John Beer
Encyclopedia
John Bernard Beer, FBA (born 31 March 1926) is a British
literary critic. He is Emeritus Professor of English Literature at the University of Cambridge
and a Fellow of Peterhouse, Cambridge
. Best known as a scholar and critic of Romantic poets
– especially William Blake
, Samuel Taylor Coleridge
, and William Wordsworth
– he has also published on E. M. Forster
. He was elected a Fellow of the British Academy
in 1994.
Beer served in the RAF from 1946 to 1948. He was a Junior Research Fellow at St John's College, Cambridge
, from 1955 to 1958. Between 1958 and 1964 he was Assistant Lecturer and then Lecturer at the University of Manchester
. From 1964 until his retirement in 1993, he was successively Lecturer, Reader (1978) and Professor (1987) of English Literature at the University of Cambridge
. He is married to the literary critic Gillian Beer
, DBE. He was president of the Charles Lamb Society from 1989 until 2002. He was a Leverhulme emeritus fellow
in 1995–1996 and was the 2006 Stanton lecturer in the philosophy of religion in the University of Cambridge.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
literary critic. He is Emeritus Professor of English Literature at the University of Cambridge
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
and a Fellow of Peterhouse, Cambridge
Peterhouse, Cambridge
Peterhouse is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England. It is the oldest college of the University, having been founded in 1284 by Hugo de Balsham, Bishop of Ely...
. Best known as a scholar and critic of Romantic poets
Romantic poetry
Romanticism, a philosophical, literary, artistic and cultural era which began in the mid/late-1700s as a reaction against the prevailing Enlightenment ideals of the day , also influenced poetry...
– especially William Blake
William Blake
William Blake was an English poet, painter, and printmaker. Largely unrecognised during his lifetime, Blake is now considered a seminal figure in the history of both the poetry and visual arts of the Romantic Age...
, Samuel Taylor Coleridge
Samuel Taylor Coleridge
Samuel Taylor Coleridge was an English poet, Romantic, literary critic and philosopher who, with his friend William Wordsworth, was a founder of the Romantic Movement in England and a member of the Lake Poets. He is probably best known for his poems The Rime of the Ancient Mariner and Kubla...
, and William Wordsworth
William Wordsworth
William Wordsworth was a major English Romantic poet who, with Samuel Taylor Coleridge, helped to launch the Romantic Age in English literature with the 1798 joint publication Lyrical Ballads....
– he has also published on E. M. Forster
E. M. Forster
Edward Morgan Forster OM, CH was an English novelist, short story writer, essayist and librettist. He is known best for his ironic and well-plotted novels examining class difference and hypocrisy in early 20th-century British society...
. He was elected a Fellow of the British Academy
British Academy
The British Academy is the United Kingdom's national body for the humanities and the social sciences. Its purpose is to inspire, recognise and support excellence in the humanities and social sciences, throughout the UK and internationally, and to champion their role and value.It receives an annual...
in 1994.
Beer served in the RAF from 1946 to 1948. He was a Junior Research Fellow at St John's College, Cambridge
St John's College, Cambridge
St John's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college's alumni include nine Nobel Prize winners, six Prime Ministers, three archbishops, at least two princes, and three Saints....
, from 1955 to 1958. Between 1958 and 1964 he was Assistant Lecturer and then Lecturer at the University of Manchester
University of Manchester
The University of Manchester is a public research university located in Manchester, United Kingdom. It is a "red brick" university and a member of the Russell Group of research-intensive British universities and the N8 Group...
. From 1964 until his retirement in 1993, he was successively Lecturer, Reader (1978) and Professor (1987) of English Literature at the University of Cambridge
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
. He is married to the literary critic Gillian Beer
Gillian Beer
Dame Gillian Beer, DBE , King Edward VII Professor of English Literature and President, Clare Hall, University of Cambridge, is a British literary critic and academic.-Career:...
, DBE. He was president of the Charles Lamb Society from 1989 until 2002. He was a Leverhulme emeritus fellow
Leverhulme Trust
The Leverhulme Trust was established in 1925 under the will of the First Viscount Leverhulme, William Hesketh Lever, with the instruction that its resources should be used to support "scholarships for the purposes of research and education."...
in 1995–1996 and was the 2006 Stanton lecturer in the philosophy of religion in the University of Cambridge.
Works
- Coleridge, the Visionary, Chatto & Windus, 1959; Humanities Ebooks, 2007. ISBN 978-1-84760-044-8
- The Achievement of E. M. Forster, Chatto & Windus, 1962; Humanities Ebooks, 2007. ISBN 978-1-84760-003-5
- Blake's humanism, Manchester University Press/Barnes & Noble, 1968; Humanities Ebooks, 2007. ISBN 978-1-84760-000-4
- Blake's Visionary Universe, Manchester University Press/Barnes & Noble, 1969. ISBN 0-7190-0390-3
- Coleridge's Poetic Intelligence, Macmillan, 1977. ISBN 0-333-21312-2
- Wordsworth and the human heart, 1978. ISBN 978-0-231-04646-6
- Questioning Romanticism, Johns Hopkins University Press, 1995. ISBN 0-8018-5052-5
- Post-Romantic Consciousness: Dickens to Plath, Palgrave Macmillan, 2003. ISBN 1-4039-0518-5
- William Blake: a Literary Life, Palgrave Macmillan, 2005. ISBN 978-1-4039-3954-8