NOVEMBER 1935

November sees both Graves and Riding keeping late nights and experiencing health problems. Riding suffers insomnia and listlessness (to the point that Graves starts tidying up the house and her bedroom). Graves gains weight and writes that Riding has said he must exercise more. As the damp of winter sets in, Graves' war wounds begin to ache. Even the household pets get sick this month.
James Reeves arrives at the beginning of November and stays in the small bedroom in C'an Torrent. Honor writes to tell Graves and Riding that Gordon has gone "off" for six months, and that she will be taking a cottage. The McCormacks write to say they're coming to Canelluñ to visit.
The contract for Old Soldier Sahib is sent off to the publisher, as are the proofs of A Mistake Somewhere. Liddell-Hart writes with the welcome news that Arnie Lawrence has agreed to the book project, and Graves begins sorting through his material. Korda wires that his brother is coming to Majorca about the T. E. Lawrence film, and that Claudius is to be filmed in May. Graves also arranges for the proofs of The Moon's No Fool to be collected from customs, and finishes work on Lars Porsena.
Riding and James Reeves work together on Poets, and Reeves' A Natural Need is printed. In addition to Schools, Riding is working on a few poems - a longer one entitled "How Love Becomes Words," and two others, "Wishing More Dear" and a piece about Christmas1. Graves drafts a Christmas poem2 as well - begun while he is waiting at the dentist's. This month he and Riding also buy some of Joän Junyer's art.

Editorial Notes

1"Christmas" eds.
2"Christmas" eds.

Hands Referenced

Places Mentioned

  • Can Torrent

    Deyá, Majorca, Sp
    House next to Canellun also belonging to LR & RG. Built by Norman Cameron. WG

  • Canellun

    Deyá, Majorca, Sp
    Laura Riding and Robert Graves' house. Also Canellun (private) road. WG, KG

  • Majorca/ Mallorca

    Majorca, Sp
    Largest of the Balearic Islands, located in the Mediterranean Sea off the eastern coast of Spain. R.G. and L.R. lived there, in Deyá, from 1929-1936. eds

People Mentioned

  • Robert

    Graves, Robert
    [1st person]. (1895-1985). Poet, novelist, essayist, critic, and author of his diary. eds.

  • Laura

    Riding, Laura
    (1901-91) American poet. Laura Riding (née Reichenthal; then Laura Gottschalk).

  • James

    Reeves, James
    Schoolmaster, writer and Poet. Friend of Jacob Bronowski. W.G./ K.G.; m. to Mary Phillips; daughter Stella born June 14, 1938 eds.

  • Honor

    Wyatt, Honor
    Journalist. Arrived in Deyá fortuitously. Married to Gordon Glover...Son Julian. W.G. First acquainted with R.G. and L.R. early in 1934; returned to visit in 1935; continued friendship in England. eds (RPG 211).

  • Gordon

    Glover, Gordon
    Married to Honor Wyatt. WG

  • McCormacks

    McCormack, Walter & Violet
    Tenants of Ca'n Torrent. Had two daughters: Jennifer, a dancer, & Betty. Continued their friendship with Robert and Laura in England. eds.

  • Liddell Hart

    Liddell Hart, Capt. Basil
    War-fare expert and friend of T.E. Lawrence. Collaborated with RG on a book of T.E.L'.s letters, published in 1938. See RPG p.231. WG & Eds.

  • Arnie

    Lawrence, A.W. (Arnie)
    T.E. Lawrence's brother and executor. WG

  • Korda

    Korda, Alexander
    Director of the film version of I Claudius.

  • T.E.

