Thomas Marc Parrott (1866–1960) was a prominent twentieth-century American literary scholar, long a member of the faculty of

Princeton University Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the ...

in New Jersey.

Life and work

T. M. Parrott was born and raised in Ohio, the son of Col. Edwin A. Parrott,

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

veteran, politician (Speaker of the lower house of the Ohio state legislature, 1866–7), and centenarian. The younger Parrott graduated from the College of New Jersey, later known as Princeton, in 1888, and was head of the preparatory department of

Miami University Miami University (informally Miami of Ohio or simply Miami) is a public research university in Oxford, Ohio. The university was founded in 1809, making it the second-oldest university in Ohio (behind Ohio University, founded in 1804) and the ...

from 1888-1890. At Miami, he was considered part of the "dude faculty" of young eastern professors brought to the school upon its reopening after a twelve-year hiatus. He is one of the men credited with bringing football to Miami where intercollegiate play began in 1888 against the University of Cincinnati. He earned his Ph.D. from the

University of Leipzig Leipzig University (german: Universität Leipzig), in Leipzig in Saxony, Germany, is one of the world's oldest universities and the second-oldest university (by consecutive years of existence) in Germany. The university was founded on 2 Decemb ...

in 1893. His thesis was on the non-dramatic poems of Robert Browning. Parrott became assistant professor of English at Princeton in 1896, and full professor at the same institution in 1902. He remained there for the next three decades. Parrott wrote and published voluminously on a wide range of subjects in English literature, though his special areas of interest were

English Renaissance theatre English Renaissance theatre, also known as Renaissance English theatre and Elizabethan theatre, refers to the theatre of England between 1558 and 1642. This is the style of the plays of William Shakespeare, Christopher Marlowe and Ben Jonson ...

and

Victorian literature Victorian literature refers to English literature during the reign of Queen Victoria (1837–1901). The 19th century is considered by some to be the Golden Age of English Literature, especially for British novels. It was in the Victorian era tha ...

; he also published on eighteenth-century figures like Samuel Johnson and

Alexander Pope Alexander Pope (21 May 1688 O.S. – 30 May 1744) was an English poet, translator, and satirist of the Enlightenment era who is considered one of the most prominent English poets of the early 18th century. An exponent of Augustan literature, ...

. Parrott wrote many books and journal articles on

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 natio ...

and other Elizabethans; perhaps his most valuable contribution lies in his work on the canon of

George Chapman George Chapman (Hitchin, Hertfordshire, – London, 12 May 1634) was an English dramatist, translator and poet. He was a classical scholar whose work shows the influence of Stoicism. Chapman has been speculated to be the Rival Poet of Shakesp ...

. Parrott edited the comedies and tragedies of Chapman (1910–14), an edition that is still valuable a century after it was first published.

Selected works

* ''The Greater Victorian Poets'' (1901) * ''The World's Great Woman Novelists'' (1901) * ''Samuel Johnson, Philosopher and Autocrat'' (1903) * ''The Authorship of "Sir Giles Goosecappe"'' (1906) * ''The Date of Chapman's "Bussy D'Ambois"'' (1908) * ''William Shakespeare: A Handbook'' (1934) * ''Hamlet on the Stage'' (1953) * ''Shakespearean Comedy'' (1949)

References

* Craig, Hardin, ed. ''Essays in Dramatic Literature: The Parrott Presentation Volume: By Pupils of Professor Thomas Marc Parrott of Princeton University, Published in his Honor.'' Princeton, NJ, Princeton University Press, 1937. * Logan, Terence P., and Denzell S. Smith, eds. ''The New Intellectuals: A Survey and Bibliography of Recent Studies in English Renaissance Drama.'' Lincoln, NE, University of Nebraska Press, 1977.

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Parrott, Thomas Marc American literary critics Princeton University faculty 1866 births 1960 deaths Miami University faculty

Life and work

Selected works

See also

References

External links