Julian Randolph Stow (28 November 1935 – 29 May 2010) was an Australian-born writer, novelist and poet.

Early life

Born in

Geraldton Geraldton ( Wajarri: ''Jambinu'', Wilunyu: ''Jambinbirri'') is a coastal city in the Mid West region of the Australian state of Western Australia, north of the state capital, Perth. At June 2018, Geraldton had an urban population of 37,648. ...

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

, Randolph Stow was the son of Mary Campbell Stow née Sewell and Cedric Ernest Stow, a lawyer. Stow attended Geraldton Primary and High schools,

Guildford Grammar School Guildford Grammar School, informally known as Guildford Grammar, Guildford or GGS, is an independent Anglican coeducational primary and secondary day and boarding school, located in Guildford, a suburb of Perth, Western Australia. Initial ...

, the

University of Western Australia The University of Western Australia (UWA) is a public research university in the Australian state of Western Australia. The university's main campus is in Perth, the state capital, with a secondary campus in Albany and various other facilitie ...

, and the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one of the country's ...

. During his undergraduate years in Western Australia he wrote two novels and a collection of poetry, which were published in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

by Macdonald & Co. He taught English literature at the

University of Adelaide The University of Adelaide (informally Adelaide University) is a public research university located in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third-oldest university in Australia. The university's main campus is located on N ...

, the University of Western Australia and the

University of Leeds , mottoeng = And knowledge will be increased , established = 1831 – Leeds School of Medicine1874 – Yorkshire College of Science1884 - Yorkshire College1887 – affiliated to the federal Victoria University1904 – University of Leeds , ...

Career

He also worked on an Aboriginal mission in the Kimberley, which he used as background for his third novel ''To the Islands''. Stow further worked as an assistant to an anthropologist, Charles Julius, and cadet patrol officer in the Trobriand Islands. In the Trobriands he suffered a mental and physical breakdown that led to his repatriation to Australia. Twenty years later, he used these last experiences in his novel ''Visitants''. Stow first visited England in 1960 and lived there for a few years, although he returned several times to Australia. ''Tourmaline'', his fourth novel, was completed in 1962 while he taught in

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by popula ...

. In 1964 and 1965 he travelled in North America on a

Harkness Fellowship The Harkness Fellowship (previously known as the Commonwealth Fund Fellowship) is a program run by the Commonwealth Fund of New York City. This fellowship was established to reciprocate the Rhodes Scholarships and enable Fellows from several cou ...

, including a sojourn in

Aztec, New Mexico Aztec ( nv, Kinteel) is a city in, and the county seat of, San Juan County, New Mexico, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 6,763. The Aztec Ruins National Monument is located on the north side of the city. Geogra ...

, during which he wrote one of his best known novels, ''The Merry-Go-Round in the Sea''. While living in Perth (WA) in 1966 he wrote his popular children's book ''Midnite''. From 1969 to 1981 he lived at

East Bergholt East Bergholt is a village in the Babergh District of Suffolk, England, just north of the Essex border. The nearest town and railway station is Manningtree, Essex. East Bergholt is north of Colchester and south of Ipswich. Schools include Ea ...

in Suffolk in England, his ancestral county, and he used traditional tales from that area to inform his novel ''The Girl Green as Elderflower''. The last decades of his life he spent in nearby Harwich, the setting for his final novel ''The Suburbs of Hell''. He last visited Australia in 1974. Stow died in England on 29 May 2010 of a

pulmonary embolism Pulmonary embolism (PE) is a blockage of an artery in the lungs by a substance that has moved from elsewhere in the body through the bloodstream ( embolism). Symptoms of a PE may include shortness of breath, chest pain particularly upon breathin ...

, having been diagnosed with liver cancer.

''The Girl Green as Elderflower'' (1980)

''The Girl Green as Elderflower'' is often considered to be closely linked to Stow's life. After dealing with a bout of

malaria Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects humans and other animals. Malaria causes symptoms that typically include fever, tiredness, vomiting, and headaches. In severe cases, it can cause jaundice, seizures, coma, or death. S ...

Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...

, he moved to

in Suffolk in England from 1969 to 1981, his ancestral county, and he used traditional tales from that area, many of which he translated from Latin himself, to inform his novel. The regional stories Stow used for the novel were collected by

William of Newburgh William of Newburgh or Newbury ( la, Guilelmus Neubrigensis, ''Wilhelmus Neubrigensis'', or ''Willelmus de Novoburgo''. 1136 – 1198), also known as William Parvus, was a 12th-century English historian and Augustinian canon of Anglo-Saxon de ...

