Helen Elizabeth Wilcox (''

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

'' Boulton; born 1955) is a British literary scholar who specializes in early modern English literature. She is Professor of English Literature at

Bangor University Bangor University () is a Public university, public Research university, research university in Bangor, Gwynedd, Wales. It was established by Royal charter, Royal Charter in 1885 as the University College of North Wales (UCNW; ), and in 1893 ...

Biography

Helen Elizabeth Wilcox was born in 1955. She was educated at the

University of Birmingham The University of Birmingham (informally Birmingham University) is a Public university, public research university in Birmingham, England. It received its royal charter in 1900 as a successor to Queen's College, Birmingham (founded in 1825 as ...

, where she received her Bachelor of Arts degree in English Language and Literature in 1976, and the

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...

, where she earned her Doctor of Philosophy in 1984. Her thesis was titled ''The Reputation and Influence of George Herbert to 1715''. She later worked as a lecturer in English literature at the

University of Liverpool The University of Liverpool (abbreviated UOL) is a Public university, public research university in Liverpool, England. Founded in 1881 as University College Liverpool, Victoria University (United Kingdom), Victoria University, it received Ro ...

from 1979 until 1991, when she moved to the

University of Groningen The University of Groningen (abbreviated as UG; , abbreviated as RUG) is a Public university#Continental Europe, public research university of more than 30,000 students in the city of Groningen (city), Groningen, Netherlands. Founded in 1614, th ...

as a professor of English literature. She later moved to

, where she became Professor of English Literature. As an academic, she specialises in

Early Modern 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 dialects brought to Great ...

, especially

Christian devotional literature Christian devotional literature (also called devotionals or Christian living literature) is religious writing that Christian individuals read for their personal growth and spiritual formation. Such literature often takes the form of Christian dail ...

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

, and the early modern history of women's writing. She was the sole editor of ''Women and Literature in Britain 1500-1700'' (1996). She also has co-edited several books specializing in English literature, some of which were also on the poet

George Herbert George Herbert (3 April 1593 – 1 March 1633) was an English poet, orator, and priest of the Church of England. His poetry is associated with the writings of the metaphysical poets, and he is recognised as "one of the foremost British devotio ...

. In 2014, she authored a book, ''1611: Authority, Gender and the Word in Early Modern England''. She was appointed

Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature The Royal Society of Literature (RSL) is a learned society founded in 1820 by George IV of the United Kingdom, King George IV to "reward literary merit and excite literary talent". A charity that represents the voice of literature in the UK, the ...

in 1999. She was elected

Fellow of the Learned Society of Wales The Learned Society of Wales () is a national academy, learned society and charity that exists to "celebrate, recognise, preserve, protect and encourage excellence in all of the scholarly disciplines", and to serve the Welsh nation. The Learned ...

in 2015. She is also a

Fellow of the English Association A fellow is a title and form of address for distinguished, learned, or skilled individuals in academia, medicine, research, and industry. The exact meaning of the term differs in each field. In learned or professional societies, the term refers ...

and a

Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts The Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce, commonly known as the Royal Society of Arts (RSA), is a learned society that champions innovation and progress across a multitude of sectors by fostering creativity, s ...

Personal life

Wilcox is married to Allan Wilcox and they have two sons together.

Bibliography

*(as co-editor, with H. Hinds, E. Hobby, and E. Graham) ''Her Own Life: Autobiographical Writings by Seventeenth Century Englishwomen'' (1989) *(as co-editor, with A. Thompson) ''Teaching Women: Feminism and English Studies'' (1989) *(as co-editor, with K. McWalters, A. Thompson, and L. R. Williams) ''The Body and the Text: Helene Cixous, Reading, and Teaching'' (1990) *(as co-editor, with R. Todd) ''George Herbert, Sacred and Profane'' (1995) *(as co-editor, with R. Todd and A. MacDonald) ''Sacred and Profane: The Interplay of Secular and Devotional Literature in Early Modern Britain'' (1996) *(as editor) ''Women and Literature in Britain 1500-1700'' (1996) *(as co-editor, with H. Dragstra and S. Ottway) ''Betraying Our Selves: Forms of Self-Representation in Early Modern English Texts'' (2000) *(as co-editor, with H. Wilcox) ''The English Poems of George Herbert'' (2007) *(as co-editor, with I. Visser and H. Wilcox) ''Transforming Holiness: Representations of Holiness in English and American Literary Texts'' (2006) *''1611: Authority, Gender and the Word in Early Modern England'' (2014) *(as co-editor, with A. W. Johnson and R. D. Sell) ''Community-Making in Early Stuart Theatres: Stage and Audience'' (2016) *(as editor) ''George Herbert: 100 poems'' (2016) *(as co-editor, with A. Hiscock) ''The Oxford Handbook of Early Modern English Literature and Religion'' (2017) *(as co-editor, with S. Gossett) ''All's Well That Ends Well'' (2018)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wilcox, Helen 1955 births Living people Academic staff of the University of Groningen Academics of Bangor University Academics of the University of Liverpool Alumni of the University of Birmingham Alumni of the University of Oxford English academics of English literature Fellows of the Learned Society of Wales Fellows of the Royal Society of Literature British women literary historians