William Ellery Leonard
Encyclopedia
William Ellery Leonard was an American
poet, playwright, translator, and literary scholar.
minister, he received his B.A.
from Boston University
in 1898, his M.A.
from Harvard University
in 1899, engaged in graduate studies in Germany
at both the University of Bonn
and Göttingen University, and earned his Ph.D.
from Columbia
in 1904.
, being an assistant professor of English. Among his prominent students were literary critic Leslie Fiedler
and poet Clara Leiser, the latter an outspoken opponent of Nazism
.
Over his career Leonard wrote numerous volumes of poetry, the first of which was Sonnets and Poems, a collection regarded as showing emotional intensity as well as psychological depth. He is most remembered, however, for Two Lives, a cycle of 250 sonnet
s telling the story of his tragic marriage. Stephen Vincent Benét
called it the best American poem of the twentieth century. In his psychological autobiography, The Locomotive-God, he probed his agoraphobia. Leonard is also known for his many scholarly works, particularly translations of Aesop
and Lucretius
as well as the epic Beowulf
.
, which not only kept him confined to the area of his home and university campus but increased with age to the point that, in the last years of his life, he conducted all lectures from his home. He married Charlotte Freeman, the daughter of his landlord, in 1909. The marriage was short-lived, however; she committed suicide
on May 4, 1910. From 1914 until their divorce in 1934, he was married to Charlotte Charlton. In 1935, he married a student, Grace Golden, who divorced him two years later. Three years after that, he remarried his second wife.
Leonard died of a heart attack in Madison, Wisconsin on May 2, 1944. A newspaper reported that his death had freed him "from the phobic prison he had occupied for years."
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
poet, playwright, translator, and literary scholar.
Early life
The son of a UnitarianUnitarianism
Unitarianism is a Christian theological movement, named for its understanding of God as one person, in direct contrast to Trinitarianism which defines God as three persons coexisting consubstantially as one in being....
minister, he received his B.A.
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
from Boston University
Boston University
Boston University is a private research university located in Boston, Massachusetts. With more than 4,000 faculty members and more than 31,000 students, Boston University is one of the largest private universities in the United States and one of Boston's largest employers...
in 1898, his M.A.
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
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 1899, engaged in graduate studies in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
at both the University of Bonn
University of Bonn
The University of Bonn is a public research university located in Bonn, Germany. Founded in its present form in 1818, as the linear successor of earlier academic institutions, the University of Bonn is today one of the leading universities in Germany. The University of Bonn offers a large number...
and Göttingen University, and earned his Ph.D.
Ph.D.
A Ph.D. is a Doctor of Philosophy, an academic degree.Ph.D. may also refer to:* Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*Piled Higher and Deeper, a web comic strip*PhD: Phantasy Degree, a Korean comic series* PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
from Columbia
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
in 1904.
Career
From 1906 until the end of his life, Leonard taught at the University of Wisconsin–MadisonUniversity of Wisconsin–Madison
The University of Wisconsin–Madison is a public research university located in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. Founded in 1848, UW–Madison is the flagship campus of the University of Wisconsin System. It became a land-grant institution in 1866...
, being an assistant professor of English. Among his prominent students were literary critic Leslie Fiedler
Leslie Fiedler
Leslie Aaron Fiedler was a Jewish-American literary critic, known for his interest in mythography and his championing of genre fiction. His work also involves application of psychological theories to American literature. He was in practical terms one of the early postmodernist critics working...
and poet Clara Leiser, the latter an outspoken opponent of Nazism
Nazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
.
