John Churton Collins (26 March 1848 – 25 September 1908) was a British literary

critic A critic is a person who communicates an assessment and an opinion of various forms of creative works such as art, literature, music, cinema, theater, fashion, architecture, and food. Critics may also take as their subject social or governmen ...

Biography

Churton Collins was born at

Bourton-on-the-Water Bourton-on-the-Water is a village and civil parish in Gloucestershire, England, that lies on a wide flat vale within the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The village had a population of 3,296 at the 2011 census. Much of the village ...

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean. The county town is the city of Gl ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. From King Edward's School,

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...

, he went to

Balliol College Balliol College () is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. One of Oxford's oldest colleges, it was founded around 1263 by John I de Balliol, a landowner from Barnard Castle in County Durham, who provided the f ...

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

, where he graduated in 1872, and at once devoted himself to a literary career, as journalist, essayist and lecturer. His first book was a study of

Sir Joshua Reynolds Sir Joshua Reynolds (16 July 1723 – 23 February 1792) was an English painter, specialising in portraits. John Russell said he was one of the major European painters of the 18th century. He promoted the "Grand Style" in painting which depend ...

(1874), and later he edited various classical English writers, and published volumes on Bolingbroke and

Voltaire François-Marie Arouet (; 21 November 169430 May 1778) was a French Age of Enlightenment, Enlightenment writer, historian, and philosopher. Known by his ''Pen name, nom de plume'' M. de Voltaire (; also ; ), he was famous for his wit, and his ...

(1886), ''The Study of English Literature'' (1891), a study of

Dean Swift Jonathan Swift (30 November 1667 – 19 October 1745) was an Anglo-Irish satirist, author, essayist, political pamphleteer (first for the Whigs, then for the Tories), poet, and Anglican cleric who became Dean of St Patrick's Cathedral, Dubli ...

(1893), ''Essays and Studies'' (1895), ''Ephemera Critica'' (1901), ''Essays in Poetry and Criticism'' (1905), and

Rousseau Jean-Jacques Rousseau (, ; 28 June 1712 – 2 July 1778) was a Genevan philosopher, writer, and composer. His political philosophy influenced the progress of the Age of Enlightenment throughout Europe, as well as aspects of the French Revolu ...

and Voltaire (1908), his original essays being sharply controversial in tone, but full of knowledge. In 1904 he became professor of English literature at

Birmingham University , mottoeng = Through efforts to heights , established = 1825 – Birmingham School of Medicine and Surgery1836 – Birmingham Royal School of Medicine and Surgery1843 – Queen's College1875 – Mason Science College1898 – Mason Univers ...

. For many years he was a prominent University Extension lecturer, and a constant contributor to the principal reviews. On 25 September 1908 he was found dead in a ditch near

Lowestoft Lowestoft ( ) is a coastal town and civil parish in the East Suffolk district of Suffolk, England.OS Explorer Map OL40: The Broads: (1:25 000) : . As the most easterly UK settlement, it is north-east of London, north-east of Ipswich and sou ...

Suffolk Suffolk () is a ceremonial county of England in East Anglia. It borders Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south; the North Sea lies to the east. The county town is Ipswich; other important towns include Lowes ...

, at which place he had been staying with a doctor for the benefit of his health. The circumstances necessitated the holding of an inquest, the verdict being that of accidental death.

Criticism

Lord Tennyson Alfred Tennyson, 1st Baron Tennyson (6 August 1809 – 6 October 1892) was an English poet. He was the Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom, Poet Laureate during much of Queen Victoria's reign. In 1829, Tennyson was awarded the Chancellor's Go ...

, a target of Collins' pen, referred to him as "a louse in the locks of literature".

Works

''Bolingbroke: A Historical Study''
(1886). * ''Illustrations of Tennyson'' (1891).
''The Study of English Literature''
(1891).
''Essays and Studies''
(1895). * ''A Treasury of Minor British Poetry'' (1896). * ''The Early Poems of Alfred, Lord Tennyson'' (1900). * ''Ephemera Critica'' (1901).
''Jonathan Swift, a Biographical and Critical Study''
(1902). * ''Critical Essays and Literary Fragments'' (1903). * ''Studies in Shakespeare'' (1904). * ''Studies in Poetry and Criticism'' (1905). * 13 essays, most on 18th century poets, i
''Poets' Country''
ed. Andrew Lang (1907).

(1908). * ''Greek Influence on English Poetry'' (1910). * ''Life and Memoirs of John Churton Collins'' (1911). * ''The Posthumous Essays of John Churton Collins'' (1912).

References

External links

* * *

{{DEFAULTSORT:Collins, John Churton 1848 births 1908 deaths English literary critics People from Bourton-on-the-Water Academics of the University of Birmingham Accidental deaths in England People educated at The King's School, Chester English male non-fiction writers

Biography

Criticism

Works

References

Further reading

External links