Walter Clyde Curry (1887 - October 2, 1967) was an American academic, medievalist, and poet. He was a member of the

Fugitives A fugitive (or runaway) is a person who is fleeing from custody, whether it be from jail, a government arrest, government or non-government questioning, vigilante violence, or outraged private individuals. A fugitive from justice, also kno ...

and the author of four books.

Early life

Walter Clyde Curry was born in 1887 in

Gray Court, South Carolina Gray Court is a town in Laurens County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 795 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Greenville– Mauldin– Easley Metropolitan Statistical Area. History Gray Court was incorporated as a ...

. He graduated from

Wofford College Wofford College is a private liberal arts college in Spartanburg, South Carolina. It was founded in 1854. The campus is a national arboretum and one of the few four-year institutions in the southeastern United States founded before the America ...

, and he earned a master's degree and PhD from

Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...

Career

Curry joined the English department 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 ...

in 1915. A poet, he became a member of the

under the penname of Marpha in the 1920s. He taught at

Peabody College Vanderbilt Peabody College of Education and Human Development (also known as Vanderbilt Peabody College, Peabody College, or simply Peabody) is the education school of Vanderbilt University, a private research university in Nashville, Tennessee. ...

from 1930 to 1941. He was the chair of the English department at Vanderbilt University from 1941 to 1955. On his retirements, his former students, including

Cleanth Brooks Cleanth Brooks ( ; October 16, 1906 – May 10, 1994) was an American literary critic and professor. He is best known for his contributions to New Criticism in the mid-20th century and for revolutionizing the teaching of poetry in American higher ...

, published a volume of essays about Curry's scholarship. Curry was a medievalist, and a member of the

Medieval Academy of America The Medieval Academy of America (MAA; spelled Mediaeval until c. 1980) is the largest organization in the United States promoting the field of medieval studies. It was founded in 1925 and is based in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The academy publishes ...

. He was also a member 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 ...

Personal life and death

Curry married Kathryn Worth in 1927. They had a daughter, who married Joseph Rainey. He died on October 2, 1967, in Nashville, at the age of 80.

Selected works

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References

1887 births 1967 deaths People from Gray Court, South Carolina People from Nashville, Tennessee Wofford College alumni Stanford University alumni Vanderbilt University faculty American medievalists Poets from Tennessee American male poets 19th-century American poets 20th-century American poets 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American non-fiction writers American male non-fiction writers {{US-English-academic-bio-stub

Early life

Career

Personal life and death

Selected works

Further reading

References