James E. Miller Jr. (1920–2010) was an American scholar and the Helen A. Regenstein

Professor Emeritus ''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...

of English Language and Literature at the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chic ...

, where he completed his graduate work, taught, and served as chairman of the English department. He has also served previously as president of the Midwest Modern Language Association, president of the Nation Council of Teachers of English, beginning in 1969, and editor of the journal ''College English''. He served as an editorial adviser to the journals ''Modern Philology'', ''Critical Inquiry'', ''Studies in American Fiction'', and ''American Poetry''. Specializing in American literature, he published over twenty books and various articles on authors such as T. S. Eliot,

Herman Melville Herman Melville ( born Melvill; August 1, 1819 – September 28, 1891) was an American novelist, short story writer, and poet of the American Renaissance period. Among his best-known works are ''Moby-Dick'' (1851); ''Typee'' (1846), a rom ...

, and

Walt Whitman Walter Whitman (; May 31, 1819 – March 26, 1892) was an American poet, essayist and journalist. A humanist, he was a part of the transition between transcendentalism and realism, incorporating both views in his works. Whitman is among ...

. His books include '' T. S. Eliot’s Personal Wasteland: Exorcism of the Demons, T. S. Eliot: The Making of an American Poet, The American Quest for a Supreme Fiction: Whitman’s Legacy in the Personal Epic, Leaves of Grass: America’s Lyric-Epic of Self and Democracy,

F. Scott Fitzgerald Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald (September 24, 1896 – December 21, 1940) was an American novelist, essayist, and short story writer. He is best known for his novels depicting the flamboyance and excess of the Jazz Age—a term he popularize ...

: His Art and His Technique, Theory of Fiction:

Henry James Henry James ( – ) was an American-British author. He is regarded as a key transitional figure between literary realism and literary modernism, and is considered by many to be among the greatest novelists in the English language. He was the ...

, and Quests Surd and Absurd: Essays in American Literature''. He also has edited the anthology ''Heritage of American Literature'', a ''Critical Guide to Leaves of Grass'', and a ''Reader’s Guide to Herman Melville''. His work on Eliot considers personal correspondence and the accounts of friends as well as an in-depth reading of Eliot’s early work up to and including ''

The Waste Land ''The Waste Land'' is a poem by T. S. Eliot, widely regarded as one of the most important poems of the 20th century and a central work of modernist poetry. Published in 1922, the 434-line poem first appeared in the United Kingdom in the Octob ...

''. Miller also contends that though Eliot lived in England much of his life, he remained quintessentially an American writer. Miller's early work on J. D. Salinger was among the first work of its kind to be published. Throughout his career, Miller traveled and taught extensively in Japan, Australia, France, Italy, and elsewhere.

Notes

References

*Haegert, John: “James E. Miller: An American Scholar.” ''Modern Philology''. 8.1 (1990). 1–2. *Miller, James E.: ''T. S. Eliot: The Making of an American Poet''. University Park, Pennsylvania. The Pennsylvania State University Press. 2005. University of Chicago faculty 1920 births 2010 deaths {{US-English-academic-bio-stub