Richard Boris Ford (1 July 1917 – 19 May 1998) was a British

literary critic A genre of arts criticism, literary criticism or literary studies is the study, evaluation, and interpretation of literature. Modern literary criticism is often influenced by literary theory, which is the philosophical analysis of literature' ...

writer A writer is a person who uses written words in different writing styles, genres and techniques to communicate ideas, to inspire feelings and emotions, or to entertain. Writers may develop different forms of writing such as novels, short sto ...

editor Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, visual, audible, or cinematic material used by a person or an entity to convey a message or information. The editing process can involve correction, condensation, organization, a ...

and educationist.

Early life

Ford was born on 1 July 1917, in

Simla Shimla, also known as Simla (List of renamed Indian cities and states#Himachal Pradesh, the official name until 1972), is the capital and the largest city of the northern Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. In 1864, Shimla was declared the summe ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

, the son of an

Indian Army The Indian Army (IA) (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the Land warfare, land-based branch and largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Commander-in-Chief, Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head ...

officer, Brigadier Geoffrey Noel Ford, and his Russian wife Ekaterina,MacKillop, Ian
"Ford, (Richard) Boris (1917–1998)"
''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, vol. 20, 2004: pp. 317–18; online edition, accessed 14 July 2014 Ford was a chorister at

King's College, Cambridge King's College, formally The King's College of Our Lady and Saint Nicholas in Cambridge, is a List of colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college lies beside the River Cam and faces ...

, eventually becoming head chorister under Boris Ord. He was then educated at

Gresham's School Gresham's School is a private school (English fee-charging boarding and day school) in Holt, Norfolk, England, one of the top thirty International Baccalaureate schools in England. The school was founded in 1555 by Sir John Gresham as a f ...

, and through his English master there, Denys Thompson, was introduced to

F. R. Leavis Frank Raymond "F. R." Leavis ( ; 14 July 1895 – 14 April 1978) was an English literary critic of the early-to-mid-twentieth century. He taught for much of his career at Downing College, Cambridge, and later at the University of York. Leav ...

under whom he studied at

Downing College Downing College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge and currently has around 950 students. Founded in 1800, it was the only college to be added to the university between 1596 and 1869, ...

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...

. Even before graduating, Ford's essay on ''

Wuthering Heights ''Wuthering Heights'' is the only novel by the English author Emily Brontë, initially published in 1847 under her pen name "Ellis Bell". It concerns two families of the landed gentry living on the West Yorkshire moors, the Earnshaws and the ...

'' was published by Leavis in ''

Scrutiny Scrutiny (French: ''scrutin''; Late Latin: ''scrutinium''; from ''scrutari'', meaning "those who search through piles of rubbish in the hope of finding something of value" and originally from the Latin "scruta," meaning "broken things, rags, or ...

'' in March 1939. Although he came to share many of Leavis's ideas, Ford could not follow Leavis in making "exclusion and exclusivity major features of eavis'scritical policy". Ford had an increasingly stormy relationship with Leavis and his wife Q. D.: at one point, Q. D. wrote to him "Mrs Leavis informs Mr Ford that he is no longer an acceptable visitor to her house. Any communications from him will not be answered."

Career

After

, Ford joined the army, and from 1940 until the end of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

was the officer commanding the Middle East School of Artistic Studies.Obituary
by David Holbrook in the ''College Record 1998'' of

Downing College, Cambridge Downing College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge and currently has around 950 students. Founded in 1800, it was the only college to be added to the university between 1596 and 1869, and is often described as the oldest of ...

(accessed 22 October 2007) He then became chief editor and director of the Army Bureau of Current Affairs (ABCA). So critical of Britain were ABCA's seminars addressed to officers and men that Ford attracted the attention of MI5. Indeed, Ford believed that the Labour Party came to power in 1945 as a result of ABCA's democratizing influence. In 1951 Ford became information officer of UNESCO's technical assistance board. In 1953 he was invited by W. E. Williams, who had been a colleague at ABCA, to edit a multi-authored seven-volume Pelican Guide to English Literature (1954–61; revised, 1982–8). This was indebted in many senses to Leavis, who, when he closed ''Scrutiny'' in 1953, remarked bitterly that Ford had "approached my main people", and considered that some of the Pelican Guide essays were derivative. Nonetheless, the series broke new ground: notably the first volume, ''The Age of Chaucer'', included a 200-page anthology of non-Chaucerian medieval poetry in original texts, so introducing early English poetry to several contemporary poets. Ford became

Associated Rediffusion Associated-Rediffusion, later Rediffusion London, was the British ITV franchise holder for London and parts of the surrounding counties, on weekdays between 22 September 1955 and 29 July 1968. It was the first ITA franchisee to go on air, ...

's first head of schools broadcasting (1957–58), during which time he persuaded

Benjamin Britten Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten of Aldeburgh (22 November 1913 – 4 December 1976) was an English composer, conductor, and pianist. He was a central figure of 20th-century British music, with a range of works including opera, o ...

to compose his church opera '' Noye's Fludde'' for a series of programmes. However, Ford was dismissed before the opera was produced, on the grounds that Ford was "not suitable for the post". However, other accounts suggest that his dismissal came following his objection to the broadcast of unsuitable advertisements between programmes, and to the cancellation of school broadcasts to accommodate afternoon horse racing in the schedules."Statement about the Work of the ndependent Television Authority Children's AdvisoryCommittee" by C. C. Sendell, June 1958: cited in In 1957–1958 Ford was education secretary to the

Cambridge University Press Cambridge University Press was the university press of the University of Cambridge. Granted a letters patent by King Henry VIII in 1534, it was the oldest university press in the world. Cambridge University Press merged with Cambridge Assessme ...

