christian]] [[Anglo-Indian]]. His maternal grandfather was [[Scottish people|Scottish]] and his maternal grandmother was [[Indian people|Indian]].<ref>James, Louis, [https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/obituary-sam-selvon-1371231.html "Obituary: Sam Selvon"], ''The Independent'', 20 April 1994.</ref> 

Selvon was educated at [[Naparima College]], San Fernando, before leaving at the age of 15 to work. He was a wireless operator with the local branch of the [[Royal Naval Reserve]] from 1940 to 1945 during the [[Second World War]]. Thereafter, he moved north to [[Port of Spain]], and from 1945 to 1950, worked for the ''[[Trinidad Guardian]]'' as a reporter and for a time on its literary page. In this period, he began writing stories and descriptive pieces, mostly under a variety of pseudonyms, including Michael Wentworth, Esses, Ack-Ack, and Big Buffer.<ref>[http://www.peepaltreepress.com/author_display.asp?au_id=84 Author profile] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090201113018/http://www.peepaltreepress.com/author_display.asp?au_id=84 |date=1 February 2009 }} at Peepal Tree Press.</ref> Much of this early writing is to be found in ''Foreday Morning'' (eds [[Kenneth Ramchand]] and [[Susheila Nasta]], 1989).

In 1950, Selvon moved to [[London]], England,<ref>{{cite web |last1=Schwarz |first1=Bill |authorlink=Bill Schwarz|title=Samuel Selvon: 'The Lonely Londoners' - 1956 |url=https://www.londonfictions.com/samuel-selvon-the-lonely-londoners.html |website=London Fictions |date=2013|access-date=3 March 2020}}</ref> where he took menial jobs, eventually working as a clerk for the Indian Embassy, while writing in his spare time.<ref name=Britannica /> His short stories and poetry appeared in various publications, including the ''[[London Magazine]]'', ''[[New Statesman]]'', and ''The Nation''. In London, he also worked with the [[BBC]], producing two television scripts, ''Anansi the Spiderman'', and ''Home Sweet India''.<ref>[http://caribbean.halloffame.tripod.com/Samuel_Selvon.html "Samuel Selvon"], Caribbean Hall of Fame.</ref>

Selvon was a fellow in creative writing at the [[University of Dundee]] from 1975 until 1977.<ref name="Dundee">{{cite web|title=RU 258/7/4 Department of English. Creative Writing, publicity material|url=http://arccat.dundee.ac.uk/dserve.exe?&dsqIni=Dserve.ini&dsqApp=Archive&dsqCmd=show.tcl&dsqDb=Catalog&dsqPos=0&dsqSearch=((text)=%27selvon%27)|website=Archive Services Online Catalogue|publisher=University of Dundee|access-date=30 October 2016}}</ref> In the late 1970s, he moved to [[Alberta]], [[Canada]], and found a job teaching creative writing as a visiting professor at the [[University of Victoria]]. When that job ended, he took a job as a janitor at the [[University of Calgary]] in Alberta for a few months before becoming writer-in-residence there. He was largely ignored by the Canadian literary establishment, with his works receiving no reviews during his residency.

On a return trip to Trinidad, Selvon died of [[respiratory failure]] due to extensive [[bronchopneumonia]] and chronic [[lung disease]] on 16 April 1994 at [[Piarco International Airport]]; his ashes were subsequently interred at the [[University of the West Indies]] cemetery, [[St Augustine, Trinidad]].<ref name=ODNB />

Selvon married twice: in 1947 to Draupadi Persaud, with whom he had one daughter, and in 1963 to Althea Daroux, with whom he had two sons and a daughter.

==Writing==
Selvon is best known for his novels ''[[The Lonely Londoners]]'' (1956) and ''Moses Ascending'' (1975). His novel ''A Brighter Sun'' (1952), detailing the construction of the [[Churchill-Roosevelt Highway]] in Trinidad through the eyes of young Indian worker Tiger, was a popular choice on the [[CXC]] [[English Literature]] [[syllabus]] for many years. Other notable works include the collection of stories ''Ways of Sunlight'' (1957), ''Turn Again Tiger'' (1958) and ''Those Who Eat the Cascadura'' (1972). During the 1960s and 1970s, Selvon converted several of his novels and stories into radio scripts, broadcast by the [[BBC]], which were collected in ''Eldorado West One'' ([[Peepal Tree Press]], 1988) and ''Highway in the Sun'' (Peepal Tree Press, 1991).

