Musical Biography in the Musicological Arena

Wiley, Christopher and Watt, Paul (2019) Musical Biography in the Musicological Arena Journal of Musicological Research.

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Abstract

In one of the best accounts to have emerged recently of the history of biography, Hermione Lee’s Biography: A Very Short Introduction, the opening chapter set out ten rules for writing in this sometimes controversial genre. Among these principles are the requirements for truth, comprehensiveness, accuracy of citation, and objectivity. Lee’s seventh rule is “Biography is a form of history”. Astutely observing that “There is no such thing as a life lived in isolation,” she supported her view by quoting Virginia Woolf’s claim that in biography, the subject is the fish and its milieu is the stream. Lee suggested that the duty of the biographer should be “to the stream as well as to the fish”.

Item Type:	Article
Divisions :	Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences > Department of Music and Media
Authors :	Name Email ORCID Wiley, Christopher c.wiley@surrey.ac.uk Watt, Paul
Date :	2019
Copyright Disclaimer :	© 2019 Taylor & Francis
Related URLs :	Publisher
Depositing User :	Clive Harris
Date Deposited :	27 Jun 2019 13:27
Last Modified :	27 Jun 2019 13:27
URI:	http://epubs.surrey.ac.uk/id/eprint/852168

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