Power Shift: Reinterpreting the G.E. Morrison Collection

Abstract

The Dr George E. Morrison Collection of diaries, manuscripts and photographs – held by the State Library of New South Wales (Australia) – provides a unique suite of insights into the power of communication, between East and West, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. George Morrison, sometimes referred to as Morrison of Peking, worked, in China, as a correspondent for The Times and so exercised both influence and power in the development of East – West relations. This paper explores this power and how power, in Australian-Chinese relations, has been repositioned by subsequent key Australian figures visiting China, including former Prime Minister Gough Whitlam. In addition this paper will unpack how, as custodians for this important material, the State Library of New South Wales facilitates new stories from this Collection. Indeed, the Morrison Collection represents a rich reservoir for research but requires innovative responses after decades of traditional scholarly activity in this area. Such innovation is designed to inspire more use of this Collection as well as more creative interpretations of the materials within it, thus sharing and shifting power across the literature, the librarians who care for it and the scholars who will reinterpret this valuable material today and in the future.

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Author Information
Louise Denoon, State Library of New South Wales, Australia
Rachel Franks, State Library of New South Wales, Australia
Sally Hone, State Library of New South Wales, Australia

• Category: Librarianship - Digital humanities, literature and culture

Posted by James Alexander Gordon

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