Gervase of Tilbury Gervase of Tilbury ( la, Gervasius Tilberiensis; 1150–1220) was an English canon lawyer, statesman and cleric. He enjoyed the favour of Henry II of England and later of Henry's grandson, Emperor Otto IV, for whom he wrote his best known work, ...

, Gerald the Welshman, Ralph Coggeshall, Roger Howden, and

Walter Map Walter Map ( la, Gualterius Mappus; 1130 – 1210) was a medieval writer. He wrote '' De nugis curialium'', which takes the form of a series of anecdotes of people and places, offering insights on the history of his time. Map was a court ...

. Many of the characters in the novel are based on Stow's friends. He conducted research in advance of publication for several years. In 1978, he and John Constable's great-great-grandson were in a serious car accident, which finally spurred Stow to begin writing the novel. On New Year's Day 1979, he began writing and finished thirty-two days later. Stow was influenced by the focus on particular places in English

Victorian literature Victorian literature refers to English literature during the reign of Queen Victoria (1837–1901). The 19th century is considered by some to be the Golden Age of English Literature, especially for British novels. It was in the Victorian era tha ...

and set the entire novel in Suffolk. Literary scholar Melanie Duckworth has claimed that, in ''The Girl Green as Elderflower,'' Suffolk is not mere setting, but rather a textured and historied place. Although he kept the location static, the novel takes place over a variety of time periods. It focuses one place throughout and across time. Stow engages in what Duckworth calls "Australian

medievalism Medievalism is a system of belief and practice inspired by the Middle Ages of Europe, or by devotion to elements of that period, which have been expressed in areas such as architecture, literature, music, art, philosophy, scholarship, and variou ...

," drawing connections between the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

and

postcolonial Postcolonialism is the critical academic study of the cultural, political and economic legacy of colonialism and imperialism, focusing on the impact of human control and exploitation of colonized people and their lands. More specifically, it is a ...

Australia and

. This connection is most clear between the medieval legend of green children and the novel's titular Welsh "girl green." Stow draws a parallel between greenness and strangeness in the medieval period to the aftermath of contemporary

colonial Colonial or The Colonial may refer to: * Colonial, of, relating to, or characteristic of a colony or colony (biology) Architecture * American colonial architecture * French Colonial * Spanish Colonial architecture Automobiles * Colonial (1920 au ...

projects. Ultimately, according to Duckworth, it is trauma (both for the main character, Crispin Clare, and the colonial/postcolonial places he inhabits) that draws the narrative out of and across time. Destabilization of time is positioned as a means of recovery, particularly for Clare. In March 2019, La Mama Courthouse Theatre in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

, Australia adapted ''The Girl Green as Elderflower'' into a musical. It was adapted by Richard Davies and directed and orchestrated by Sara Grenfell.

Awards and legacy

His novel ''To the Islands'' won the Miles Franklin Award for 1958. He was awarded the

Patrick White Award The Patrick White Award is an annual literary prize established by Patrick White. White used his 1973 Nobel Prize in Literature award to establish a trust for this prize. The $25,000 cash award is given to a writer who has been highly creative o ...

in 1979. As well as producing fiction, poetry, and numerous book reviews for ''

The Times Literary Supplement ''The Times Literary Supplement'' (''TLS'') is a weekly literary review published in London by News UK, a subsidiary of News Corp. History The ''TLS'' first appeared in 1902 as a supplement to ''The Times'' but became a separate publication ...

'', he also wrote libretti for musical theatre works by

Peter Maxwell Davies Sir Peter Maxwell Davies (8 September 1934 – 14 March 2016) was an English composer and conductor, who in 2004 was made Master of the Queen's Music. As a student at both the University of Manchester and the Royal Manchester College of Musi ...

. A considerable number of Randolph Stow's poems are listed in the State Library of Western Australia online catalogue with indications where they have been anthologised.

Personal life & family

Julian Randolph Stow's paternal grandfather was Francis Leslie Stow, a Crown Solicitor of Western Australia. Stow's great-grandfather was Randolph Isham Stow, a judge on the Supreme Court of South Australia and Attorney General of South Australia; a great-great-uncle, Jefferson Stow was prominent as an explorer of

northern Australia The unofficial geographic term Northern Australia includes those parts of Queensland and Western Australia north of latitude 26° and all of the Northern Territory. Those local government areas of Western Australia and Queensland that lie p ...

