Bancroft Prize
1 appearances
Robert D. Richardson
ロバート・デイル・リチャードソン
Robert D. Richardson
Pen Names:
Robert D. Richardson Jr.（Used in early career/publications）
Profile
- Gender
- Male
- Born
- 1934-06-14 （Milwaukee, Wisconsin, U.S.）
- Died
- 2020-06-16 （Hyannis, Massachusetts, U.S.） age 86
- Nationality
- American
- Languages
- English
- Residence History
- Milwaukee (birth) → Medford, Massachusetts (raised) → Concord, Massachusetts (raised) → Hyannis, Massachusetts (later life)
Career
- Occupations
- Historian, Biographer, Professor/Academic
- Active Years
- 1960-2020
- Affiliations
- University of Denver (faculty), Harvard University (lecturer/visiting), Yale University (lecturer/visiting), University of Colorado (faculty), Queens College, City University of New York (faculty), Sichuan University (visiting), Wesleyan University (faculty), University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (faculty)
- Influenced By
- Henry David Thoreau (subject of study), Ralph Waldo Emerson (subject of study), William James (subject of study)
Education
| Institution | Faculty | Department | Degree | Period | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Phillips Exeter Academy | — | — | — | 1948–1952 | United States |
| Harvard University | — | — | PhD | — | United States |
Phillips Exeter Academy
Period:
1948–1952
Year of Graduation:
1952
Country:
United States
Graduated from Phillips Exeter Academy.
Harvard University
Degree:
PhD
Country:
United States
Earned a PhD (year unspecified)
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Bancroft Prize | William James: In the Maelstrom of American Modernism | — | Columbia University/Bancroft Prize committee | 受賞 |
| 1996 | Francis Parkman Prize | Emerson: The Mind on Fire | — | Society of American Historians (Francis Parkman Prize) | 受賞 |
| 1990 | Guggenheim Fellowship | — | — | John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation | 受賞（フェローシップ） |
| — | Melcher Book Award | — | — | Melcher Book Award organization | 受賞 |
Bancroft Prize
2007
Work:
William James: In the Maelstrom of American Modernism
Organization:
Columbia University/Bancroft Prize committee
Result:
受賞
Francis Parkman Prize
1996
Work:
Emerson: The Mind on Fire
Organization:
Society of American Historians (Francis Parkman Prize)
Result:
受賞
Guggenheim Fellowship
1990
Organization:
John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation
Result:
受賞（フェローシップ）
Melcher Book Award
Organization:
Melcher Book Award organization
Result:
受賞
Awards & Nominations
Works
Major Works
Henry Thoreau: A Life of the Mind
1986 BiographyA scholarly and narrative biography tracing Henry Thoreau's life and thought, detailing his intellectual formation, daily life, and literary achievements.
TranscendentalismNature and individual thought19th-century American literature
Emerson: The Mind on Fire
1996 BiographyA biography of Ralph Waldo Emerson that portrays his life and thought, illustrating Emerson's intellectual 'ignition' through his lectures, essays, and poetry.
TranscendentalismIndividualismIntellectual history
William James: In the Maelstrom of American Modernism
2006 BiographyA detailed biography of William James, situating his life and thought within American modernism and discussing intersections of psychology, philosophy, and religion.
PragmatismPsychologyHistory of philosophy
First We Read, Then We Write: Emerson on the Creative Process
2009 Essay/StudyA study on Emerson's creative process, examining the relationship between reading and writing and the nature of creativity.
Creative processLiterary theory
Splendor of Heart: Walter Jackson Bate and the Teaching of Literature
2013 Biography/ScholarlyA biographical essay focusing on the achievements and teaching of literary scholar Walter Jackson Bate.
Literary educationLiterary scholarship
Nearer the Heart's Desire: Poets of the Rubaiyat: A Dual Biography of Omar Khayyam and Edward FitzGerald
2016 Biography/Comparative literatureA dual biography that parallels the lives and poetics of Omar Khayyam and his English translator Edward FitzGerald.
TranslationPoetryComparative literature
Three Roads Back: How Emerson, Thoreau, and William James Responded to the Greatest Losses of Their Lives
2023 Biography/Cultural historyA comparative study of how Emerson, Thoreau, and William James responded to the greatest losses in their lives.
Grief and recoveryIntellectual traditions
Bibliography
- Henry Thoreau: A Life of the Mind
- Emerson: The Mind on Fire
- William James: In the Maelstrom of American Modernism
- First We Read, Then We Write: Emerson on the Creative Process
- Splendor of Heart: Walter Jackson Bate and the Teaching of Literature
- Nearer the Heart's Desire: Poets of the Rubaiyat
- Three Roads Back
- Literature and Film
- Myth and Literature in the American Renaissance
- The Rise of Modern Mythology, 1680–1860 (ed.)
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- Scholarly yet narrative biographical proseDetail-oriented archival researchContextualization within intellectual history
- Recurring Motifs
- Transcendentalism and individual spiritIntellectual and religious inquiryRelation between nature and self
Health
-
Subdural hematoma (due to a fall)2020Sustained a subdural hematoma after a fall in 2020 and subsequently died.
Legacy
Robert D. Richardson was a renowned biographer of key figures in American literature and thought—Thoreau, Emerson, and William James—praised for his scholarly rigor combined with narrative style. He won multiple major awards and made significant contributions to the study of American intellectual history from the late 20th to early 21st century.
Academic Societies
- American Historical Association
- Modern Language Association (related)
Trivia
- Published early in his career as Robert D. Richardson Jr.
- Married author Annie Dillard in 1988.
- Known for detailed biographies of Emerson, Thoreau, and William James.
- Won the Francis Parkman Prize (1996) and the Bancroft Prize (2007).