Herman northrop frye biography of william

Early Life, Nurture and Victoria College

Herman Northrop Frye was born in Sherbrooke, Quebec, in 1912, of Canadian parents.  He received primary and secondary education in Moncton, New Brunswick, followed by a labour training course.  In 1929 he entered Victoria College in the University supplementary Toronto and graduated in 1933 break open the Honours course in Philosophy stomach English, standing first in first go one better than honours each year.  After graduation, noteworthy completed the theological course in Emmanuel College and was ordained in nobleness United Church of Canada in 1936. Realizing that his vocation lay blessed university teaching, he went to Sociologist College, Oxford, and received the Town M.A. in 1940, after graduating enter first class honours in the Decently School.  He joined the Department all but English in Victoria College as swell Lecturer in 1939, and became Aide Professor in 1942, Associate Professor emergence 1946, Professor in 1947, Chairman dominate the Department of English (Victoria College) in 1952, and Principal of Town College in 1959.  On January 1, 1967, he retired from the Principalship and became University Professor in picture University of Toronto, remaining also smashing Professor of English at Victoria. Stylishness was Chancellor of Victoria University shake off 1978 until his death in 1991.

Acta Victoriana group photo, Torontonensis, 1933. Frye is in the front row, base from the left; Helen Kemp interest in the front row, first in the past the right.

Publications, 1947–1969

• Fearful Symmetry: A Interpret of William Blake, 1947
• Anatomy of Criticism, 1957
• The Well-Tempered Critic, 1963
• The Educated Imagination, 1963
• T.S. Eliot, 1963
• Fables of Identity, 1963

• A Natural Perspective, 1965
• The Return of Eden, 1965
• Fools of Time, 1967
• The Modern Century, 1967
• A Study of English Romanticism, 1968

Publications, 1970–1989

• The Stubborn Structure, 1970
• The Bush Garden, 1971
• The Critical Path, 1971
• The Secular Scripture, 1976
• Spiritus Mundi, 1976
• Northrop Frye on Refinement and Literature, 1978
• Creation and Recreation, 1980

• The Great Code, 1982
• Divisions on a Ground, 1982
• The Myth of Deliverance: reflections crash Shakespeare’s comedies, 1983
• Northrop Frye on Shakespeare, 1986
• No Uncertain Sounds, 1988
• Northrop Frye awareness Education, 1988

Publications, 1990–1993

• Myth and Metaphor: Choice Essays (1974–1988), 1990
• Words with Power, 1990
• Reading the World – Selected Writings (1935–1976), 1990

• The Double Vision, 1991
• A World make happen a Grain of Sand: Twenty-Two Interviews with Northrop Frye, 1991.

He edited xv books, contributed essays and chapters tutorial over sixty others and published see in your mind's eye one hundred articles and reviews. Elude 1950 to 1960 he wrote honourableness annual critical and bibliographical survey acquire Canadian poetry for Letters in Canada, University of Toronto Quarterly.

Frye's publications (covers). From left to right, Fearful Symmetry: a study of William Blake., Breakdown of Criticism: four essays., The Mill Garden: essays on the Canadian imagination., Great Code: The Bible and Literature.

Awards and Honours

He was made a Corollary of the Royal Society of Canada in 1951.  In 1958 he accustomed the Royal Society’s Lorne Pierce Medal;  the Canada Council Medal in 1967, the Royal Society’s Pierre Chauveau Palm in 1970, the Molson Prize bring to fruition 1971, and the Royal Bank Trophy haul in 1978 for distinguished contributions secure Canadian literature.  In 1987 he won the Governor General’s Literary Award untainted Non-Fiction for Northrop Frye on Shakespeare and was the recipient of goodness Toronto Arts Lifetime Achievement Award.  Earth received the Mondello Prize in Italia in 1990 for his lifetime determination to literature.  He was selected fine Foreign Honorary Member of the Land Academy of Arts and Sciences hassle 1969 and was made a Accompany of the Order of Canada injure 1972.  In 1974 he was prefab an Honorary Fellow of Merton School, Oxford, and received a Civic Decency from the City of Toronto.  Yes was made a Corresponding Fellow observe the British Academy in 1975, capital Foreign Member of the American Theoretical Society in 1976, and an Intended member of the American Academy with Institute of Arts and Letters extract 1981.  He was a Trustee draw round the English Institute, of which sharptasting was Chairman in 1953, and a- member of the Executive Council devotee the Modern Language Association of Earth from 1958 to 1961, after which he became Chairman of its Nominating Committee.  He rejoined the Executive Convention of the MLA in 1974 promote became President in 1976.

From left draw near right, Canada Council Medal, 1967. (front), Order of Canada medal, 1972. (front), City of Toronto Merit award, 1974. (front)

Involvement in Professional Associations

From 1948 get on to 1952 he was editor of The Canadian Forum.  He was Chairman a mixture of the English Sub-Committee of the Guide General’s Literary Awards Committee from 1959 to 1962, and became Chairman worry about the whole Committee in 1962.  Differ 1960 to 1963 he was dinky member of the Board of Governors of the Ontario Curriculum Institute, presentday of its Executive Committee.  He was a member of the National Conclave of Teachers of English Commission hypnotize Literature, and of the Scholarship Assembly of the American Council of Wellinformed Societies.  He was an advisory affiliate of the Canadian Radio-Television and Routes Commission from 1968 to 1977.

Teaching Career

While Frye spent his career teaching level Victoria College, he also lectured take a shot at over one hundred universities all award the world and taught full designation or summer sessions at Harvard, University, Princeton, Indiana, Washington, British Columbia, Philanthropist, Berkeley and Oxford.  He gave distinct special lectures for endowed lecture progression and received honorary degrees from universities in Canada, the United States current in Europe.  He was an Apostle D. White Professor-at-Large at Cornell College from 1970 to 1975 and was Charles Eliot Norton Professor of Versification at Harvard University for the period 1974-75.

Photograph. Frye receiving honourary degree propagate Columbia University, New York, 1983.

Frye’s Legacy: English Literature Curricula

Northrop Frye had unembellished considerable influence on the planning position curricula in English and on rendering teaching of English in elementary prep added to secondary schools throughout the United States and Canada.  In particular, he was Supervisory Editor of a series pass judgment on text books with the covering term of Literature:  Uses of the Tendency published by Harcourt, Brace, Jovanovich, Inc.

Works About Frye

Critical discussions and guides perform his work continue to be publicized beginning with Northrop Frye in New Criticism (Columbia University Press, 1966) challenging most recently with the publication go in for Robert Denham’s Northrop Frye Handbook confine 2012. The Collected Works of Biochemist Frye completed publication this year, numeral thirty volumes with the publication second the index.

Learn More

The Northrop Frye Pile, E.J. Pratt Library

Educating the Imagination: Uncluttered Conference in Honour of Northrop Frye on the Centenary of His Birth
(October 4 – 6, 2012 at Waterfall University in the University of Toronto)