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Aldon Nielsen papers

 Collection
Identifier: MS2399

Scope and Contents

This collection contains early writings; book chapters; drafts; notes; unpublished papers/essays; numerous folders of poetry; author's proofs or editing copies; copies or portions of papers written by Aldon Nielsen and presented during conferences or other lectures; copies of "Lower Limit Speech" and "Upper Limit Music" (a poetry newsletter edited by Aldon Nielsen); printed reviews and advertisements used to promote Aldon Nielsen's works; letters, cards, copies of emails, and other forms of correspondence mostly related to Aldon Nielsen's professional life; a program; a photograph; cover art; and websites. The materials date from 1969-2021, with the bulk of the materials from 1980-2005. This collection documents many aspects of Aldon Nielsen's professional writing career, as a poet, author of works about other poets and literary movements, and as a literary critic.

Dates

  • Creation: 1969-2021
  • Creation: Majority of material found within 1980-2005

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

This collection is open for research. Some material containing personal information has been restricted until the death of the donor. Please contact Special Collections for more information.

Conditions Governing Use

To the extent that he/she owns copyright, the donor has licensed his/her materials to be used according to the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Non-Commercial ShareAlike 4.0 license. Copyright in other items in this collection may be held by their respective creators. For activities that the researcher determines fall under fair use as defined under U. S. Copyright Law, no permission to cite or publish is required. For re-use of materials in the collection not created by the donor, researchers are responsible for determining who may hold materials' copyrights, determining if the intended re-use falls under fair use, and obtaining approval from the copyright holder if the intended use does not fall under fair use. Researchers do not need anything further from The George Washington University Special Collections Research Center. Please contact Special Collections if the copyright status of the materials you wish to reuse is unclear. Staff will provide additional information.

Biographical / Historical

Aldon Nielsen is a poet, author, literary critic, and currently the George and Barbara Kelly Professor of American Literature at The Pennsylvania State University. He has degrees from the Federal City College (which became part of the University of the District of Columbia) and from the George Washington University. He previously taught at GWU (1982-1986), Howard University, San Jose State University, the University of California, Los Angeles and Loyola Marymount University. Nielsen is the author of numerous publications including scholarly publications as well as edited collections and books of poetry. His areas of specialization include African American Literature and Language, Modernist Studies, Contemporary Literature, and Race and Ethnicity Studies, and Theory and Cultural Studies.

Nielsen was born in 1950 in Grand Island, Nebraska, and raised in Washington, DC.

Extent

10 Linear Feet

Language of Materials

English

Abstract

Aldon Nielsen is a poet, author, literary critic, and currently the George and Barbara Kelly Professor of American Literature at The Pennsylvania State University. He has degrees from the Federal City College (which became part of the University of the District of Columbia) and from the George Washington University. He previously taught at GWU (1982-1986), Howard University, San Jose State University, the University of California, Los Angeles and Loyola Marymount University. Nielsen is the author of numerous publications including scholarly publications as well as edited collections and books of poetry. His areas of specialization include African American Literature and Language, Modernist Studies, Contemporary Literature, and Race and Ethnicity Studies, and Theory and Cultural Studies. Nielsen was born in 1950 in Grand Island, Nebraska, and raised in Washington, DC.

This collection contains early writings; book chapters; drafts; notes; unpublished papers/essays; numerous folders of poetry; author's proofs or editing copies; copies or portions of papers written by Aldon Nielsen and presented during conferences or other lectures; copies of "Lower Limit Speech" and "Upper Limit Music" (a poetry newsletter edited by Aldon Nielsen); printed reviews and advertisements used to promote Aldon Nielsen's works; letters, cards, copies of emails, and other forms of correspondence mostly related to Aldon Nielsen's professional life; a program; a photograph; cover art; and websites. The materials date from 1969-2021, with the bulk of the materials from 1980-2005. This collection documents many aspects of Aldon Nielsen's professional writing career, as a poet, author of works about other poets and literary movements, and as a literary critic.

Arrangement

Contains 4 series and 4 additional subseries.

Physical Location

Materials are stored off-site, and will require additional retrieval time. Please contact the Special Collections Research Center for more information.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Gift of Aldon Lynn Nielsen, 2022 March 14 (Accession 2022.009)

Related Materials

A number of Aldon Nielsen's published works are available in the Gelman Library Circulating collection, as well as in the Special Collections book collection.

Special Collections also holds a number of Washington, DC poets' collections who are Nielsen's contemporaries and/or collaborators, such as the E. Ethelbert Miller papers (MS2215).

Title
Guide to the Aldon Nielsen papers, 1969-2021
Status
Completed
Author
Special Collections Research Center, The George Washington University
Date
2023
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin

Repository Details

Part of the Special Collections Research Center, The George Washington University Repository

Contact:
George Washington University Gelman Library
2130 H Street NW
Washington DC 20052 United States of America