Sydney Goodsir Smith
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Sydney Goodsir Smith (26 October 1915 – 15 January 1975) was a New Zealand-born Scottish poet, artist, dramatist and novelist. He wrote poetry in literary Scots often referred to as
Lallans Lallans (; a variant of the Modern Scots word ''lawlands'' meaning the lowlands of Scotland), is a term that was traditionally used to refer to the Scots language as a whole. However, more recent interpretations assume it refers to the dialects o ...
(Lowlands dialect), and was a major figure of the
Scottish Renaissance The Scottish Renaissance ( gd, Ath-bheòthachadh na h-Alba; sco, Scots Renaissance) was a mainly literary movement of the early to mid-20th century that can be seen as the Scottish version of modernism. It is sometimes referred to as the Scot ...
.


Life

He was born in
Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...
, New Zealand, the son of Catherine Goodsir Gelenick and
Sydney Smith Sydney Smith (3 June 1771 – 22 February 1845) was an English wit, writer, and Anglican cleric. Early life and education Born in Woodford, Essex, England, Smith was the son of merchant Robert Smith (1739–1827) and Maria Olier (1750–1801) ...
, a pioneer in forensic science who later became a Regius Professor in forensic medicine at the
University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...
. He moved to Edinburgh with his family in 1928. He was educated at Malvern College. He went to the
University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...
to study medicine, but abandoned that, and started to study history at
Oriel College, Oxford Oriel College () is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in Oxford, England. Located in Oriel Square, the college has the distinction of being the oldest royal foundation in Oxford (a title formerly claimed by University College, wh ...
; whence he was expelled, but managed to complete a degree. He also claimed to have studied art in Italy, wine in France and mountains in
Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...
. In the late 1930s, Smith was introduced to the works of
Hugh MacDiarmid Christopher Murray Grieve (11 August 1892 – 9 September 1978), best known by his pen name Hugh MacDiarmid (), was a Scottish poet, journalist, essayist and political figure. He is considered one of the principal forces behind the Scottish Rena ...
by Hector MacIver, a literary critic who taught English at Edinburgh's Royal High School. In a letter dated 1 November 1941 he informed MacDiarmid that he 'gave up writing English for Scots' after reading ''
A Drunk Man Looks at the Thistle ''A Drunk Man Looks at the Thistle'' is a long poem by Hugh MacDiarmid written in Scots and published in 1926. It is composed as a form of monologue with influences from stream of consciousness genres of writing. A poem of extremes, it ranges be ...
'' (1926). His first poetry collection, ''Skail Wind'', was published in 1941. ''Carotid Cornucopius'' (1947) was a comic novel about Edinburgh. ''Under the Eildon Tree'' (1948), a long poem in 24 parts, is considered by many his finest work; ''The Grace of God and the Meth-Drinker'' is a much-anthologised poem. His ''A Short Introduction to Scottish Literature'', based on four broadcast talks, was published in 1951. His play ''The Wallace'' formed part of the 1960
Edinburgh Festival __NOTOC__ This is a list of arts and cultural festivals regularly taking place in Edinburgh, Scotland. The city has become known for its festivals since the establishment in 1947 of the Edinburgh International Festival and the Edinburgh Fe ...
. ''Kynd Kittock's Land'' (1964) was a poem commissioned by the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
for television broadcast. Other works broadcast by the BBC as dramas or poetic dialogues include ''The Death of Tristram and Iseult'' (1947), ''The Vision of the Prodigal Son'' (1959), ''The Stick Up'' or ''Full Circle'' (1961), ''The Twa Brigs'' (1964), ''A Night at Ambrose's'' (1972), ''Macallister'' (1973), and ''Gowdspink in Reekie'' (1976). Unpublished works include ''Bottled Peaches'', a novel which draws on his life as a student in Oxford, and ''The Merrie Life and Dowie Death of Colickie Meg'', a dramatic adaptation and continuation of ''Carotid Cornucopius''. As a young man, Smith's ambition was to be an artist. While travelling in Europe in 1936–37, he made drawings in Switzerland, Germany, Italy and France. In post-war Scotland he made sketches of contemporary subjects and drawings to illustrate his poems. He also sketched and painted watercolours on trips to the
Highlands Highland is a broad term for areas of higher elevation, such as a mountain range or mountainous plateau. Highland, Highlands, or The Highlands, may also refer to: Places Albania * Dukagjin Highlands Armenia * Armenian Highlands Australia *Sou ...
with Denis Peploe and Sorley MacLean. Drawings collected by the architect Ian Begg were published in a book edited by Joy Hendry in 1998. Smith was art critic of ''
The Scotsman ''The Scotsman'' is a Scottish compact newspaper and daily news website headquartered in Edinburgh. First established as a radical political paper in 1817, it began daily publication in 1855 and remained a broadsheet until August 2004. Its par ...
'' from 1960 to 1967. Smith was a member of the Scottish Arts Club and was associated with the editorial board for the ''
Lines Review ''Lines Review'' was a Scottish poetry journal founded by the publisher Callum Macdonald in 1952. Its original editorial board included the Scottish poets Sydney Goodsir Smith, Hugh MacDiarmid, Norman MacCaig, Sorley MacLean and Denis Peploe. ...
'' magazine. He died in the
Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh The Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, or RIE, often (but incorrectly) known as the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary, or ERI, was established in 1729 and is the oldest voluntary hospital in Scotland. The new buildings of 1879 were claimed to be the largest v ...
after a heart attack outside a newsagents on Dundas Street in Edinburgh, and was buried in
Dean Cemetery The Dean Cemetery is a historically important Victorian cemetery north of the Dean Village, west of Edinburgh city centre, in Scotland. It lies between Queensferry Road and the Water of Leith, bounded on its east side by Dean Path and on ...
in the northern 20th century section, towards the north-west. His second wife, Hazel Williamson, lies with him.