, and Stow's great-great-grandfather, the Rev. Thomas Quinton Stow, was a pioneering Congregational minister in South Australia. The Stow family was from Suffolk, where they had owned land for several generations before Thomas Stow was appointed the colonial missionary to

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

by the London Colonial Missionary Society in 1836. In 1837, they relocated to South Australia. After Thomas Stow's death, the Stow Memorial Church was constructed in his honor. His wife, Elizabeth Randolph Eppes, was American and her mother was

Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, philosopher, and Founding Father who served as the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was previously the natio ...

's first cousin. The Stow lineage can be traced back to the

Plantagenets The House of Plantagenet () was a royal house which originated from the lands of Anjou in France. The family held the English throne from 1154 (with the accession of Henry II at the end of the Anarchy) to 1485, when Richard III died in batt ...

and

William the Conqueror William I; ang, WillelmI (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), usually known as William the Conqueror and sometimes William the Bastard, was the first House of Normandy, Norman List of English monarchs#House of Norman ...

. Stow's mother's family settled in Australia in the 1830s and were some of the earliest to arrive. His great-grandfather, George Sewell, arrived in Australia in 1835; soon after, the rest of his family relocated from

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and Grea ...

to Australia. Sewell eventually moved from

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth i ...

, where his descendants remained. Stow grew up very interested in the traditional stories and histories of the region. A deeply private person, Stow's life was dogged at times by loneliness and depression (including two suicide attempts), probable alcoholism, an addiction to prescription drugs, and a struggle to come to terms with his

homosexuality Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" to pe ...

in a time when it was oppressed.

Awards list

* Australian Literature Society gold medal, 1957, 1958 * 1958 Miles Franklin Literary Award * Britannica—Australia award, 1966 * Grace Leven Prize, 1969 * 1979

* 1989 The Randolph Stow Young Writers Award was established in his honour to encourage school students in the

region of

to write.

Selected works

Novels

*''A Haunted Land'' (1956) *''The Bystander'' (1957) *'' To the Islands'' (1958) (revised in 1982) *''

Tourmaline Tourmaline ( ) is a crystalline silicate mineral group in which boron is compounded with elements such as aluminium, iron, magnesium, sodium, lithium, or potassium. Tourmaline is a gemstone and can be found in a wide variety of colors. The te ...

'' (1963) *'' The Merry-Go-Round in the Sea'' (1965) *''Visitants'' (1979) *''The Girl Green as Elderflower'' (1980) *''The Suburbs of Hell'' (1984)

Poetry

*''Act One'' (1957) *''Outrider: Poems 1956–1962'' (1962) *'' A Counterfeit Silence: Selected Poems'' (1969) *''The Land's Meaning: New Selected Poems'' ed. John Kinsella. Fremantle Press (2012)

Children's

*''Midnite: The Story of a Wild Colonial Boy'' 1967

Musical Theatre

*''

Eight Songs for a Mad King ''Eight Songs for a Mad King'' is a monodrama by Sir Peter Maxwell Davies with a libretto by Randolph Stow, based on words of George III. The work was written for the South-African actor Roy Hart and the composer's ensemble, the Pierrot Player ...

'' 1969, libretto *'' Miss Donnithorne's Maggot'' 1974, libretto

Notes

Bibliography

* Cary, Gabrielle ''Moving Among Strangers: Randolph Stow and My Family'', University of Queensland Press, 2014 * Falkiner, Suzanne ''Mick: A Life of Randolph Stow'', University of Western Australia Press, 2016

External links

Randolph Stow - Writer

Graeme Kinross-Smith 'Randolph Stow: a Photo essay' ''JASAL'' 10, 2010

David Fonteyn Ecological Allegory: ''Tourmaline'', an Example' ''JASAL'' 10 (2010)

Kerry Leves ' Toxic flowers: Randolph Stow's unfused horizons' ''JASAL'' 10 (2010)

Bernadette Brennan 'Words of Water: Reading Otherness in ''Tourmaline'' and ''Oyster'' ' ''JASAL'' 3 (2004)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stow, Randolph 1935 births 2010 deaths Alumni of the University of Leeds Australian opera librettists Australian people of English descent Deaths from cancer in England Deaths from liver cancer People educated at Guildford Grammar School Harkness Fellows People from Geraldton University of Western Australia alumni Writers from Western Australia Miles Franklin Award winners Patrick White Award winners ALS Gold Medal winners 20th-century Australian novelists 20th-century Australian poets Australian male poets 20th-century Australian dramatists and playwrights Australian male novelists Australian male dramatists and playwrights 20th-century Australian male writers Deaths from pulmonary embolism