'What we now want from a biography, or autobiography, is the very thing that Virginia Woolf said that we have no right to want: art. Not only art, obviously, but art nevertheless. And we love the illumination of dark corners of the soul, having quite a few of our own, if we're honest with ourselves.' Robert Dessaix
'The Seymour Biography Lecture was presented annually at the Australian National University and the National Library of Australia from 2005 to 2023, by eminent biographers, autobiographers and memoirists. From political profiles to 'tragic poems', this collection of the lectures investigates the philosophical scaffolding that holds up the form of biography and the deft skill required to tell the truth of a life beautifully.
'Over seventeen years, internationally significant authors have spoken on topics such as 'Biography and the Struggle for the Soul of Australia' (Jill Roe, 2007), 'Truth. Truthfulness. Self. Voice.' (Raimond Gaita, 2017) and 'Honouring the Biographer's Contract' (Chris Wallace, 2023). Interrogate the art of life-writing with thoughtfulness, humour and candour along with: Dr Brenda Niall AO Professor Lawrence Goldman Emeritus Professor Jill Roe AO Richard Holmes Dr David Day Professor Frances Spalding CBE Robert Dessaix Professor Jeffrey Meyers Drusilla Modjeska Professor Ray Monk Robert Drewe David Marr Raimond Gaita Richard Fidler Emeritus Professor Judith Brett Jacqueline Kent Professor Chris Wallace' (Publication summary)
'In her Preface to Telling Lives, editor Chris Wallace invites the reader to join a thought experiment: a group of biographer-refugees, driven by earthly global warming to reside on planet Alpha Centauri, ask themselves: ‘Did biographers play a role in the downfall of Homo sapiens on Earth?’ Were they, in other words, complicit in the culture of disinformation that contributed to global catastrophe? Writing in the ‘post-truth era’, Wallace highlights the centrality of truth in what has traditionally been termed the ‘biographical contract’.' (Introduction)
'In her Preface to Telling Lives, editor Chris Wallace invites the reader to join a thought experiment: a group of biographer-refugees, driven by earthly global warming to reside on planet Alpha Centauri, ask themselves: ‘Did biographers play a role in the downfall of Homo sapiens on Earth?’ Were they, in other words, complicit in the culture of disinformation that contributed to global catastrophe? Writing in the ‘post-truth era’, Wallace highlights the centrality of truth in what has traditionally been termed the ‘biographical contract’.' (Introduction)
