Irvin Ehrenpreis (June 9, 1920July 3, 1985) was an American literary scholar. From 1975 to 1985, he was the Linden Kent Memorial Professor of English Literature at the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson and contains his The Lawn, Academical Village, a World H ...

. Ehrenpreis was considered an expert on

Jonathan Swift Jonathan Swift (30 November 1667 – 19 October 1745) was an Anglo-Irish writer, essayist, satirist, and Anglican cleric. In 1713, he became the Dean (Christianity), dean of St Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin, and was given the sobriquet "Dean Swi ...

and also wrote on contemporary American literature.

Early life and education

Irvin Ehrenpreis was born on June 9, 1920, in New York City, to Edith (Lipman) and Louis Ehrenpreis. He received a bachelor's degree from City College (now

City College of New York The City College of the City University of New York (also known as the City College of New York, or simply City College or CCNY) is a Public university, public research university within the City University of New York (CUNY) system in New York ...

) in 1938 and a master's and doctorate from

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

in 1939 and 1944, respectively.

Career

Ehrenpreis taught at

Indiana University Bloomington Indiana University Bloomington (IU Bloomington, Indiana University, IU, IUB, or Indiana) is a public university, public research university in Bloomington, Indiana, United States. It is the flagship university, flagship campus of Indiana Univer ...

from 1945 to 1965. While on the Indiana faculty, he held two Guggenheim Fellowships in the

biography A biography, or simply bio, is a detailed description of a person's life. It involves more than just basic facts like education, work, relationships, and death; it portrays a person's experience of these life events. Unlike a profile or curri ...

category, in 1955 and 1961. He came to the

in 1965, where he was the Commonwealth Professor from 1967 to 1985 and the Linden Kent Memorial Professor of English Literature from 1975 to 1985. He was elected a corresponding fellow of the

British Academy The British Academy for the Promotion of Historical, Philosophical and Philological Studies is the United Kingdom's national academy for the humanities and the social sciences. It was established in 1902 and received its royal charter in the sa ...

in 1985 and was a fellow of the

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (The Academy) 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, and other ...

. He was considered an expert on

, about whom he wrote a three-volume biography, and also wrote on the work of

Alexander Pope Alexander Pope (21 May 1688 Old Style and New Style dates, O.S. – 30 May 1744) was an English poet, translator, and satirist of the Age of Enlightenment, Enlightenment era who is considered one of the most prominent English poets of the early ...

. In ''Literary Meaning and Augustan Values'', he argued that the concept of

organic form In romantic literature, a work has organic form if the structure has originated from the materials and subjects used by the author. Using the organic metaphor, the structure is seen to grow as a plant. It stands in contrast to a mechanical form, a ...

should not be applied to English literature of the 18th century. Ehrenpreis also wrote on contemporary literature. He called the mid-20th century the "Age of Lowell", referring to the poet

Robert Lowell Robert Traill Spence Lowell IV (; March 1, 1917 – September 12, 1977) was an American poet. He was born into a Boston Brahmin family that could trace its origins back to the ''Mayflower''. His family, past and present, were important subjects ...

, and edited a book on

Wallace Stevens Wallace Stevens (October 2, 1879 – August 2, 1955) was an American modernist poet. He was born in Reading, Pennsylvania, educated at Harvard and then New York Law School, and spent most of his life working as an executive for an insurance compa ...

. In 1984, he wrote a strong critique of

Edward Said Edward Wadie Said (1 November 1935 – 24 September 2003) was a Palestinian-American academic, literary critic, and political activist. As a professor of literature at Columbia University, he was among the founders of Postcolonialism, post-co ...

's ''The World, the Text, and the Critic'' in ''

The New York Review of Books ''The New York Review of Books'' (or ''NYREV'' or ''NYRB'') is a semi-monthly magazine with articles on literature, culture, economics, science and current affairs. Published in New York City, it is inspired by the idea that the discussion of ...

''. Ehrenpreis died on July 3, 1985, in

Münster Münster (; ) is an independent city#Germany, independent city (''Kreisfreie Stadt'') in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is in the northern part of the state and is considered to be the cultural centre of the Westphalia region. It is also a ...

, then in West Germany, after a fall.

Books

Unless otherwise noted, the items in this list are taken from the bibliography in ''Augustan Studies: Essays in Honor of Irvin Ehrenpreis'', a

Festschrift In academia, a ''Festschrift'' (; plural, ''Festschriften'' ) is a book honoring a respected person, especially an academic, and presented during their lifetime. It generally takes the form of an edited volume, containing contributions from the h ...

for Ehrenpreis published in 1985. * ''The "Types" Approach to Literature'' (1945) * ''The Personality of Jonathan Swift'' (1958) * '' Swift: The Man, His Works, and the Age'' (three volumes, 1962–1983) * ''Fielding: Tom Jones'' (1964) *''Literary Meaning and Augustan Values'' (1974) * ''Acts of Implication: Suggestion and Covert Meaning in the Works of Dryden, Swift, Pope and Austen'' (1980)

Notes

Sources

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ehrenpreis, Irvin 1920 births 1985 deaths City College of New York alumni Columbia University alumni Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences Corresponding fellows of the British Academy Indiana University Bloomington faculty Jonathan Swift University of Virginia faculty