Robert Cairns Craig (born 16 February 1949) is a Scottish literary scholar, specialising in Scottish and

modernist literature Modernist literature originated in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and is characterised by a self-conscious separation from traditional ways of writing in both poetry and prose fiction writing. Modernism experimented with literary form a ...

. He has been Glucksman Professor of Irish and Scottish Studies at the

University of Aberdeen The University of Aberdeen (abbreviated ''Aberd.'' in List of post-nominal letters (United Kingdom), post-nominals; ) is a public university, public research university in Aberdeen, Scotland. It was founded in 1495 when William Elphinstone, Bis ...

since 2005. Before that, he taught 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 ...

, serving as head of the English literature department from 1997 to 2003.'CRAIG, Prof. R. Cairns', '' Who's Who 2017'', A & C Black, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing plc, 2017; online edn, Oxford University Press, 2016; online edn, Nov 201
accessed 10 Sept 2017
/ref> He was elected a

fellow of the British Academy Fellowship of the British Academy (post-nominal letters FBA) is an award granted by the British Academy to leading academics for their distinction in the humanities and social sciences. The categories are: # Fellows – scholars resident in t ...

in 2005.

Work

He was awarded a PhD from the

in 1978 for his thesis ''W.B. Yeats, T.S. Eliot and the Associationist Aesthetic''. He has published on authors including W. B. Yeats, T. S. Eliot,

Ezra Pound Ezra Weston Loomis Pound (30 October 1885 – 1 November 1972) was an List of poets from the United States, American poet and critic, a major figure in the early modernist poetry movement, and a Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Ita ...

, and

Iain Banks Iain Banks (16 February 1954 – 9 June 2013) was a Scottish author, writing mainstream fiction as Iain Banks and science fiction as Iain M. Banks, adding the initial of his adopted middle name Menzies (). After the success of '' The Wasp Fact ...

. His 1984 book on Yeats, Eliot, and Pound was described by Seamus Deane as lacking a little clarity, panache and focus, but offering an "engrossing" exploration of the relationship between modernism and reactionary politics, which he links via memory, and particularly Archibald Alison's theory of associationism; Deane called it "a complicated story, illustrated by Craig with such well-chosen and well-timed quotations that it is difficult to resist." In 1991 he wrote "Rooms without a view", an influential article attacking "heritage film". ''The Modern Scottish Novel: Narrative and the National Imagination'' (1999) brought a "modern, inclusive, skeptical intelligence" to the question of Scottish literature. He was general editor of the four-volume series ''History of Scottish Literature'' (published 1987-89). He has also been involved as editor or publisher with magazines including '' Cencrastus'', ''

Edinburgh Review The ''Edinburgh Review'' is the title of four distinct intellectual and cultural magazines. The best known, longest-lasting, and most influential of the four was the third, which was published regularly from 1802 to 1929. ''Edinburgh Review'', ...

'' and ''Radical Scotland''.

Publications

* ''The Body in the Kit Bag: History and the Scottish Novel'', in '' Cencrastus'' No. 1, Autumn 1979, pp. 18 – 22, * ''Fearful Selves: Character, Community and the Scottish Imagination'', in '' Cencrastus'' No. 4, Winter 1980-81, pp. 29 – 32, * ''Going Down to Hell is Easy: Alasdair Gray's 'Lanark, in Glen Murray (ed.), '' Cencrastus'' No. 6, Autumn 1981, pp. 19 - 21, * '' Yeats, Eliot, Pound and the Politics of Poetry'' (University of Pittsburgh Press, 1982), * ''Peripheries'', in '' Cencrastus'' No. 9, Summer 1982, pp. 3 - 5, * ''Giving Speech to the Silent'', which reviews ''Continuous: 50 Sonnets from The School of Eloquence'' by Tony Harrison and ''From the Domain of Arnheim'' by Alastair Fowler, in Hearn, Sheila G. (ed.), '' Cencrastus'' No. 10, Autumn 1982, pp. 43 & 44, * ''Visitors from the Stars: Scottish Film Culture'', in Hearn, Sheila G. (ed.), '' Cencrastus'' No. 11, New Year 1983, pp. 6 - 11, * ''An Interview with

Kurt Vonnegut Kurt Vonnegut ( ; November 11, 1922 – April 11, 2007) was an American author known for his Satire, satirical and darkly humorous novels. His published work includes fourteen novels, three short-story collections, five plays, and five nonfict ...

'' in Hearn, Sheila G. (ed.), '' Cencrastus'' No. 13, Summer 1983, pp. 29 - 31, * ''Lourd on My Hert'', which reviews '' Chapman 35/36: The State of Scotland - A Predicament for the Scottish Writer?'', edited by Joy Hendry; ''Scotland: The Broken Image'' by Norman Allan; ''The State of Scotland: A Poem'', by Duncan Glen; and ''Europa's Lover'', by Douglas Dunn, in Hearn, Sheila G. (ed.), '' Cencrastus'' No. 15, New Year 1984, pp. 54 & 55, * ''

George Orwell Eric Arthur Blair (25 June 1903 – 21 January 1950) was an English novelist, poet, essayist, journalist, and critic who wrote under the pen name of George Orwell. His work is characterised by lucid prose, social criticism, opposition to a ...

and the English Ideology'' (Part 1), in Hearn, Sheila G. (ed.), '' Cencrastus'' No. 16, Spring 1984, pp. 12 - 17, * ''

and the English Ideology'' (Part 2), in Parker, Geoff (ed.), '' Cencrastus'' No. 17, Summer 1984, pp. 10 - 15, * ''Nation and History'', in Parker, Geoff (ed.), '' Cencrastus'' No. 19, Winter 1984, pp. 13 - 16, * General editor, ''History of Scottish Literature'' (1987–89) * ''Out of History: Narrative Paradigms in Scottish and English Culture'' (Polygon,1996), * ''The Modern Scottish Novel: Narrative and the National Imagination'' (Edinburgh UP, 1999) * ''

's Complicity: A Reader's Guide'' (Continuum, 2002) * ''Associationism and the Literary Imagination: From the Phantasmal Chaos'' (2007) * ''Intending Scotland: Explorations in Scottish Culture since the Enlightenment'' (Edinburgh UP, 2009). * ''The Wealth of the Nation: Scotland, Culture and Independence'' (Edinburgh UP, 2018),

Awards

* 2003:

Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh Fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE) is an award granted to individuals that the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Scotland's national academy of science and Literature, letters, judged to be "eminently distinguished in their subject". ...

(FRSE) * 2005:

Fellow of the British Academy Fellowship of the British Academy (post-nominal letters FBA) is an award granted by the British Academy to leading academics for their distinction in the humanities and social sciences. The categories are: # Fellows – scholars resident in t ...

(FBA) * 2007:

Officer of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(OBE)

Reviews

* Morgan, Edwin (1983), ''The Politics of Poetry'': review of ''Yeats, Eliot, Pound and the Politics of Poetry'', in Hearn, Sheila G. (ed.), '' Cencrastus'' No. 12, Spring 1983, p. 44,

References

External links

Cairns Craig's Aberdeen University Page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Craig, Cairns Scottish scholars and academics Academics of the University of Aberdeen Fellows of the British Academy Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh Officers of the Order of the British Empire Scottish literary critics 1949 births Living people Scottish literary historians Alumni of the University of Edinburgh