    Lawrence, T. E.
    'Lawrence of Arabia.' Met Robert in Oxford in the early twenties. Made Robert his biographer and had him write "Lawrence and the Arabs." WG

  • Joän

    Junyer, Joän
    Nephew of Sebastian Junyer. Also a good painter. W.G.; Deaf-mute Catalan painter, ex-pupil of Picasso's, who lived in his uncle's house in Lluch Alcari [Llucalcari]. K.G.; introduced Ward and Dorothy Hutchinson to RG & LR in 1935 eds.
  • Goldschmidt, Karl
    Karl Goldschmidt, d.1995, who later changed his name to Kenneth Gay, was Robert Graves' and Laura Riding's personal secretary during the period when the diary was written. He later annotated another printout of the diary produced from the B.A. Graves transcript, which is at the Graves Trust Archives in St. John's Oxford. Notes by Karl Goldschmidt are denoted as KG.
  • Graves, William
    Son of Robert and Beryl Graves. Helped to identify names, places and titles in Deya (1935-1936) and with translations and other references in three ways. He left an annotated printout of the first six months of the diary in the Graves Trust Room at St. John's College, Oxford. He also sent Chris Petter an Excel file with a list identifying names and places, principally in the Majorcan sections of the diary, and a glossary of Spanish terms. Finally he has sent the editors answers in response to reference questions. Notes by William Graves are identified with the initials WG.

Organizations Mentioned

  • Editors

    Editors of the Graves Diary Project.

Bibliography

    • Title: Old Soldier Sahib
    • Author: Richards, Frank
    • Editor: Graves, Robert
    • PubPlace: London, New York
    • Publisher: Faber & Faber; Harrison Smith & Robert Haas
    • Idno: A44
    • Date: 1936
    • Title: Mistake Somewhere, A
    • Author: Anonymous [Gordon Glover/Honor Wyatt/Molly Hare]
    • Editor: Riding, Laura
    • PubPlace: Deyá
    • Publisher: Seizin
    • Date: 1936-02-13
    • Title: Claudius [the film: based on I, Claudius, directed by Alexander Korda, starring Charles Laughton. It was never completed.]
    • Title: Moon's No Fool, The
    • Author: Matthews, Tom
    • Editor: Riding, Laura
    • PubPlace: Deyá & London
    • Publisher: Seizin & Constable
    • Date: 1936-02-13
    • Title: Lars Porsena or The Future of Swearing and Improper Language [2nd rev. edition]
    • Author: Graves, Robert
    • PubPlace: London
    • Publisher: Kegan Paul
    • Idno: A21c
    • Date: 1936
    • Title: Poets [prose]
    • Author: Graves, Robert/ Riding Laura
    • Editor: Riding, Laura
    • Title: A Natural Need [James' Poems?]
    • Author: Reeves, James
    • PubPlace: Deyá & London
    • Publisher: Seizin & Constable
    • Date: 1935
    • Title: Schools [an international survey of education]
    • Author: Graves, Robert; Riding, Laura
    • Editor: Riding, Laura
    • Title: How Love Becomes Words [poem: later became "When Love Becomes Words"]
    • Title: Epilogue III [also in Laura Riding's Collected Poems 1938]
    • Author: Riding, Laura
    • PubPlace: Deyá & London
    • Publisher: Seizin & Constable
    • BiblScope: 138
    • Date: 1937-04
    • Title: Wishing More Dear [poem]
    • Title: Collected Poems (1938)
    • Author: Riding, Laura
    • PubPlace: London, Toronto, Melbourne & Sydney
    • Publisher: Cassell and Company Limited
    • Date: 1938-09
    • Title: Christmas [poem; see also Focus IV (1935) "Laura: Christmas" [poem]]
    • Title: Collected Poems [1938]
    • Author: Riding, Laura
    • PubPlace: London, Toronto, Melbourne & Sydney
    • Publisher: Cassell
    • BiblScope: 308
    • Idno: A35
    • Date: 1937-12-15
    • Title: Christmas [poem; called "Robert: Christmas"]
    • Title: Focus IV
    • Author: Graves, Robert
    • Publisher: [private]
    • BiblScope: 18-19
    • Idno: C291.3
    • Date: 1935-11-22