''The Lonely Londoners'', like most of Selvon's later work, focuses on the migration of West Indians to Britain in the 1950s and 1960s, and tells, mostly in anecdotal form, the daily experience of settlers from Africa and the Caribbean. Selvon also illustrates the panoply of different subcultures that exist within London, as with any major city, due to class and racial boundaries. In many ways, his books are the precursors to works such as ''[[White Teeth]]'' (2000) by [[Zadie Smith]] and ''[[The Buddha of Suburbia (novel)|The Buddha of Suburbia]]'' (1990) by [[Hanif Kureishi]].<ref name="The British Library 2016">{{cite web | title=The Lonely Londoners by Samuel Selvon | publisher=The British Library | date=25 April 2016 | url=https://www.bl.uk/collection-items/the-lonely-londoners-by-samuel-selvon | access-date=20 May 2018}}</ref> Selvon explained: 
<blockquote>"When I wrote the novel that became ''The Lonely Londoners'', I tried to recapture a certain quality in West Indian everyday life. I had in store a number of wonderful anecdotes and could put them into focus, but I had difficulty starting the novel in straight English. The people I wanted to describe were entertaining people indeed, but I could not really move. At that stage, I had written the narrative in English and most of the dialogues in dialect. Then I started both narrative and dialogue in dialect and the novel just shot along."<ref>Fabre, Michel, "Samuel Selvon: Interviews and Conversations", in Susheila Nasta (ed.), ''Critical Perspectives on Sam Selvon'', Washington: Three Continents Press, 1988; p. 66.</ref></blockquote>In the late 1980s, Selvon wrote personal essays reflecting on his West Indian identity. These include "Three into one can't go – East Indian, Trinidadian or West Indian?" (1986), in which Selvon reflects on the complexities of being of East Indian heritage, born and raised in Trinidad, and of West Indian identity.<ref>{{Cite journal |date=1986-09-01 |title=Three into one can't go – East Indian, Trinidadian or West Indian? Samuel Selvon Discusses the question of an East Indian identity |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/02690058608574127 |access-date=2024-12-16 |journal=Wasafiri |volume=3 |issue=5 |pages=8–11 |language=EN |doi=10.1080/02690058608574127|url-access=subscription }}</ref> He also wrote "Finding West Indian Identity in London" (1987), in which he reflects on developing a West Indian consciousness after immigrating to London in 1950.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Selvon |first=Sam |date=1987 |title=Finding West Indian Identity in London |url=https://ro.uow.edu.au/articles/journal_contribution/Finding_West_Indian_Identity_in_London/27675486?file=50404932 |journal=Kunapipi |language=en |volume=9 |issue=3 |pages=34–38}}</ref>

Selvon's papers are now at the [[Harry Ransom Center|Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center]] at the [[University of Texas, Austin]], USA. These consist of [[holograph|holograph manuscripts]], typescripts, book proofs, manuscript notebooks, and correspondence. Drafts for six of his 11 novels are present, along with supporting correspondence and items relating to his career.<ref>[http://research.hrc.utexas.edu:8080/hrcxtf/view?docId=ead/00119.xml "Samuel Selvon]: An Inventory of His Papers at the Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center".</ref>