. He then became professor of education and director of the Institute of Education at

University of Sheffield The University of Sheffield (informally Sheffield University or TUOS) is a public university, public research university in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. Its history traces back to the foundation of Sheffield Medical School in 1828, Fir ...

from 1960 to 1963, when he became professor of education at

Sussex University The University of Sussex is a public research university located in Falmer, East Sussex, England. It lies mostly within the city boundaries of Brighton and Hove. Its large campus site is surrounded by the South Downs National Park, and provide ...

(1963–73). At Sussex, with the support of

Asa Briggs Asa Briggs, Baron Briggs (7 May 1921 – 15 March 2016) was an English historian. He was a leading specialist on the Victorian era, and the foremost historian of broadcasting in Britain. Briggs achieved international recognition during his lon ...

, he helped establish a music department in 1971 with Donald Mitchell as visiting professor of music. While at Sussex, Ford was dean at the School of Cultural and Community Studies (1963–71). After leaving Sussex in 1973, Ford became professor of education at

Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...

until 1982. The ''Pelican Guide to English Literature'' series was followed by the even more ambitious '' The Cambridge Guide to the Arts in Britain'' (in nine volumes, 1988–91). Ford died on 19 May 1998, in

London, England London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

Family

He was married twice. With his first wife, Noreen, he had two daughters and a son, and was the step father to Noreen's daughter by her first marriage. He was the stepfather to the two daughters of his second wife, Inge.

Publications

* A series edited by Boris Ford for

Penguin Books Penguin Books Limited is a Germany, German-owned English publishing, publishing house. It was co-founded in 1935 by Allen Lane with his brothers Richard and John, as a line of the publishers the Bodley Head, only becoming a separate company the ...

, successively entitled: ''A Guide to English Literature'', ''The

Pelican Pelicans (genus ''Pelecanus'') are a genus of large water birds that make up the family Pelecanidae. They are characterized by a long beak and a large throat pouch used for catching prey and draining water from the scooped-up contents before ...

Guide to English Literature'', ''The New Pelican Guide to English Literature'': ** ''Vol. 1. The Age of Chaucer'', 1945 *** ''Vol. 1. Medieval Literature: Chaucer and the alliterative tradition: with an anthology of Medieval poems and drama, updated edition 1982; 1990 ** ''Vol. 2. The Age of Shakespeare'', 1969; 1991 ** ''Vol. 3. From Donne to Marvell'', 1956; 1990 ** ''Vol. 4. From Dryden to Johnson'', 1957 ** ''Vol. 5. From Blake to

Byron George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron (22 January 1788 – 19 April 1824) was an English poet. He is one of the major figures of the Romantic movement, and is regarded as being among the greatest poets of the United Kingdom. Among his best-kno ...

'', 1957; 5th ed. 1965 ** ''Vol. 6. From

Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English novelist, journalist, short story writer and social critic. He created some of literature's best-known fictional characters, and is regarded by many as the great ...

Hardy Hardy may refer to: People * Hardy (surname) * Hardy (given name) * Hardy (singer), American singer-songwriter Places Antarctica * Mount Hardy, Enderby Land * Hardy Cove, Greenwich Island * Hardy Rocks, Biscoe Islands Australia * Hardy, ...

'', 1957 . ** ''Vol. 7. The Modern Age, From James to Eliot'', 9th ed. 1964; 1990 ** ''Vol. 8. The Present: From Orwell to Naipaul'' ** ''Vol. 9. American Literature'' * Another series edited by Boris Ford for

, successively entitled: ''The Cambridge Guide to the Arts in Britain'' and ''The Cambridge Cultural History of Britain'': ** ''Vol. 1. Early Britain'', 1988 ** ''Vol. 2. Medieval Britain'', 1988 ** ''Vol. 3. 16th Century Britain'' ** ''Vol. 4. 17th Century Britain'', 1992 ** ''Vol. 5. 18th Century Britain'' ** ''Vol. 6. The Romantic Age in Britain'', 1992 ** ''Vol. 7. Victorian Britain'', 1990 ** ''Vol. 8. Early 20th Century Britain'', 1992 ** ''Vol. 9. Modern Britain'', 1992 * ''Benjamin Britten's Poets'', 1994

Editor of Journals

* 1951–1968 Co-editor of ''The Use of English'' with David Holbrook, Denys Thompson, and Raymond O'Malley * 1955–1958 Editor of the ''Journal of Education'' * 1955–1986 Editor of ''Universities Quarterly''

References

Obituary at Sussex University
official site

External links

Cambridge Cultural History of Great Britain
Cambridge University Press {{DEFAULTSORT:Ford, Boris 1917 births 1998 deaths Alumni of Downing College, Cambridge Academics of the University of Bristol Academics of the University of Sussex British Army personnel of World War II English literary critics People educated at Gresham's School British people in colonial India