Mark Van Doren (June 13, 1894 – December 10, 1972) was an American poet, writer and critic. He was a scholar and a professor of English at

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

for nearly 40 years, where he inspired a generation of influential writers and thinkers including Thomas Merton, Robert Lax, John Berryman,

Whittaker Chambers Whittaker Chambers (born Jay Vivian Chambers; April 1, 1901 – July 9, 1961) was an American writer-editor, who, after early years as a Communist Party member (1925) and Soviet spy (1932–1938), defected from the Soviet underground (1938) ...

, and Beat Generation writers such as Allen Ginsberg and Jack Kerouac. He was literary editor of ''

The Nation ''The Nation'' is an American liberal biweekly magazine that covers political and cultural news, opinion, and analysis. It was founded on July 6, 1865, as a successor to William Lloyd Garrison's '' The Liberator'', an abolitionist newspaper t ...

'', in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

(1924–1928), and its film critic, 1935 to 1938. He won the

1940 A calendar from 1940 according to the Gregorian calendar, factoring in the dates of Easter and related holidays, cannot be used again until the year 5280. Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * Januar ...

Pulitzer Prize for Poetry The Pulitzer Prize for Poetry is one of the seven American Pulitzer Prizes awarded annually for Letters, Drama, and Music. It was first presented in 1922, and is given for a distinguished volume of original verse by an American author, published ...

for ''Collected Poems 1922–1938''. Amongst his other notable works, many published in ''

The Kenyon Review ''The Kenyon Review'' is a literary magazine based in Gambier, Ohio, US, home of Kenyon College. ''The Review'' was founded in 1939 by John Crowe Ransom, critic and professor of English at Kenyon College, who served as its editor until 1959. ' ...

'',"History"
the ''Kenyon Review'' Web site, accessed January 26, 2007 include a collaboration with brother

Carl Van Doren Carl Clinton Van Doren (September 10, 1885 – July 18, 1950) was an American critic and biographer. He was the brother of critic and teacher Mark Van Doren and the uncle of Charles Van Doren. He won the 1939 Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autob ...

, ''American and British Literature since 1890'' (1939); critical studies, ''The Poetry of John Dryden'' (1920), ''Shakespeare'' (1939), ''The Noble Voice'' (1945) and ''Nathaniel Hawthorne'' (1949); collections of poems including ''Jonathan Gentry'' (1931); stories; and the verse play ''The Last Days of Lincoln'' (1959).

Early life and education

Van Doren was born in

Vermilion County, Illinois Vermilion County is a county in the eastern part of the U.S. state of Illinois, between the Indiana border and Champaign County. It was established in 1826 and was the 45th of Illinois' 102 counties. According to the 2010 United States Census, ...

, the fourth of five sons of the county's doctor, Charles Lucius Van Doren, of remote Dutch ancestry, and wife Eudora Ann Butz. He was raised on his family's farm in eastern Illinois, before his father decided to move to the neighboring town of Urbana, to be closer to good schools. He was the younger brother of the academic and biographer

, starting with whom all five brothers attended the local elementary school and high school. Mark Van Doren eventually studied at the

University of Illinois The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the Univer ...

in Urbana,Mark Van Doren: Collected and New Poems

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...

where he earned a B.A. in 1914. In 1920, he earned a

Ph.D. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...

from what became the Columbia Graduate School of Arts and Sciences at

, while also a member of the

Boar's Head Society The Boar's Head Society (1910 – 1970s) was a student ''conversazione society'' devoted to poetry at Columbia University. It was an "adjunct to Columbia College's Philolexian Society... The purpose of their new society was entirely creative: ...

, a student society at the university devoted to poetry.

Career

Van Doren joined the

faculty in 1920, having been preceded by his brother Carl. Mark Van Doren went on to become one of Columbia's greatest teachers and a "legendary classroom presence"; he became a full professor in 1942, and taught English until 1959, at which point he became

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 ...

until his death in 1972. His students at Columbia included the poets and writers John Berryman, Allen Ginsberg, Jack Kerouac,

Louis Simpson Louis Aston Marantz Simpson (March 27, 1923 – September 14, 2012) was an American poet born in Jamaica. He won the 1964 Pulitzer Prize for Poetry for his work ''At the End of the Open Road''. Life and career Simpson was born in Jamaica, the so ...

