William Calin
Encyclopedia
William Compaine Calin is a senior scholar of Medieval French literature
and French Poetry
at the University of Florida
. His work has focused on Breton
and Occitan Studies and on Franco-British literary relations.
(A.B. 1957) and received his Ph.D. from Yale University
in 1960. He was an instructor (1960–1962) and an Assistant Professor (1962–1963) at Dartmouth College
; Assistant Professor (1969-1965), Associate Professor (1965–1970), and Professor (1970–1973) at Stanford University
; Head of the Department of Romance Languages at the University of Oregon
(1973–1988), Visiting Professor (1982) and Exchange Professor (1984) at the Université de Poitiers, and Edward Arnold Visiting Professor (1987) at Whitman College
. Since 1988, he has served as Graduate Research Professor (from 1998-2001 as Florida Foundation Research Professor) at the University of Florida
.
Calin has served on the editorial advisory boards of the journals Olifant, Tenso, Studies in Medievalism, Escrituras, and Medievally Speaking, and was Guest Editor for a special issue of L’Ésprit Créateur on “The Future of Old French Studies.” His grants and honors include a Guggenheim Foundation
Fellowship (1963–64) as well as grants from the American Council of Learned Societies
(1963–1964; 1968; 1996–1997), the American Philosophical Society
(1970), the Canada Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences (1981), the Fulbright Commission (1982), and the National Endowment for the Humanities
(1984–1985, 1987–1988).
, Breton
, and Occitan. He has also been a supporter and proponent of Leslie J. Workman
’s Medievalism
Studies, serving on the advisory board of Studies in Medievalism and publishing on the reception of medieval culture in postmedieval times. In 2011, on the occasion of his 75th birthday, Calin was recognized by a conference section ("Makers of the Middle Ages: Papers in Honor of William Calin") at the 46th International Congress on Medieval Studies
at Western Michigan University
. During the session, he was presented with a Festschrift, Cahier Calin: Makers of the Middle Ages. Essays in Honor of William Calin, to which 20 of his friends and colleagues contributed short essays.
Calin has also published more than 110 journal articles and book chapters.
Medieval French literature
Medieval French literature is, for the purpose of this article, literature written in Oïl languages during the period from the eleventh century to the end of the fifteenth century....
and French Poetry
French poetry
French poetry is a category of French literature. It may include Francophone poetry composed outside France and poetry written in other languages of France.-French prosody and poetics:...
at the University of Florida
University of Florida
The University of Florida is an American public land-grant, sea-grant, and space-grant research university located on a campus in Gainesville, Florida. The university traces its historical origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its present Gainesville campus since September 1906...
. His work has focused on Breton
Breton people
The Bretons are an ethnic group located in the region of Brittany in France. They trace much of their heritage to groups of Brythonic speakers who emigrated from southwestern Great Britain in waves from the 3rd to 6th century into the Armorican peninsula, subsequently named Brittany after them.The...
and Occitan Studies and on Franco-British literary relations.
Education and career
Calin was educated at Yale CollegeYale College
Yale College was the official name of Yale University from 1718 to 1887. The name now refers to the undergraduate part of the university. Each undergraduate student is assigned to one of 12 residential colleges.-Residential colleges:...
(A.B. 1957) and received his Ph.D. from Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
in 1960. He was an instructor (1960–1962) and an Assistant Professor (1962–1963) at Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College is a private, Ivy League university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. The institution comprises a liberal arts college, Dartmouth Medical School, Thayer School of Engineering, and the Tuck School of Business, as well as 19 graduate programs in the arts and sciences...
; Assistant Professor (1969-1965), Associate Professor (1965–1970), and Professor (1970–1973) at Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
; Head of the Department of Romance Languages at the University of Oregon
University of Oregon
-Colleges and schools:The University of Oregon is organized into eight schools and colleges—six professional schools and colleges, an Arts and Sciences College and an Honors College.- School of Architecture and Allied Arts :...
(1973–1988), Visiting Professor (1982) and Exchange Professor (1984) at the Université de Poitiers, and Edward Arnold Visiting Professor (1987) at Whitman College
Whitman College
Whitman College is a private, co-educational, non-sectarian, residential undergraduate liberal arts college located in Walla Walla, Washington. Initially founded as a seminary by a territorial legislative charter in 1859, the school became a four year degree granting institution in 1883...
. Since 1988, he has served as Graduate Research Professor (from 1998-2001 as Florida Foundation Research Professor) at the University of Florida
University of Florida
The University of Florida is an American public land-grant, sea-grant, and space-grant research university located on a campus in Gainesville, Florida. The university traces its historical origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its present Gainesville campus since September 1906...
.
