Gerald Stanley Lee (October 4, 1862April 3, 1944) was an American writer and minister. He began his career as a clergyman in New England and the Midwest, becoming a full-time writer in 1896. Lee's writing focused on contemporary cultural developments such as the rise of

mass media Mass media refers to a diverse array of media technologies that reach a large audience via mass communication. The technologies through which this communication takes place include a variety of outlets. Broadcast media transmit information ...

and technology.

Early life and education

Gerald Stanley Lee was born on October 4, 1862, in Brockton, Massachusetts. He attended

Oberlin College Oberlin College is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college and conservatory of music in Oberlin, Ohio. It is the oldest Mixed-sex education, coeducational liberal arts college in the United S ...

Middlebury College Middlebury College is a private liberal arts college in Middlebury, Vermont. Founded in 1800 by Congregationalists, Middlebury was the first operating college or university in Vermont. The college currently enrolls 2,858 undergraduates from all ...

(graduating in 1885), and

Yale Divinity School Yale Divinity School (YDS) is one of the twelve graduate and professional schools of Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut. Congregationalist theological education was the motivation at the founding of Yale, and the professional school has ...

Career

Until 1896, Lee worked as a minister in New England and Minnesota. After 1896, he was a full-time writer. His first book, ''The Shadow Christ'', was published that year. According to critic Ryan Jay Friedman, Lee's writing in the 1910s argued that Christian education was similar to

including

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, in that both attempted to persuade people to "choose a particular 'good'". Jo-Anne Pemberton compares Lee's ''The Voice of the Machines: An Introduction to the Twentieth Century'' (1906) with the works of Filippo Tommaso Marinetti and

futurism Futurism ( it, Futurismo, link=no) was an artistic and social movement that originated in Italy, and to a lesser extent in other countries, in the early 20th century. It emphasized dynamism, speed, technology, youth, violence, and objects such ...

. ''Crowds: A Moving-Picture of Democracy'' (1913) argues that media can be used to develop a more cohesive polity. When ''Crowds'' was released in 1913, Lee wrote in a letter to

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...

that he hoped that it would be "the text-book of the Progressive Movement". According to

Russ Castronovo Russell "Russ" Castronovo (born October 22, 1965) is Tom Paine Professor of English and Dorothy Draheim Professor of American Studies at the University of Wisconsin–Madison The University of Wisconsin–Madison (University of Wiscons ...

, who calls ''Crowds'' a "crazy sort of book", the book argues for modern mass media as tools for democracy because they prioritize the present and thereby fuel modernization. Lee opposed U.S. entry into

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, writing essays and editorials characterizing the war as a clumsy effort of the nations involved to communicate their desires and one that could be settled without any U.S. intervention. This drew a harsh rebuke from

G. K. Chesterton Gilbert Keith Chesterton (29 May 1874 – 14 June 1936) was an English writer, philosopher, Christian apologist, and literary and art critic. He has been referred to as the "prince of paradox". Of his writing style, ''Time'' observed: "Wh ...

, who criticized Lee for imagining that the war then underway could be ended by mere discussion and for treating the warring forces as if they were on equal moral footing. Lee was "a frequent contributor of reviews to the ''Critic'' and other periodicals and wrote books on religion, modern culture, and physical fitness". He published a magazine called ''Mount Tom'' in

Northampton, Massachusetts The city of Northampton is the county seat of Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of Northampton (including its outer villages, Florence and Leeds) was 29,571. Northampton is known as an acade ...

. According to

Leonidas Warren Payne Jr. Leonidas Warren Payne Jr. (July 12, 1873 – June 16, 1945) was an American linguist and professor of English at the University of Texas. He was a co-founder of the Texas Folklore Society along with John Lomax, edited the first anthology of Tex ...

, Lee was "a milder, saner sort of twentieth-century

Carlyle Carlyle may refer to: Places * Carlyle, Illinois, a US city * Carlyle, Kansas, an unincorporated place in the US * Carlyle, Montana, a ghost town in the US * Carlyle, Saskatchewan, a Canadian town ** Carlyle Airport ** Carlyle station * Carly ...

, interpreting human nature in new terms for the new age".

Personal life

Lee married Jennette Barbour Perry in 1896. A 1909 profile of Gerald and Jennette described him as a "dreamer", "philosopher", and "wit" who had yet to "come into his own". He died on April 3, 1944, in Northampton.

Bibliography

* ''The Shadow Christ'' (1896)
''The Lost Art of Reading''
(1902) * ''The Voice of the Machines'' (1906) * ''The Child and the Book'' (1907)
''Inspired Millionaires''
(1908) * ''Crowds: A Moving-Picture of Democracy'' (1913) * ''We: A Confession of Faith for the American People During and After War'' (1916) * ''The Air-Line to Liberty'' (1918) * ''The Ghost in the White House'' (1920) * ''Invisible Exercise; Seven Studies in Self Command With Practical Suggestions and Drills'' (1922) * ''Heathen Rage'' (1931) * ''Mount Tom'' (magazine) (1905–1917)

References

Sources

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External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, Gerald Stanley 1862 births 1944 deaths American Congregationalist ministers American male essayists Middlebury College alumni Oberlin College alumni People from Brockton, Massachusetts Yale Divinity School alumni