Richard Howard Richard Joseph Howard (October 13, 1929 – March 31, 2022; adopted as Richard Joseph Orwitz) was an American poet, literary critic, essayist, teacher, and translator. He was born in Cleveland, Ohio, and was a graduate of Columbia University, w ...

, Lionel Trilling (later a colleague), Robert Lax, Anthony Robinson, as well as the

Japanologist Japanese studies ( Japanese: ) or Japan studies (sometimes Japanology in Europe), is a sub-field of area studies or East Asian studies involved in social sciences and humanities research on Japan. It incorporates fields such as the study of Japanes ...

and interpreter of Japanese literature Donald Keene, author and activist

, writer and

Trappist The Trappists, officially known as the Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance ( la, Ordo Cisterciensis Strictioris Observantiae, abbreviated as OCSO) and originally named the Order of Reformed Cistercians of Our Lady of La Trappe, are a ...

monk Thomas Merton, Walter B. Pitkin Jr. and poet-critic John Hollander. He twice served on the staff of ''

'' from 1924–1928 and again from 1935–1938. He was a member of the Society for the Prevention of World War III. In 1940, he was awarded the

for ''Collected Poems 1922–1938''. This came only a year after his elder brother Carl had won the Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography for ''Benjamin Franklin''. Van Doren helped Ginsberg avoid jail time in June 1949 by testifying on his behalf when Ginsberg was arrested as an accessory to crimes carried out by

Herbert Huncke Herbert Edwin Huncke (January 9, 1915 – August 8, 1996) was an American writer and poet, and an active participant in a number of emerging cultural, social and aesthetic movements of the 20th century in America. He was a member of the Beat ...

and others, and was an important influence on Merton, both in Merton's conversion to Catholicism and Merton's poetry. He was a strong advocate of liberal education, and wrote the book, ''Liberal Education'' (1943), which helped promote the influential "

great books A classic is a book accepted as being exemplary or particularly noteworthy. What makes a book "classic" is a concern that has occurred to various authors ranging from Italo Calvino to Mark Twain and the related questions of "Why Read the Cl ...

" movement. Starting in 1941, he also did ''Invitation to Learning'', a CBS Radio show, where as one of the experts he discussed great literature. He was made a Fellow in American Letters of the Library of Congress and also remained president of the

American Academy of Arts and Letters The American Academy of Arts and Letters is a 300-member honor society whose goal is to "foster, assist, and sustain excellence" in American literature, music, and art. Its fixed number membership is elected for lifetime appointments. Its headqu ...

.Mark Van Doren Profile

The New York Review of Books ''The New York Review of Books'' (or ''NYREV'' or ''NYRB'') is a semi-monthly magazine with articles on literature, culture, economics, science and current affairs. Published in New York City, it is inspired by the idea that the discussion of i ...

Personal life

In 1922 Mark Van Doren married Dorothy Graffe, novelist and writer of the memoir ''The Professor and I'' (1959), whom he had earlier met at ''The Nation''. His successful book, ''Anthology of World Poetry'', enabled the couple to buy a house on Bleecker Street in

in February 1929, before markets collapsed. Their son,

Charles Van Doren Charles Lincoln Van Doren (February 12, 1926 – April 9, 2019) was an American writer and editor who was involved in a television quiz show scandal in the 1950s. In 1959 he testified before the U.S. Congress that he had been given the corr ...

(February 12, 1926 - April 9, 2019), briefly achieved renown as the winner of the rigged game show '' Twenty-One''. In the film '' Quiz Show'' (1994), Mark Van Doren was played by

Paul Scofield David Paul Scofield (21 January 1922 – 19 March 2008) was a British actor. During a six-decade career, Scofield achieved the US Triple Crown of Acting, winning an Academy Award, Emmy, and Tony for his work. He won the three awards in a seve ...

, who earned an

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

nomination in the Best Supporting Actor category for his performance. Their second son is John Van Doren who also lives in

Cornwall, Connecticut Cornwall is a town in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 1,567 at the 2020 census. History The town of Cornwall, Connecticut, is named after the county of Cornwall, England. The town was incorporated in 1740, near ...

, at the farmstead where their father did most of his writing between academic years, and where he moved after retirement.Mark Van Doren and Shakespeare
columbia.edu. Mark Van Doren died on December 10, 1972, in

Torrington, Connecticut Torrington is the most populated municipality and only city in Litchfield County, Connecticut and the Northwest Hills region. It is also the core city of Greater Torrington, one of the largest micropolitan areas in the United States. The city p ...