==Awards and legacy==
Selvon was awarded two [[Guggenheim Fellowships]] (in 1955 and 1968),<ref name=NALIS>[http://www.nalis.gov.tt/Research/SubjectGuide/Biographies/BiographiesSZ/tabid/292/Default.aspx?PageContentID=1145 "Sam Selvon"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141113063015/http://www.nalis.gov.tt/Research/SubjectGuide/Biographies/BiographiesSZ/tabid/292/Default.aspx?PageContentID=1145 |date=13 November 2014 }}, Trinidad and Tobago National Library and Information Service (NALIS).</ref> an honorary doctorate from [[Warwick University]] in 1989, and in 1985 the honorary degree of DLitt by the University of the West Indies.<ref name=ODNB /> In 1969 he was awarded the Trinidad & Tobago [[Hummingbird Medal|Hummingbird Medal Gold]] for Literature, and in 1994 he was (posthumously) given another national award, the [[Chaconia Medal|Chaconia Medal Gold]] for Literature.<ref name=NALIS /> In 2012 he was honoured with a [[NALIS]] Lifetime Achievement Literary Award for his contributions to Trinidad and Tobago's literature.<ref name=NALIS />

On what would have been his 95th birthday, 20 May 2018, Selvon was honoured with a [[Google Doodle]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Sam Selvon's 95th Birthday |url=https://doodles.google/doodle/sam-selvons-95th-birthday/ |website=Google |date=20 May 2018}}</ref>

==Bibliography==
*''A Brighter Sun'' (1952)
*''A Meap Story'' (1954)
*''An Island is a World'' (1955)
*''[[The Lonely Londoners]]'' (1956)
*''Ways of Sunlight'', short stories (1957)
*''Turn Again Tiger'' (1959)
*''I Hear Thunder'' (1963)
*''The Housing Lark'' (1965)
*''The Plains of Caroni'' (1970)
*''Those Who Eat the Cascadura'' (1972)
*''Moses Ascending'' (1975)
*''Moses Migrating'' (1983)
*''Foreday Morning'' (1989)
*''Eldorado West One'', collected one-act plays (1989)
*''Highway in the Sun and Other Plays'' (1991)

==Filmography (as writer)==
*''[[Pressure (1976 film)|Pressure]]'' (1976), co-written with [[Horace Ové]]

==Further reading==
Critical works on Selvon include:
*[[Susheila Nasta]] (ed.), ''Critical Perspectives on Sam Selvon'', Washington: [[Three Continents Press]], 1988.
*Clement Wyck, ''Sam Selvon's dialectal style and fictional strategy'' (1991).
*Margaret Paul Joseph, "Caliban in Exile: The Outsider in Caribbean Fiction", Greenwood Press, 1992.
*[[Austin Clarke (novelist)|Austin Clarke]], ''Passage Back Home: a personal reminiscence of Samuel Selvon'', Toronto: Exile Editions, 1994.
*Mark S. Looker, ''Atlantic Passages: History, community, and language in the fiction of Sam Selvon'', New York: Peter Lang, 1996.
*Roydon Salick, ''The Novels of Samuel Selvon'', Greenwood Press, 2001.
*[[Curdella Forbes]], ''From Nation to Diaspora: Sam Selvon, [[George Lamming]] and the Cultural Performance of Gender'', Mona, Jamaica: [[University of the West Indies Press]], 2005.

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==Other sources==
*{{cite book | last=Selvon | first=Sam | authorlink=Sam Selvon | title=Moses Ascending | location=London | publisher=Heinemann | page=i |isbn=978-0435989521 | year=1984}}

==External links==
{{wikiquote}}
* {{Screenonline title|id=480497|title=Pressure}}
* [[Bill Schwarz]], [http://www.londonfictions.com/samuel-selvon-the-lonely-londoners.html "Samuel Selvon: 'The Lonely Londoners' - 1956"], London Fictions.

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Selvon, Sam}}
[[Category:1923 births]]
[[Category:1994 deaths]]
[[Category:20th-century journalists]]
[[Category:20th-century Trinidad and Tobago male writers]]
[[Category:20th-century novelists]]
[[Category:British people of Indo-Trinidadian descent]]
[[Category:International Writing Program alumni]]
[[Category:People associated with the University of Dundee]]
[[Category:People from San Fernando, Trinidad and Tobago]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Chaconia Medal]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Hummingbird Medal]]
[[Category:Royal Naval Reserve personnel]]
[[Category:Trinidad and Tobago emigrants to the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Trinidad and Tobago journalists]]
[[Category:Trinidad and Tobago novelists]]
[[Category:Trinidad and Tobago people of Indian descent]]
[[Category:People educated at Naparima College]]