Eleanore Boswell (also known as Eleanor Boswell; Eleanore Boswell Murrie; 4 August 1897,

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

– 4 August 1966,

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

) was an American scholar of

English literature English literature is literature written in the English language from the English-speaking world. The English language has developed over more than 1,400 years. The earliest forms of English, a set of Anglo-Frisian languages, Anglo-Frisian d ...

specialising in the Elizabethan,

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the 15th century. Originally a phrase (the common-wealth ...

and Restoration periods. She was a

Guggenheim Fellow Guggenheim Fellowships are grants that have been awarded annually since by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, endowed by the late Simon and Olga Hirsh Guggenheim. These awards are bestowed upon individuals who have demonstrated d ...

in the Humanities (1930) and a winner of the

Rose Mary Crawshay Prize The Rose Mary Crawshay Prize is a literary prize for female scholars, inaugurated in 1888 by the British Academy. Description The prize, set up in 1888, is said by the British Academy to be the only UK literary prize specifically for female sc ...

(1933).

Life

Eleanore Boswell was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She attended the Germantown High School and the

Philadelphia High School for Girls Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the sixth-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 1,603,797 in the 2020 census. The city is the urb ...

, and joined

Bryn Mawr College Bryn Mawr College ( ; Welsh language, Welsh: ) is a Private college, private Women's colleges in the United States, women's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded as a ...

in 1917 to study English and Greek. She graduated ''magna cum laude'' in 1921. The same year, she received a European Fellowship to study for a year at

Bedford College, London Bedford College was founded in London in 1849 as the first higher education college for women in the United Kingdom. In 1900, it became a constituent of the University of London. Having played a leading role in the advancement of women in highe ...

. She returned to Bryn Mawr for her master's degree, which was awarded in 1923. Boswell taught English at Rosemary Hall from 1923 and 1925. She was an executive secretary of the

American Association of University Women The American Association of University Women (AAUW), officially founded in 1881, is a non-profit organization that advances Justice, equity for women and girls through advocacy, education, and research. The organization has a nationwide Social net ...

from 1925 to 1927. In 1930, she received a Guggenheim Fellowship, and finished her doctoral degree at the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a collegiate university, federal Public university, public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The ...

. In 1932, Boswell married William Stuart Murrie, a Scottish civil servant. They lived in London for several years before moving to Edinburgh. They were keen supporters of the

Edinburgh International Festival The Edinburgh International Festival is an annual arts festival in Edinburgh, Scotland, spread over the final three weeks in August. Notable figures from the international world of music (especially european classical music, classical music) and ...

and were responsible for the inclusion of late medieval Scottish drama in the festival. Boswell's book ''The Restoration Court and Stage'', published in 1932, won the Rose Mary Crawshay Prize in 1933. Boswell taught English part-time at the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh (, ; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the City of Edinburgh Council, town council under th ...

, where she also began to work towards a

D.Litt. Doctor of Letters (D.Litt., Litt.D., Latin: ' or '), also termed Doctor of Literature in some countries, is a terminal degree in the arts, humanities, and social sciences. In the United States, at universities such as Drew University, the degree ...

Eleanore Boswell died on 4 August 1966 at Edinburgh.

Selected works

* *

References

Bibliography

* * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Boswell, Eleanore Bryn Mawr College alumni Rose Mary Crawshay Prize winners 1897 births 1966 deaths British literary historians American literary historians American women literary historians American academics of English literature