, aged 78, two days after undergoing surgery for circulatory problems at the Charlotte Hungerford Hospital. He was interred at Cornwall Hollow Cemetery in

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its capita ...

Legacy

His correspondence with

Allen Tate John Orley Allen Tate (November 19, 1899 – February 9, 1979), known professionally as Allen Tate, was an American poet, essayist, social commentator, and poet laureate from 1943 to 1944. Life Early years Tate was born near Winchester, ...

is at

Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private research university in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and rail magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided the school its initial $1-million ...

. Since 1962, students of Columbia College have honored a great teacher at the school each year with the "Mark Van Doren Award".

Bibliography

Poetry: * ''Spring Thunder'' (1924) * ''An Anthology of World Poetry'' (1928) * ''Jonathan Gentry'' (1931), (Editor) * ''The Oxford Book of American Prose'', (

OUP Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...

), (1932) * ''Winter Diary'' (1935) * ''Collected Poems 1922–1938'' (1939), Winner of the 1940

* ''The Mayfield Deer'' (1941) * The Country Year (1946) William Sloane Associates, New York * ''Selected poems'' ( Holt), (1954) * ''The Last Days of Lincoln, a play in six scenes'' (1959), a Verse Play * ''Our Lady Peace'' * ''The Story-Teller'' (N/A) * ''Collected and New Poems 1924–1963'' (1963) * * That Shining Place: New Poems (1969) Hall and Wang Novels: * ''The Transients'' (1935) * ''Windless Cabins'' (1940) * ''Tilda'' (1943) Short story collection * ''Nobody Say a Word'' (1954) Nonfiction: * ''Henry David Thoreau: A Critical Study'' (1916) * ''The Poetry of John Dryden'' (1920) * ''Introduction to

Bartram's Travels Bartram's ''Travels'' is the short title of naturalist William Bartram's book describing his travels in the American South and encounters with American Indians between 1773 and 1777. The book was published in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1791 b ...

'' (1928) * ''An Autobiography of America'', (A. & C. Boni), )1929) * ''American poets, 1630-1930'' (Little, Brown), (1932) * ''American and British Literature Since 1890'' (1939), with Carl Van Doren * ''Shakespeare'' (1939) * ''The Liberal Education'' (1943) * ''The night of the summer solstice: & other stories of the Russian war'', ( Henry Holt and Company), (1943) * ''The Noble Voice'' (1946) * ''Nathaniel Hawthorne'' (1949) * ''Introduction to Poetry'' (1951) * ''The Autobiography Of Mark Van Doren'' (1958) * ''The Happy Critic'' (1961) * * * * * Discography:
''Mark Van Doren Reads from His Collected and New Poems''
( Folkways Records, 1967)

Quotes

* "The literature of the world has exerted its power by being translated." The Art, Craft, Modes, and Efficacy of Literary Translation Discussed Through the Ages

The University of Texas at Dallas The University of Texas at Dallas (UTD or UT Dallas) is a public research university in Richardson, Texas. It is one of the largest public universities in the Dallas area and the northernmost institution of the University of Texas system. It wa ...

- School of Arts & Humanities.

References

External links

Mark Van Doren, Biography and Poems
at

Poetry Foundation The Poetry Foundation is an American literary society that seeks to promote poetry and lyricism in the wider culture. It was formed from ''Poetry'' magazine, which it continues to publish, with a 2003 gift of $200 million from philanthropist Ru ...

Mark Van Doren and Shakespeare
''Columbia College Today'', September 2005 (retrieved May 24, 2009)
Mark Van Doren & American classicism.
Free Library *
Finding aid to William F. Claire collection on Mark van Doren at Columbia University. Rare Book & Manuscript Library.Finding aid to Robert N. Caldwell Correspondence with Mark van Doren at Columbia University. Rare Book & Manuscript Library.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Van Doren, Mark 1894 births 1972 deaths American male poets American autobiographers American film critics American literary editors American people of Dutch descent Columbia Graduate School of Arts and Sciences alumni Columbia University faculty American academics of English literature People from Vermilion County, Illinois Pulitzer Prize for Poetry winners The Nation (U.S. magazine) people University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign alumni Mark Van Doren 20th-century American poets 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American non-fiction writers American male non-fiction writers Writers from Illinois Presidents of the American Academy of Arts and Letters