MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE

1999 Regular Session

To: Rules

By: Senator(s) Carlton, Ferris, Dearing, Frazier

A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION TO COMMEND ELLEN DOUGLAS, NOTED AUTHOR, UPON THE OCCASION OF HER HONOR AS A RECIPIENT OF THE GOVERNOR'S ARTIST'S ACHIEVEMENT AWARD FOR EXCELLENCE IN THE ARTS.

WHEREAS, critically acclaimed and highly praised by fellow authors Shelby Foote, Walker Percy, Eudora Welty, Richard Ford and Ursula Hegi, the works of Ellen Douglas have long been recognized as outstanding contemporary literature; and

WHEREAS, Ellen Douglas is the pen name of Natchez native Josephine Haxton; and

WHEREAS, Ms. Douglas is characterized as a born storyteller whose lyrical prose breathes life into the stories of everyday relationships between ordinary people; and

WHEREAS, her deft touch in probing the layers of emotions and history that make up the connections between family members and between different races has earned her numerous honors, such as the Mississippi Institute of Arts and Letters Award for Literature in 1979 and 1982, and the Hillsdale Award for Fiction from the Fellowship of Southern Writers; and

WHEREAS, from the penning of her first novel, A Family's Affairs, in 1962, to her most recent account of the history of her Natchez ancestors, Truth: Four Stories I am Finally Old Enough to Tell, Ellen Douglas has used Mississippi towns as the settings for her stories; and

WHEREAS, her works have had a universal appeal and have been published in England, Sweden, Germany and the Netherlands; and

WHEREAS, she has been a writer-in-residence at the University of Mississippi and Millsaps College, as well as a visiting professor at the University of Virginia, Hollins College, and the Sewanee Writers Conference; and

WHEREAS, Ms. Douglas is an author of enormous talent and style who showcases to the world the best that Mississippi has to offer; and

WHEREAS, Ellen Douglas is richly deserving of the honor bestowed upon her as the recipient of the Governor's Artist's Achievement Award for Excellence in the Arts:

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES CONCURRING THEREIN, That we do hereby commend and congratulate Ellen Douglas upon the occasion of her being named a Governor's Awards for Excellence in the Arts winner.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That a copy of this resolution be presented to Josephine Haxton.