Paul Zweig (July 14, 1935 – August 29, 1984) was an American poet, memoirist, and critic known for his study on

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 ...

Biography

Zweig was born in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

on July 14, 1935, and was raised in a middle-class Jewish family in

Brighton Beach Brighton Beach is a neighborhood in the southern portion of the New York City borough of Brooklyn, within the greater Coney Island area along the Atlantic Ocean coastline. Brighton Beach is bounded by Coney Island proper at Ocean Parkway to the ...

. He graduated from Abraham Lincoln High School, entered

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 ...

to study engineering but switched to literature after taking a class with

Lionel Trilling Lionel Mordecai Trilling (July 4, 1905 – November 5, 1975) was an American literary critic, short story writer, essayist, and teacher. He was one of the leading U.S. critics of the 20th century who analyzed the contemporary cultural, social, ...

. He received his B.A. from Columbia in 1956 and M.A. in 1958. He lived in France and studied at the

University of Paris , image_name = Coat of arms of the University of Paris.svg , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of Arms , latin_name = Universitas magistrorum et scholarium Parisiensis , motto = ''Hic et ubique terrarum'' (Latin) , mottoeng = Here and a ...

, earning his PhD in comparative literature before returning to the United States in 1966. Zweig taught at Columbia and

Queens College Queens College (QC) is a public college in the Queens borough of New York City. It is part of the City University of New York system. Its 80-acre campus is primarily located in Flushing, Queens. It has a student body representing more than 170 ...

and served as chair of its department of comparative literature in alternate years. He also reviewed works of poetry, criticism, and fiction for the ''

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 ...

''. Zweig received a

Guggenheim Fellowship Guggenheim Fellowships are grants that have been awarded annually since by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation to those "who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the art ...

in 1976 and was nominated for a National Book Critics Circle Award for Biography in 1984 for his study on Walt Whitman. He was posthumously named a Finalist of

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 ...

in 1990. In 1984, Zweig died of lymphatic cancer at age 49 in the

American Hospital of Paris The American Hospital of Paris (''Hôpital américain de Paris''), founded in 1906, is a private, not-for-profit hospital that is certified under the French healthcare system. Located in Neuilly-sur-Seine, in the western suburbs of Paris, Franc ...

References

1935 births {{DEFAULTSORT:Zweig, Paul 1984 deaths Academics from New York (state) People from Brighton Beach Columbia College (New York) alumni American critics American poets American memoirists Queens College, City University of New York people University of Paris alumni