Series 6 - Research notes and information files

0.22 m of textual records

This series consists of material, in the form of index cards and files that Dr. Bissell drew on primarily for his writings, lectures and addresses. A run of cards (boxes 010 and 011) forms the first part of this series and is closely related to the material in Series 5. The files, which contain notes, interviews, briefs, reports and addresses by academics, range more widely in scope and time (from the late 1930s to 1976).

The index cards cover Canadian, American, Australian and English literature, with some cards on Canadian political and cultural issues, filed alphabetically by subject and person, intermixed. They contain bibliographic references only (no lecture notes) and are related to
files of notes with similar headings found later in the series. Most of the index cards appear to have been compiled after Dr. Bissell began teaching at the U of T again in 1946. Some, especially those on Samuel Butler, the subject both of his masters and doctoral theses, are largely from the 1930s.

Subjects already introduced, such as Canadian literature, politics, and society, the novel, and Victorian England, have extensive bibliographic entries, as do new subjects, such as 20th century English literature, and satire. Some writers, especially Auguste Comte, George Eliot, Henry James, George Henry Lewes, and George Bernard Shaw, have extensive bibliographic references. A host of new names appear here, including Joseph Conrad, Robert Frost, Morley Callaghan, George Meredith and Herbert Spencer.

The first files in this series are devoted to Canadian subjects – cultural problems, political issues and Canadian studies in American universities and are concentrated in the years 1960-1975. The files on Canadian literature all date from the post-1950 period. There is a file of notes for the years 1960-1976 but most of the files are devoted to individuals, the principal ones being Morley Callaghan, Sara Jeanette Duncan, Frederick Philip Grove, T. C. Haliburton, Archibald Lampman, Hugh MacLeannan. They contain notes, drafts of articles, bibliographies and the occasionl letter. The remaining files, on English and American literature, consist mostly of notes that he compiled in the 1930s and are filed by topic. They are closely related to the index cards in Series 5.

• B2003-0017/010: Index cards, American history – Drama, [193-] – [195-]
• B2003-0017/011: Index cards, George Eliot – Virginia Woolf [193-] – [195-]
• B2003-0017/007(06)- (10): Canada. Cultural problems – USA. Canadian studies in American universities, 1960-1974
• B2003-0017/012(01)-(18): Canadian literature – American literature, [193-] – 1978

Oversized material has been removed from /012(02) and (08) to .(03).

• B2003-0017.(03) : Oversized, [196-] - 1972

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