Memorials

He is commemorated by a "pavement poem" in the "
Makars' Court Makars' Court is a courtyard in central Edinburgh, Scotland. It forms part of Lady Stair's Close, which connects the Lawnmarket with The Mound to the north, and is next to the Writers' Museum. Described as an "evolving national literary monumen ...
" a section of James Court off the Lawnmarket on the
Royal Mile The Royal Mile () is a succession of streets forming the main thoroughfare of the Old Town of the city of Edinburgh in Scotland. The term was first used descriptively in W. M. Gilbert's ''Edinburgh in the Nineteenth Century'' (1901), des ...
.


Works

*''Skail Wind - poems'', Edinburgh, The Chalmers press, 1941 *''The Wanderer, and other poems'', Edinburgh, Oliver and Boyd, 1943 *''The Deevil’s Waltz'', Glasgow, W. MacLellan, 1946 *''Selected Poems'', Edinburgh, published for
The Saltire Society The Saltire Society is a membership organisation which aims to promote the understanding of the culture and heritage of Scotland. Founded in 1936, the society was "set up to promote and celebrate the uniqueness of Scottish culture and Scotland’s ...
by Oliver and Boyd, 1947 *''A Short Introduction to Scottish Literature'', Serif Books, 1951 *''So Late into the Night - fifty lyrics, 1944-1948'', with a preface by
Edith Sitwell Dame Edith Louisa Sitwell (7 September 1887 – 9 December 1964) was a British poet and critic and the eldest of the three literary Sitwells. She reacted badly to her eccentric, unloving parents and lived much of her life with her governess ...
, London, P. Russell, 1952 *''Orpheus and Eurydice - a dramatic poem'', Edinburgh, M. Macdonald, 1955 *''Figs and Thistles'', Edinburgh, Oliver and Boyd, 1959 *''The Wallace, a triumph in five acts'', Edinburgh, Oliver and Boyd, 1960 *''The Vision of the Prodigal Son'', M. Macdonald, 1960 *''Carotid Cornucopius, caird o the Cannon Gait and voyeur o the Outluik Touer'', Edinburgh, M. Macdonald, 1964 *''Kynd Kittock’s Land'', Edinburgh, M. Macdonald, 1965 *''Fifteen Poems and a Play'', Edinburgh, Southside, 1969 *''Collected Poems, 1941-1975'', with an introduction by
Hugh MacDiarmid Christopher Murray Grieve (11 August 1892 – 9 September 1978), best known by his pen name Hugh MacDiarmid (), was a Scottish poet, journalist, essayist and political figure. He is considered one of the principal forces behind the Scottish Rena ...
, London, John Calder, 1975 *''The Drawings of Sydney Goodsir Smith, poet, collected by Ian Begg'', edited by Joy Hendry, Edinburgh, Chapman Press, on behalf of
The New Auk Society ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...
, 1998 *''A Publisher of the Nineties (Leonard Smithers) in The Holiday Book.'' 1946 (Ed. by John Singer) *''Gowdspink in Reekie'', Little Brown and Co., 1974 As editor: *''Robert Fergusson, 1750–1774: essays by various hands'' (Edinburgh: Nelson, 1952) *''Gavin Douglas: a selection from his poetry'' (Edinburgh: Oliver & Boyd, 1959) *''
