Chen 2020

Chen, Amy Hildreth. Placing Papers: The American Literary Archives Market. University of Massachusetts Press, 2021.

"As the collections that institutions choose not to acquire are rarely documented and discussed, scholars believe their work shapes the direction of literary history rather than realizing that the individuals and institutions that comprise the literary archhives market decide what will be written long before they enter the reading room." (3)

"As papers are curated before they ever come into the hands of scholars, scholarship is not an objective representation of its sources. Rather, authorities' preferences determine which sources remain available to generate an understanding of the past." (4)

"The literary archives market does not support scholars, it feeds them. The distinction seems minute, but the difference is critical. Scholars a dependent on the market, not the market on scholars." (8)

"The literary archives market transforms an author's personal papers into a commodity." (9)