Calin has served on the editorial advisory boards of the journals Olifant, Tenso, Studies in Medievalism, Escrituras, and Medievally Speaking, and was Guest Editor for a special issue of L’Ésprit Créateur on “The Future of Old French Studies.” His grants and honors include a Guggenheim Foundation
John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation
The John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation was founded in 1925 by Mr. and Mrs. Simon Guggenheim in memory of their son, who died April 26, 1922...
Fellowship (1963–64) as well as grants from the American Council of Learned Societies
American Council of Learned Societies
The American Council of Learned Societies , founded in 1919, is a private nonprofit federation of seventy scholarly organizations.ACLS is best known as a funder of humanities research through fellowships and grants awards. ACLS Fellowships are designed to permit scholars holding the Ph.D...
(1963–1964; 1968; 1996–1997), the American Philosophical Society
American Philosophical Society
The American Philosophical Society, founded in 1743, and located in Philadelphia, Pa., is an eminent scholarly organization of international reputation, that promotes useful knowledge in the sciences and humanities through excellence in scholarly research, professional meetings, publications,...
(1970), the Canada Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences (1981), the Fulbright Commission (1982), and the National Endowment for the Humanities
National Endowment for the Humanities
The National Endowment for the Humanities is an independent federal agency of the United States established by the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act of 1965 dedicated to supporting research, education, preservation, and public programs in the humanities. The NEH is located at...
(1984–1985, 1987–1988).
Major works
Calin's publications span topics from nine centuries and the literary and linguistic traditions of hegemonic France as well as the minority literatures of ScotsScots
Scots may refer to:*The Scottish people, the inhabitants of Scotland*Scots language *Scotch-Irish*Scottish English*Scots pine, a Scottish tree*Short for Pound Scots...
, Breton
Breton language
Breton is a Celtic language spoken in Brittany , France. Breton is a Brythonic language, descended from the Celtic British language brought from Great Britain to Armorica by migrating Britons during the Early Middle Ages. Like the other Brythonic languages, Welsh and Cornish, it is classified as...
, and Occitan. He has also been a supporter and proponent of Leslie J. Workman
Leslie J. Workman
Leslie J. Workman was an independent scholar and founder of academic medievalism.- Biography :...
’s Medievalism
Medievalism
Medievalism is the system of belief and practice characteristic of the Middle Ages, or devotion to elements of that period, which has been expressed in areas such as architecture, literature, music, art, philosophy, scholarship, and various vehicles of popular culture.Since the 18th century, a...
Studies, serving on the advisory board of Studies in Medievalism and publishing on the reception of medieval culture in postmedieval times. In 2011, on the occasion of his 75th birthday, Calin was recognized by a conference section ("Makers of the Middle Ages: Papers in Honor of William Calin") at the 46th International Congress on Medieval Studies
International Congress on Medieval Studies
The International Congress on Medieval Studies is an annual academic conference held for scholars specializing in, or with an interest in, medieval studies. It is sponsored by Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo, Michigan and is held during the first half of May...
at Western Michigan University
Western Michigan University
Western Michigan University is a public university located in Kalamazoo, Michigan, United States. The university was established in 1903 by Dwight B. Waldo, and as of the Fall 2010 semester, its enrollment is 25,045....
. During the session, he was presented with a Festschrift, Cahier Calin: Makers of the Middle Ages. Essays in Honor of William Calin, to which 20 of his friends and colleagues contributed short essays.
- The Old French Epic of Revolt: "Raoul de Cambrai," "Renaud de Montauban," "Gormond et Isembard." Geneva: Droz, 1962. 235 pp.
- (with Michel Banamou) Aux Portes du Poème. New York: Macmillan, 1964. 126 pp.
- The Epic Quest: Studies in Four Old French "Chansons de Geste." Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Press, 1966. 271 pp.
- La Chanson de Roland. New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts, 1968. 183 pp.
- A Poet at the Fountain: Essays on the Narrative Verse of Guillaume de Machaut. Lexington: University Press of Kentucky, 1974. 264 pp.
- Crown, Cross and Fleur-de-lis: An Essay on Pierre Le Moyne's Baroque Epic *"Saint Louis." Saratoga: Stanford French and Italian Studies, 1977. 77 pp.
- A Muse for Heroes: Nine Centuries of the Epic in France. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1983. 514 pp. (Gilbert Chinard First Literary Prize in 1981; American Library Association Choice Award in 1984).
- In Defense of French Poetry: An Essay in Revaluation. University Park: Pennsylvania State University Press, 1987. 208 pp.
- The French Tradition and the Literature of Medieval England. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1994. 587 pp. xvi. (American Library Association Choice Award for 1995).
- Minority Literatures and Modernism: Scots, Breton, and Occitan, 1920-1990. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2000. 399 pp. ix.
- The Twentieth-Century Humanist Critics: From Spitzer to Frye. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2007.
Calin has also published more than 110 journal articles and book chapters.