Robert Morss Lovett
Encyclopedia
Robert Morss Lovett was an American academic, writer, editor, political activist, and government official.
He was born in Boston, Massachusetts, and graduated from Harvard University
in 1892. After a period teaching at Harvard, he came to Chicago in 1893 to teach writing and English literature at the University of Chicago
. He was assistant professor of English (1894–1904); associate professor from 1904 to 1909; and full professor from 1909 onward. From 1903 to 1920 he was dean
in the junior college. He was a member of the National Institute of Arts and Letters. Professor Lovett was the author of The History of English Literature, with W. V. Moody (1902); Richard Gresham, a novel (1904); The First View of English Literature, with W. V. Moody
(1905); A Winged Victory, a novel (1907); and Cowards, a play (1914). He served as editor of the Dial
in 1917 and joined the editorial staff of the New Republic
in 1921. He assisted Tarak Nath Das
.
He was associate editor of The New Republic
magazine in 1921-40, and a signer of the Humanist Manifesto I
in 1933.
As Government Secretary of the Virgin Islands
in 1939-43, he served as acting Governor from December 14, 1940 until February 3, 1941.
In 1943, the Dies Committee charged him as a communist subversive, over his association with left-wing individuals and groups; through a bill passed by both houses of the U.S. Congress, he was forced out of the Secretary position and barred from federal employment. Lovett, who denied he was a Communist, challenged this action through the courts as an unconstitutional bill of attainder
, and though he did not get the job back, he won a 1946 decision from the U.S. Supreme Court (United States v. Lovett, 328 U.S. 303), and received back pay.
He died in St. Joseph's Hospital in Chicago in 1956.
He was born in Boston, Massachusetts, and graduated from Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
in 1892. After a period teaching at Harvard, he came to Chicago in 1893 to teach writing and English literature at the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
. He was assistant professor of English (1894–1904); associate professor from 1904 to 1909; and full professor from 1909 onward. From 1903 to 1920 he was dean
Dean (education)
In academic administration, a dean is a person with significant authority over a specific academic unit, or over a specific area of concern, or both...
in the junior college. He was a member of the National Institute of Arts and Letters. Professor Lovett was the author of The History of English Literature, with W. V. Moody (1902); Richard Gresham, a novel (1904); The First View of English Literature, with W. V. Moody
William Vaughn Moody
William Vaughn Moody was a United States dramatist and poet. Author of The Great Divide, first presented under the title of The Sabine Woman at the Garrick Theatre in Chicago on April 12, 1906...
(1905); A Winged Victory, a novel (1907); and Cowards, a play (1914). He served as editor of the Dial
The Dial
The Dial was an American magazine published intermittently from 1840 to 1929. In its first form, from 1840 to 1844, it served as the chief publication of the Transcendentalists. In the 1880s it was revived as a political magazine...
in 1917 and joined the editorial staff of the New Republic
The New Republic
The magazine has also published two articles concerning income inequality, largely criticizing conservative economists for their attempts to deny the existence or negative effect increasing income inequality is having on the United States...
in 1921. He assisted Tarak Nath Das
Tarak Nath Das
Taraknath Das was an anti-British Bengali Indian revolutionary and internationalist scholar. He was a pioneering immigrant in the west coast of North America and discussed his plans with Tolstoy, while organizing the Asian Indian immigrants in favor of the Indian freedom movement...
.
He was associate editor of The New Republic
The New Republic
The magazine has also published two articles concerning income inequality, largely criticizing conservative economists for their attempts to deny the existence or negative effect increasing income inequality is having on the United States...
magazine in 1921-40, and a signer of the Humanist Manifesto I
Humanist Manifesto I
A Humanist Manifesto, also known as Humanist Manifesto I to distinguish it from later Humanist Manifestos in the series, was written in 1933 primarily by Raymond Bragg and published with 34 signers. Unlike the later manifestos, this first talks of a new religion and refers to humanism as a...
in 1933.
As Government Secretary of the Virgin Islands
Virgin Islands
The Virgin Islands are the western island group of the Leeward Islands, which are the northern part of the Lesser Antilles, which form the border between the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean...
in 1939-43, he served as acting Governor from December 14, 1940 until February 3, 1941.
In 1943, the Dies Committee charged him as a communist subversive, over his association with left-wing individuals and groups; through a bill passed by both houses of the U.S. Congress, he was forced out of the Secretary position and barred from federal employment. Lovett, who denied he was a Communist, challenged this action through the courts as an unconstitutional bill of attainder
Bill of attainder
A bill of attainder is an act of a legislature declaring a person or group of persons guilty of some crime and punishing them without benefit of a judicial trial.-English law:...
, and though he did not get the job back, he won a 1946 decision from the U.S. Supreme Court (United States v. Lovett, 328 U.S. 303), and received back pay.
He died in St. Joseph's Hospital in Chicago in 1956.
External links
- Robert Morss Lovett papers (University of Chicago Library)
- United States v. Lovett, 1946 U.S. Supreme Court ruling