The Merry Muses of Caledonia The Merry Muses of Caledonia is a collection of bawdy songs said to have been collected or written by Robert Burns, the 18th-century Scottish poet. Original text The poems and songs were collected for the private use of Robert Burns and his fr ...
'', with
James Barke James William Barke (22 May 1905 - 20 March 1958) was a Scottish novelist. Biography Born in Torwoodlee, near Galashiels, Selkirkshire, Barke was the fourth child of James Bark, a dairyman and Jane, a dairymaid. In 1907, the family moved to Tull ...
and
John DeLancey Ferguson John DeLancey Ferguson (November 13, 1888 – August 13, 1966) was a writer and academic. Early life Ferguson was born at Scottsville, New York in 1888. Academic career Ferguson attended Rutgers University, where he achieved a Bachelor of Arts d ...
(Edinburgh: M. Macdonald, 1959). *''
Hugh MacDiarmid Christopher Murray Grieve (11 August 1892 – 9 September 1978), best known by his pen name Hugh MacDiarmid (), was a Scottish poet, journalist, essayist and political figure. He is considered one of the principal forces behind the Scottish Rena ...
'': a Festschrift, with Kulgin Duval (Edinburgh: K.D. Duval, 1962) *''A Choice of Burns’s Poems and Songs'' (London: Faber and Faber, 1966)


Reviews

* Campbell, Donald (1975), review of ''Gowdspink in Reekie'', in Burnett, Ray (ed.), ''Calgacus'' 2, Summer 1975, pp. 54 & 55, * Burns, John (1983), review of ''Carotid Cornucopius'', in Hearn, Sheila G. (ed), ''
Cencrastus ''Cencrastus'' was a magazine devoted to Scottish and international literature, arts and affairs, founded after the Referendum of 1979 by students, mainly of Scottish literature at Edinburgh University, and with support from Cairns Craig, then a ...
'' No. 14, Autumn 1983, pp. 50 & 51,


References


Further reading

*McCaffery, Ritchie (ed.) (2019), ''Sydney Goodsir Smith, Poet: Essays on His Life and Work'', Brill Rodopi,


External links


A brief biography of Sydney Goodsir Smith




{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Sydney Goodsir 1915 births 1975 deaths Scots Makars People educated at Malvern College Alumni of Oriel College, Oxford Lallans poets Burials at the Dean Cemetery People from Wellington City Writers from Edinburgh Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Scottish artists Scottish dramatists and playwrights Scottish novelists Scottish comedy writers Scottish biographers Scottish Renaissance New Zealand poets New Zealand male dramatists and playwrights New Zealand artists 20th-century New Zealand dramatists and playwrights New Zealand male novelists New Zealand biographers Male biographers New Zealand emigrants to the United Kingdom 20th-century British novelists 20th-century British dramatists and playwrights 20th-century Scottish poets Scottish male poets 20th-century biographers British male dramatists and playwrights 20th-century British male writers Claddagh Records artists