Over his career Leonard wrote numerous volumes of poetry, the first of which was Sonnets and Poems, a collection regarded as showing emotional intensity as well as psychological depth. He is most remembered, however, for Two Lives, a cycle of 250 sonnet
Sonnet
A sonnet is one of several forms of poetry that originate in Europe, mainly Provence and Italy. A sonnet commonly has 14 lines. The term "sonnet" derives from the Occitan word sonet and the Italian word sonetto, both meaning "little song" or "little sound"...
s telling the story of his tragic marriage. Stephen Vincent Benét
Stephen Vincent Benét
Stephen Vincent Benét was an American author, poet, short story writer, and novelist. Benét is best known for his book-length narrative poem of the American Civil War, John Brown's Body , for which he won a Pulitzer Prize in 1929, and for two short stories, "The Devil and Daniel Webster" and "By...
called it the best American poem of the twentieth century. In his psychological autobiography, The Locomotive-God, he probed his agoraphobia. Leonard is also known for his many scholarly works, particularly translations of Aesop
Aesop
Aesop was a Greek writer credited with a number of popular fables. Older spellings of his name have included Esop and Isope. Although his existence remains uncertain and no writings by him survive, numerous tales credited to him were gathered across the centuries and in many languages in a...
and Lucretius
Lucretius
Titus Lucretius Carus was a Roman poet and philosopher. His only known work is an epic philosophical poem laying out the beliefs of Epicureanism, De rerum natura, translated into English as On the Nature of Things or "On the Nature of the Universe".Virtually no details have come down concerning...
as well as the epic Beowulf
Beowulf
Beowulf , but modern scholars agree in naming it after the hero whose life is its subject." of an Old English heroic epic poem consisting of 3182 alliterative long lines, set in Scandinavia, commonly cited as one of the most important works of Anglo-Saxon literature.It survives in a single...
.
Personal life
Leonard suffered from lifelong agoraphobiaAgoraphobia
Agoraphobia is an anxiety disorder defined as a morbid fear of having a panic attack or panic-like symptoms in a situation from which it is perceived to be difficult to escape. These situations can include, but are not limited to, wide-open spaces, crowds, or uncontrolled social conditions...
, which not only kept him confined to the area of his home and university campus but increased with age to the point that, in the last years of his life, he conducted all lectures from his home. He married Charlotte Freeman, the daughter of his landlord, in 1909. The marriage was short-lived, however; she committed suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
on May 4, 1910. From 1914 until their divorce in 1934, he was married to Charlotte Charlton. In 1935, he married a student, Grace Golden, who divorced him two years later. Three years after that, he remarried his second wife.
Leonard died of a heart attack in Madison, Wisconsin on May 2, 1944. A newspaper reported that his death had freed him "from the phobic prison he had occupied for years."
Legacy
Today the William Ellery Leonard House is on the list of Registered Historic Places in Madison, WisconsinMadison, Wisconsin
Madison is the capital of the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Dane County. It is also home to the University of Wisconsin–Madison....
.
Works
- Byron and Byronism in America (1905—Columbia University dissertation)
- Sonnets and Poems (1906)
- The Fragments of Empedocles (1908)
- Aesop and Hyssop (1912)
- The Vaunt of Man (1912)
- Socrates, Master of Life (1915)
- "Bryant and the Minor Poets," Book II, Chapter V of The Cambridge History of American Literature (1917–1921)
- The Lynching Bee (1920)
- Tutankhamen and After (1924)
- Two Lives (1925)
- The Locomotive-God (1927)
- Translation of Lucretius' Of the Nature of Things (1916)
- Beowulf: A New Verse Translation for Fireside and Class Room (1923)
- A Son of Earth Collected Poems (1928)
- Gilgamesh: Epic of Old Babylonia (1934)
- A Man Against Time (1945)
Further reading
- Daniel S. Burt, editor, The Chronology of American Literature. New York: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2004.
- Chester E. Jorgenson, "William Ellery Leonard: An Appraisal" in Studies in Honor of John Wilcox by A. Dale Wallace and Woodbrun O. Ross. Detroit: Wayne State University press, 1958.
- Chauncey D. Leake, "1876-1944 William Ellery Leonard: Tormented Genius of the Midlands" in Wisconsin Alumnus 77:4, 1976.
- The Columbia Encyclopedia Third Edition. New York: Columbia University Press, 1963.
- The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia Sixth Edition. New York: Columbia University Press, 2003.
External links
- Leonard, William Ellery 1876 - 1944 at Dictionary of Wisconsin History
- Newspaper articles about William Leonard
- Works by William Ellery Leonard at Internet Archive
- Review of The Locomotive God, Wisconsin Literary Magazine