Alan Marshall , (2 May 1902 – 21 January 1984) was an Australian writer, story teller,

humanist Humanism is a philosophical stance that emphasizes the individual and social potential and agency of human beings. It considers human beings the starting point for serious moral and philosophical inquiry. The meaning of the term "humani ...

and social documenter. He received the Australian Literature Society Short Story Award three times, the first in 1933. His best known book, ''I Can Jump Puddles'' (1955) is the first of a three-part autobiography. The other two volumes are ''This is the Grass'' (1962) and ''In Mine Own Heart'' (1963).

Life and work

Marshall was born in Noorat, Victoria. At six years old he contracted

polio Poliomyelitis, commonly shortened to polio, is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. Approximately 70% of cases are asymptomatic; mild symptoms which can occur include sore throat and fever; in a proportion of cases more severe sym ...

, which left him with a physical disability that grew worse as he grew older. From an early age, he resolved to be a writer, and in ''I Can Jump Puddles'' he demonstrated an almost total recall of his childhood in Noorat. The characters and places of his book are thinly disguised from real life: ''Mount Turalla'' is Mount Noorat, ''Lake Turalla'' is Lake Keilambete, the ''Curruthers'' are the ''Blacks'', Mrs. Conlon is Mary Conlon of Dixie, Terang, and his best friend, ''Joe'' from the books, is Leo Carmody. Australian poet and contemporary,

Hal Porter Harold Edward "Hal" Porter (16 February 1911 – 29 September 1984) was an Australian novelist, playwright, poet and short story writer. Biography Porter was born in Albert Park, Victoria, grew up in Bairnsdale, and worked as a journalist, te ...

wrote in 1965 that Marshall was:

''... the warmest and most centralized human being ... To walk with ease and nonchalance the straight, straight line between appearing tragic and appearing willfully brave is a feat so complex I should not like to have to rake in the dark for the super-bravery to accomplish it.''

During the early 1930s Marshall worked as an accountant at the Trueform Boot and Shoe Company, Clifton Hill and later wrote about life in the factory in his novel ''How beautiful are Thy Feet'', 1949. Mount Noorat summit

Marshall wrote numerous short stories, mainly set in

the bush "The bush" is a term mostly used in the English vernacular of Australia and New Zealand where it is largely synonymous with ''backwoods'' or '' hinterland'', referring to a natural undeveloped area. The fauna and flora contained within this ...

. He also wrote newspaper columns and magazine articles. He traveled widely in Australia and overseas. He also collected and published

Indigenous Australian Indigenous Australians or Australian First Nations are people with familial heritage from, and membership in, the ethnic groups that lived in Australia before British colonisation. They consist of two distinct groups: the Aboriginal peoples o ...

stories and legends. His literary friends and associates included

John Morrison John Morrison or Morison may refer to: In politics * John Morrison (Manitoba politician) (1868–1930), politician in Manitoba, Canada * John Morrison (Saskatchewan politician) (1872–1950), Canadian Member of Parliament * John Morrison (intelli ...

and Clem Christesen. He married Olive Dulcie Dixon in May 1941 and they had 2 daughters, Katherine and Jennifer. The couple divorced in 1957. For many years he lived in Sandringham Marshall died on 21 January 1984 in a nursing home in Brighton East Victoria where he had been a resident for the last two years. His remains are interred at

Nillumbik The Shire of Nillumbik ( ) is a local government area in Victoria, Australia. It contains outer northern suburbs of Melbourne and rural localities beyond the urban area. It has an area of 432 square kilometres and at th2021 census the Shire had ...

Cemetery, Diamond Creek, Victoria.

Television series

In 1981 the

Australian Broadcasting Corporation The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is the national broadcaster of Australia. It is principally funded by direct grants from the Australian Government and is administered by a government-appointed board. The ABC is a publicly-own ...

produced a nine-part mini-series of Marshall's autobiographical stories. The actor, Adam Garnett, won the 1982 Logie Awards for ''Best Performance by a Juvenile'', for his role as Alan Marshall in the series.

Recognition

In 1979 Alan Marshall unveiled a plaque on a monument to himself at his birthplace in Noorat. Marshall was made a Member of the

Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Go ...

in the 1981 Australia Day Honours. In 1985 the Shire of Eltham, where Marshall had lived for many years, established the annual Alan Marshall Short Story Competition for emergent writers. In 1937, he completed his first novel, ''How Beautiful Are Thy Feet'', which remained unpublished until 1949. There is a bronze bust of him and a plaque in the Sandringham Library, Melbourne. Sculptor Marcus Skipper created a realistic statue of Marshall cast in bronze which is located in the front of

Eltham Eltham ( ) is a district of South London, southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. It is east-southeast of Charing Cross, and is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. The thre ...

Library, a branch of Yarra Plenty Regional Library. It has been classified as significant by the National Trust. Alan Marshall Reserve,

is located on the corner of Main Road and Leane Drive, and has been there since at least 2007.

Bibliography

Autobiography

* ''I Can Jump Puddles''. Melbourne: F. W. Cheshire, 1955. * ''This is the Grass''. Melbourne: F. W. Cheshire, 1962. . * ''In Mine Own Heart''. Melbourne: F. W. Cheshire, 1963.

Collections

* ''The Complete Stories of Alan Marshall'', with illustrations by Noel Counihan. Melbourne: Thomas Nelson * ''Aboriginal Myths'', with

Sreten Bozic B. Wongar (born 1932 as Sreten Božić) is a Serbian-Australian writer. For most of his literary career, the concern of his writing has been, almost exclusively, the condition of Aboriginal people in Australia. His 1978 short story collection, ...

. Melbourne: Gold Star Publications, 1972. * ''Pull Down The Blind'', with illustrations by Noel Counihan. Melbourne: F. W. Cheshire & London: Wadley & Ginn, 1949

Non-fiction

* ''These are My People''. Melbourne: F.W. Cheshire, 1944 * ''Ourselves Writ Strange''. Melbourne: F. W. Cheshire, 1948, later reprinted as ''These Were My Tribesmen'' *''Pioneers & Painters: One hundred years of Eltham and its Shire'', Thomas Nelson, 1971

Fiction

* ''How Beautiful Are Thy Feet''. Melbourne: Chesterhill Press, 1949. * ''Fight for Life'' North Melbourne: Cassell Australia, 972

Children's Fiction

* ''Whispering in the Wind''. Thomas Nelson (Australia) Ltd, 1969.

Notes

References

* *Miller, E. Morris & Frederick T. Macartney (1956) ''Australian Literature'', Sydney, Angus & Robertson, pp. 324–5. *Morrison, John (1987), ''The Happy Warrior'', Melbourne, Pascoe Publishing, *

External links

*
Alan Marshall
at AustLit.edu.au *
John McLaren, "Marshall, Alan (1902-1984)", ''Australian Dictionary of Biography''
accessed 17 October 2018. {{DEFAULTSORT:Marshall, Alan 1902 births 1984 deaths Australian memoirists Australian male short story writers People with polio 20th-century Australian historians 20th-century Australian short story writers 20th-century Australian male writers 20th-century memoirists Writers from Victoria (Australia)