James Kinsley, FBA, FRSL (17 April 1922 – 24 August 1984) was a Scottish literary scholar.

Early life, education, war service and priesthood

Born on 17 April 1922, Kinsley attended the Royal High School in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...

and the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

. After graduating in 1943, he served in the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

. On

demobilisation Demobilization or demobilisation (see spelling differences) is the process of standing down a nation's armed forces from combat-ready status. This may be as a result of victory in war, or because a crisis has been peacefully resolved and milit ...

, he continued his studies at Oriel College, Oxford."Rev Prof James Kinsley", ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' (f ...

'' (London), 5 September 1984, p. 14. Later in life, Kinsley studied to be a priest; he was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform ...

in 1963 and served as a curate in Beeston and from 1964 as a public preacher in the

diocese of Southwell The Diocese of Southwell and Nottingham is a Church of England diocese in the Province of York, headed by the Bishop of Southwell and Nottingham. It covers all the English county of Nottinghamshire and a few parishes in South Yorkshire. It is b ...

Academia

After graduating from Oxford in 1947, he took up a lectureship at the

University College of Wales , mottoeng = A world without knowledge is no world at all , established = 1872 (as ''The University College of Wales'') , former_names = University of Wales, Aberystwyth , type = Public , endowment = ...

at Aberystwyth. He was then successively

Professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an academic rank at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who professes". Professors ...

of English Language and Literature at the University College of Swansea (1954–61) and Professor of English Studies at the

University of Nottingham , mottoeng = A city is built on wisdom , established = 1798 – teacher training college1881 – University College Nottingham1948 – university status , type = Public , chancellor ...

(1961–84). Kinsley edited

David Lyndsay Sir David Lyndsay of the Mount (c. 1490 – c. 1555; ''alias'' Lindsay) was a Scottish herald who gained the highest heraldic office of Lyon King of Arms. He remains a well regarded poet whose works reflect the spirit of the Renaissance, speci ...

's '' Ane Satyre of the Thrie Estaits'' (1954); wrote ''Scottish Poetry: A Critical Survey'' (1954); compiled ''The Poems of

John Dryden '' John Dryden (; – ) was an English poet, literary critic, translator, and playwright who in 1668 was appointed England's first Poet Laureate. He is seen as dominating the literary life of Restoration England to such a point that the per ...

'', which appeared in 1958 in four volumes; and edited '' Squyer Meldrum'' by Lyndsay (1959), ''The Works of

Virgil Publius Vergilius Maro (; traditional dates 15 October 7021 September 19 BC), usually called Virgil or Vergil ( ) in English, was an ancient Roman poet of the Augustan period. He composed three of the most famous poems in Latin literature: th ...

Translated by John Dryden'' (1961), ''The Poems and Fables of John Dryden'' (1962), ''

Annals of the Parish ''Annals of the Parish'' (full title: ''Annals of the parish: or, The chronicle of Dalmailing; during the ministry of the Rev. Micah Balwhidder, written by himself'') is an 1821 novel of Scottish country life by John Galt. Micah Balwhidder, consi ...

'' by

John Galt John Galt () is a character in Ayn Rand's novel ''Atlas Shrugged'' (1957). Although he is not identified by name until the last third of the novel, he is the object of its often-repeated question "Who is John Galt?" and of the quest to discover ...

(1967), ''The Poems and Songs of

Robert Burns Robert Burns (25 January 175921 July 1796), also known familiarly as Rabbie Burns, was a Scottish poet and lyricist. He is widely regarded as the national poet of Scotland and is celebrated worldwide. He is the best known of the poets who hav ...

'' (3 vols., 1968), ''The Oxford Book of Ballads'' (1969), ''Anecdotes and Characters of My Own Time'' by

Alexander Carlyle Alexander Carlyle MA DD FRSE (26 January 172228 August 1805) was a Scottish church leader, and autobiographer. He served as Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1770/71. Life He was born on 26 January 1722 in the m ...

(1973), and ''The Poems of

William Dunbar William Dunbar (born 1459 or 1460 – died by 1530) was a Scottish makar, or court poet, active in the late fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries. He was closely associated with the court of King James IV and produced a large body of work i ...

'' (1979). He sometimes collaborated with his wife Helen, née Dawson, with whom he jointly authored ''Dryden: The Critical Heritage'' (1971). Between 1969 and 1977, he was editor of the Oxford English Novels and the Oxford English Memoirs and Travels series. He gave the Gregynog Lecture at Aberystwyth in 1963 and the

British Academy The British Academy is the United Kingdom's national academy for the humanities and the social sciences. It was established in 1902 and received its royal charter in the same year. It is now a fellowship of more than 1,000 leading scholars spa ...

's Warton Lecture in 1974, and was awarded the

DLitt Doctor of Letters (D.Litt., Litt.D., Latin: ' or ') is a terminal degree in the humanities that, depending on the country, is a higher doctorate after the Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degree or equivalent to a higher doctorate, such as the Doctor ...

degree by the University of Edinburgh in 1959. He was elected a fellow of the Royal Society of Literature (1959) and of the British Academy (1971). He died on 24 August 1984. In 1977, Kinsley was an expert witness at the obscenity trial for the Sex Pistols album

Never Mind the Bollocks ''Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols'' is the only studio album by English punk rock band the Sex Pistols, released on 28 October 1977 by Virgin Records in the UK and on 11 November 1977 by Warner Bros. Records in the US. The albu ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kinsley, James 1922 births 1984 deaths English literature academics Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Alumni of Oriel College, Oxford Academics of Aberystwyth University Academics of Swansea University Academics of the University of Nottingham Fellows of the British Academy Fellows of the Royal Society of Literature