Philip F. Gura (born June 14, 1950) is an intellectual and cultural historian. He currently serves as

William S. Newman William Stein Newman (April 6, 1912 – April 27, 2000) was an American musicologist. He was born in Cleveland, Ohio. From 1945 he taught at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is best remembered for his three volume ''History ...

Distinguished Professor of American Literature and Culture at the

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States ...

, where he holds appointments in the Departments of English and Comparative Literature, Religious Studies, and American Studies.

Biography

Gura was born in

Ware, Massachusetts Ware is a town in Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 10,066 as of 2020. It is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. The census-designated place of Ware, comprising the main settleme ...

. A graduate of

Phillips Academy ("Not for Self") la, Finis Origine Pendet ("The End Depends Upon the Beginning") Youth From Every Quarter Knowledge and Goodness , address = 180 Main Street , city = Andover , state = Ma ...

(1968), he received his AB, ''

magna cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some So ...

'', in History and Literature in 1972 from

Harvard College Harvard College is the undergraduate college of Harvard University, an Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636, Harvard College is the original school of Harvard University, the oldest institution of higher lea ...

, and his PhD, in the History of American Civilization in 1977, from

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

, where he lived in

Lowell House Lowell House is one of twelve undergraduate residential Houses at Harvard University, located at 10 Holyoke Place facing Mount Auburn Street between Harvard Yard and the Charles River. Officially, it is named for the Lowell family, but an orna ...

. He is the author or editor of 14 books, including ''The Wisdom of Words: Language, Theology, and Literature in the New England Renaissance'' (1981), ''A Glimpse of Sion's Glory: Puritan Radicalism in New England, 1620–1660'' (1984), the prize-winning ''America's Instrument: The Banjo in the 19th Century'' (1999), ''Buried from the World: Inside the Massachusetts State Prison, 1829–1831'' (2001), ''C. F. Martin and His Guitars, 1796–1873'' (2003), ''Jonathan Edwards: America’s Evangelical'' (2005), ''American Transcendentalism: A History'' (2007), which was a National Book Critics Circle Award finalist in non-fiction, ''The American Antiquarian Society, 1812–2012: A Bicentennial History'' (2012), ''Truth's Ragged Edge: The Rise of the American Novel'' (2013), ''Jonathan Edwards: Writings from the Great Awakening'' (2013), ''The Life of William Apess (Pequot)'' (2015), and ''Man’s Better Angels: Romantic Reformers and the Coming of the Civil War'' (2017). Some of his essays, which number over fifty, have been collected in ''The Crossroads of American History and Literature'' (1996). He has served as an editor of

The Norton Anthology of American Literature ''The Norton Anthology of American Literature'' is a compendium of various works by authors of specifically American birth or naturalization, ranging from short poems, pamphlets, and novellas to longer entries such as entire novels and philosophic ...

. Gura is an elected member of the

American Antiquarian Society The American Antiquarian Society (AAS), located in Worcester, Massachusetts, is both a learned society and a national research library of pre-twentieth-century American history and culture. Founded in 1812, it is the oldest historical society in ...

, the

Massachusetts Historical Society The Massachusetts Historical Society is a major historical archive specializing in early American, Massachusetts, and New England history. The Massachusetts Historical Society was established in 1791 and is located at 1154 Boylston Street in Bost ...

, the

Colonial Society of Massachusetts Colonial or The Colonial may refer to: * Colonial, of, relating to, or characteristic of a colony or colony (biology) Architecture * American colonial architecture * French Colonial * Spanish Colonial architecture Automobiles * Colonial (1920 au ...

, and the

Society of American Historians The Society of American Historians, founded in 1939, encourages and honors literary distinction in the writing of history and biography about American topics. The approximately 300 members include professional historians, independent scholars, jou ...

. In 2008, the Division on American Literature to 1800 of the

Modern Language Association The Modern Language Association of America, often referred to as the Modern Language Association (MLA), is widely considered the principal professional association in the United States for scholars of language and literature. The MLA aims to "st ...

honored him with its Distinguished Scholar award. In 2019 the governor of North Carolina named him to the Order of the Long Leaf Pine, a state-wide honor. He plays the

clawhammer banjo Clawhammer, sometimes called down-picking, overhand, or frailing, is a distinctive banjo playing style and a common component of American old-time music. The principal difference between clawhammer style and other styles is the picking direct ...

in a traditional Appalachian style, known as "old-time."

Selected work

* ''Man’s Better Angels: Romantic Reformers and the Coming of the Civil War'' (2017) * ''The Life of William Apess (Pequot)'' (2015) * ''Jonathan Edwards: Writings from the Great Awakening'' (2013). * ''Truth's Ragged Edge: The Rise of the American Novel'' (2013). * ''The American Antiquarian Society, 1812–2012: A Bicentennial History'' (2012). * ''American Transcendentalism: A History'' (2007). * ''Jonathan Edwards: America's Evangelical'' (2005). * ''C.F. Martin and His Guitars, 1796–1873'' (2003). * ''Buried from the World: Inside the Massachusetts State Prison, 1829–1831, The Memorandum Books of the Rev. Jared Curtis'' (2001). * ''America's Instrument: The Banjo in the Nineteenth Century'' (1999). * ''The Crossroads of American History and Literature'' (1996). * ''Memoirs of Stephen Burroughs'' (1988). * ''A Glimpse of Sion's Glory: Puritan Radicalism in New England, 1620–1660'' (1984). * ''Critical Essays on American Transcendentalism'' (1982). * ''The Wisdom of Words: Language, Theology, and Literature in the New England Renaissance'' (1981).

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gura, Philip F. Living people American literary critics University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill faculty University of Colorado faculty 1950 births Harvard College alumni Phillips Academy alumni Members of the American Antiquarian Society People from Ware, Massachusetts