Sylvan Saul Barnet (December 11, 1926 – January 11, 2016)
was an American literary critic and Shakespearean scholar. He was a Fletcher Professor of English Emeritus at
Tufts University
Tufts University is a private research university on the border of Medford and Somerville, Massachusetts. It was founded in 1852 as Tufts College by Christian universalists who sought to provide a nonsectarian institution of higher learning. ...
and the general editor of the
Signet Classics
The New American Library (also known as NAL) is an American publisher based in New York, founded in 1948. Its initial focus was affordable paperback reprints of classics and scholarly works as well as popular and pulp fiction, but it now publishe ...
Shakespeare.
Biography
Barnet was born in
Brooklyn, New York
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 ...
, and attended
Erasmus Hall High School
Erasmus Hall High School was a four-year public high school located at 899–925 Flatbush Avenue between Church and Snyder Avenues in the Flatbush neighborhood of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. It was founded in 1786 as Erasmus Hall Ac ...
.
His father was a leather tanner.
Barnet served in the
U.S. Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...
at the tail end of
World War II
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 opposin ...
.
He earned his bachelor's degree at
New York University
New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin.
In 1832, the ...
in 1948, and then his M.A. in 1950 and Ph.D. in 1954 at
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 ...
.
In 1951, Barnet met William C. Burto.
The two became
life partners in 1952.
Barnet spent his entire career at
Tufts University
Tufts University is a private research university on the border of Medford and Somerville, Massachusetts. It was founded in 1852 as Tufts College by Christian universalists who sought to provide a nonsectarian institution of higher learning. ...
, where he taught English literature from 1954 to 1984 and served for several terms as chair of the English department.
He was the first
Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
member of the department.
Barnet authored numerous books and articles on
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...
, including ''A Short Guide to Shakespeare.'' In the early 1960s, Barnet successfully proposed to the
New American Library
The New American Library (also known as NAL) is an American publisher based in New York, founded in 1948. Its initial focus was affordable paperback reprints of classics and scholarly works as well as popular and pulp fiction, but it now publishe ...
the creation of a new series of Shakespeare's plays, one that would be aimed at college students. Each low-cost volume in the Signet Classics Shakespeare series focused on a single play. Every book included a general essay by Barnet about Shakespeare's life and times, an introductory essay about the specific play by an eminent scholar, and excerpts of some of Shakespeare's sources and inspirations.
Barnet was the co-author (with Burto) of essays on aspects of
Japanese art
Japanese art covers a wide range of art styles and media, including ancient pottery, sculpture, ink painting and calligraphy on silk and paper, ''ukiyo-e'' paintings and woodblock prints, ceramics, origami, and more recently manga and anime. It ...
. Their writings on art drew inspiration from the couple's impressive personal collection, which was donated to four different museums after their deaths.
Barnet also wrote several textbooks about art, writing, and literature.
In total, Barnet wrote, co-wrote, or edited over forty books during his lifetime.
Barnet lived in
Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. As part of the Boston metropolitan area, the cities population of the 2020 U.S. census was 118,403, making it the fourth most populous city in the state, behind Boston, ...
, with Burto until the latter's death in 2013.
Barnet died of
brain cancer
A brain tumor occurs when abnormal cells form within the brain. There are two main types of tumors: malignant tumors and benign (non-cancerous) tumors. These can be further classified as primary tumors, which start within the brain, and secondar ...
at his home on January 11, 2016, at the age of 89.
Selected works
* ''Eight Great Tragedies'', with William Burto and Morton Berman, Penguin Group (USA), 1996,
* ''A Short Guide to Shakespeare'', An Original Harvest Book, New York, 1972,
* ''Short Guide to Writing about Literature'', with William E. Cain, Longman, Boston, 12th ed, 2012,
* ''The Written Image: Japanese Calligraphy and Painting from the Sylvan Barnet and William Burto collection'', with by Miyeko Murase and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Yale University Press, New Haven, 2002,
* ''A Short Guide to Writing about Art'', Addison-Wesley Educational Publishers, 10th ed, 2011,
* ''Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice: A Collection of Critical Essays'', Prentice Hall, June 1970,
* ''An Introduction to Literature'', with William Burto and William E. Cain, Longman, 16th ed, 2010,
* ''Types of Drama: Plays and Contexts'', with William C. Burto, Lesley Ferris, and Gerald Rabkin, Longman, 2001,
* ''Zen Ink Paintings (Great Japanese Art)'', with William Burto, Kodansha Amer Inc, October 1982,
* ''Current Issues and Enduring Questions: A Guide to Critical Thinking and Argument, with Readings'', with
Hugo Bedau
Hugo Adam Bedau (September 23, 1926 – August 13, 2012) was the Austin B. Fletcher Professor of Philosophy, Emeritus, at Tufts University, and is best known for his work on capital punishment. He has been called a "leading anti-death-penalt ...
, Bedford/St. Martin's, July 2010,
References
External links
*
OpenLibrary version of ''A Short Guide to Shakespeare''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Barnet, Sylvan
1926 births
2016 deaths
American literary critics
Shakespearean scholars
New York University alumni
Harvard University alumni
Tufts University faculty
Erasmus Hall High School alumni
United States Army personnel of World War II
United States Army soldiers
American LGBT writers
Jewish American writers
LGBT Jews
LGBT military personnel
Deaths from brain cancer in the United States