Guest Editorial
Assoc Prof Lawrence Jones
University of Otago
Department of English
Deep South v.2 n.1 (Autumn, 1996)
Copyright (c) 1996 by Lawrence Jones, all rights reserved. This text may
be used and shared in accordance with the New Zealand Copyright Act 1962.
It may be archived and redistributed in electronic form, provided that
the journal is notified. This consent does not extend to other kinds of
copying, such as copying for general distribution, for advertising or
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For such uses, written permission of the author and the notification of the
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Department of English, University of Otago, P. O. Box 56, Dunedin, New
Zealand.
With the appearance of this fourth issue of Deep South there is cause for celebration. First the
journal now enters its second year, and can look back on accomplishments that more than fulfil
the hopes with which it was established. It was hoped that the journal would provide a focus for
the growing graduate student culture of the English Department here at Otago and that it would
offer an outlet for the creativity of our own and other graduate students. It has done this
admirably, in the process publishing an impressive range of critical articles, accounts of work in
progress, reviews, poems, and stories, from Otago, other New Zealand universities, and overseas.
The articles have ranged in their topics from Frankenstein to a Longfellow poem to Jane
Campion's film Sweetie, while the reviews have included several books emanating from the
Department, recent films, and the BBC Middlemarch. Lest we be considered too southern in our
interests, there has even been an interview with the Swedish novelist Per Olof Sundman. The
present issue continues the pattern, with a large range of critical articles from the graduate
conference at Victoria University of Wellington late last year, a film review, and a substantial
amount of poetry and fiction.
A further cause for celebration is the independent recognition from outside Otago of the value of
the journal. Late in January the word arrived via email that Deep South had been selected by The
McKinley Group's editorial team as a 4-star site on the Internet. This is the highest rating a site
can achieve in Magellan, The McKinley Group's directory of over 1.5 million sites. The review
team considers three primary factors: depth of content, ease of exploration,and Net appeal. It is
gratifying to see the hard work and solid accomplishment of the Deep South team so recognised.
As the journal enters its second year, I would like to speak for the University of Otago
Department of English in wishing it every continued success.
Lawrence Jones
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