Leo Marx (November 15, 1919 – March 8, 2022) was an American historian, literary critic, and educator. He was Professor of the History and Philosophy of Science at the

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the ...

. He is known for his works in the field of

American studies American studies or American civilization is an interdisciplinary field of scholarship that examines American literature, history, society, and culture. It traditionally incorporates literary criticism, historiography and critical theory. Schol ...

. Marx studied the relationship between technology and culture in 19th and 20th century America.

Early life and education

Leo Marx was born on November 15, 1919, in New York City, to Leo and Theresa (Rubinstein) Marx. His father worked in the estate sales business and his mother was a homemaker. He grew up in New York City and Paris; his father died when Leo was a child. He graduated from

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of high ...

with a BA in history and literature in 1941. Military service in World War II followed, in the South Pacific. Marx returned to Harvard afterwards and got a PhD in 1950, one of the first to be granted in the History of American Civilization.

Career

Marx taught at the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public land-grant research university in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. ...

from 1949 to 1958 and then at Amherst College from 1958 to 1977 before joining the faculty of

MIT The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the m ...

in 1976. His intellectual work is associated with John William Ward. From 1976 to 2015, Marx was the William R. Kenan Jr. Professor of American Cultural History at MIT. He changed his teaching style accordingly, since students at MIT were more interested in technology than in literature. Marx added environmental studies to his repertoire. After retirement in 1990, he continued on as a senior lecturer until 2015. In 1964, Marx published ''

The Machine in the Garden ''The Machine in the Garden: Technology and the Pastoral Ideal in America'' is a 1964 work of literary criticism written by Leo Marx and published by Oxford University Press. The title of the book refers to a trope in American literature represen ...

''. The book explores 19th century American literature and its contrast of the pastoral ideal with the rapid changes caused by emerging technology. Marx called the style the "interrupted idyll". The book was based upon a thesis Marx began at Harvard and took 15 years to finish. It is seen as a major, foundational work in the field of

Personal life

Marx married Jane T. Pike in 1943. Together they had two sons and a daughter. His wife died in 2006. Marx died at his home in Boston on March 8, 2022, at the age of 102.

Awards and honors

Marx was awarded Guggenheim Fellowships in 1961 and 1965. * Fulbright Lecturer three times in Europe *

Leonardo da Vinci Medal The Leonardo da Vinci Medal is the highest award of the Society for the History of Technology (SHOT), and was first given in 1962. In general this award is granted annually to scholars who have contributed outstandingly to the history of technology ...

2002 *

Rockefeller Fellowship The Rockefeller Foundation is an American private foundation and philanthropic medical research and arts funding organization based at 420 Fifth Avenue, New York City. The second-oldest major philanthropic institution in America, after the Ca ...

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: AAA&S) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, a ...

, member *

American Studies Association The American Studies Association (ASA) is a scholarly organization founded in 1951. It is the oldest scholarly organization devoted to the interdisciplinary study of U.S. culture and history. The ASA works to promote meaningful dialogue about t ...

* American Literature Section of the Modern Language Association

Selected publications

* Marx, Leo (1964). '' The Machine in the Garden: Technology and the Pastoral Ideal in America''. New York: Oxford University Press. * Marx, Leo (1989). ''The Pilot and the Passenger: Essays on Literature, Technology, and Culture in the United States''. New York: Oxford University Press. . * Marx, Leo; Smith, Merritt R. (1994). ''Does Technology Drive History? The Dilemma of Technological Determinism''. Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT Press. . * * * * * * * *

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Marx, Leo 1919 births 2022 deaths 20th-century American historians 21st-century American historians American centenarians American literary critics Amherst College faculty Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences Harvard College alumni Harvard Graduate School of Arts and Sciences alumni Historians of technology Leonardo da Vinci Medal recipients MIT School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences faculty Men centenarians Military personnel from New York City United States Navy personnel of World War II Writers from New York City