Uncover the audacious Ern Malley hoax that challenged the modernist poetry movement and sparked debates on artistic authenticity in 1940s Australia.

The Great Ern Malley Hoax: A Literary Prank for the Ages

In the vibrant world of 1940s Australian literature, two mischievous poets, James McAuley and Harold Stewart, orchestrated one of the most audacious literary hoaxes of all time, known as the Ern Malley affair. This elaborate prank unfolded in 1943 in Sydney, Australia, when McAuley and Stewart, disillusioned by the modernist poetry movement, decided to create a fictitious poet named Ern Malley. Their aim was to expose what they perceived as the pretentiousness and lack of substance in modernist poetry.

The duo concocted a collection of poems attributed to Malley, a fictional auto mechanic who supposedly died young, leaving behind a sister who discovered his unpublished works. These poems were sent to Max Harris, the editor of the avant-garde literary magazine "Angry Penguins," which was based in Adelaide. Harris, an enthusiastic supporter of modernist poetry, was captivated by the raw and seemingly profound nature of Malley's work and published the poems in a special edition of the magazine.

The hoax was revealed shortly after the publication, causing a sensation in the literary community. McAuley and Stewart admitted that they had written the poems in a single afternoon, using random phrases and nonsensical lines to mimic the style of modernist poetry. Their intention was to demonstrate that the genre was so abstract that even meaningless content could be mistaken for profound art.

The Ern Malley hoax sparked widespread debate about the nature of art and the role of the artist. It challenged critics and readers to reconsider their criteria for evaluating poetry and highlighted the subjective nature of artistic interpretation. Despite its origins as a prank, the Ern Malley affair left a lasting impact on the literary world, prompting discussions about authenticity, creativity, and the boundaries of artistic expression. The hoax remains a fascinating chapter in the history of literature, illustrating the power of satire and the enduring quest for meaning in art.