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Susan Fromberg Schaeffer

スーザン・フロムバーグ・シェーファー

Susan Fromberg Schaeffer

Profile

Gender
Female
Born
1940-03-25 （Brooklyn, New York, U.S.）
Died
2011-08-26 （Chicago, Illinois, U.S.） age 71
Nationality
United States
Languages
English
Residence History
New York City (primary residence) → Vermont (second home, post-retirement) → Chicago, Illinois (late-life residence) → Brooklyn (birthplace and long-term residence)

Career

Occupations
novelist, poet, professor of English
Active Years
1963-2009
Affiliations
Brooklyn College, Department of English, University of Chicago (visiting professor), Illinois Institute of Technology (former faculty)
Influenced By
Vladimir Nabokov, James Joyce
Influenced
Ramona Lofton (pen name: Sapphire)

Education

South Side High School (Rockville Centre, Long Island)
Period: 〜1957
Year of Graduation: 1957
Country: United States
Graduated from a public high school on Long Island
University of Chicago
Division of the Humanities (English) / English / English Literature
Degree: Ph.D.
Period: 1961–1966
Year of Graduation: 1966
Country: United States
BA (1961), MA (1963), Ph.D. (1966). Dissertation on themes in the works of Vladimir Nabokov

Awards

Edward Lewis Wallant Award
1974
Work: Anya
Organization: Wallant Foundation
Result: 受賞
O. Henry Award
1978
Organization: The O. Henry Prize
Result: 受賞
O. Henry Award
1997
Organization: The O. Henry Prize
Result: 受賞
O. Henry Award
2006
Organization: The O. Henry Prize
Result: 受賞
National Book Award (Poetry)
1974
Work: Granite Lady
Category: 詩
Organization: National Book Foundation
Result: 候補
St. Lawrence Book Award
1984
Organization: St. Lawrence Book Award
Result: 受賞
Guggenheim Fellowship
1984
Organization: John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation
Result: 受賞
Centennial Review Award (Poetry)
1985
Category: 詩
Organization: Centennial Review
Result: 受賞
Professional Achievement Citation (University of Chicago)
1996
Organization: University of Chicago Alumni Association
Result: 受賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Granite Lady

1974 Poetry

A collection of poems exploring women's lives and memory. Finalist for the 1974 National Book Award in Poetry.

memoryfemininityloss

The Madness of a Seduced Woman

1984 Novel

A novel portraying complex characters in extreme psychological and physical distress; critically well regarded.

psychological sufferingwomen's experiencepower and control

Buffalo Afternoon

1989 Novel (dealing with the Vietnam War)

A novel set against the backdrop of the Vietnam War, focusing on personal conflicts and trauma resulting from the war.

war traumamemoryhuman relationships

Bibliography

  • Falling (1973)
  • Anya (1974)
  • Time in Its Flight (1978)
  • Love (1981)
  • First Nights (1983)
  • The Madness of a Seduced Woman (1984)
  • Mainland (1985)
  • The Injured Party (1986)
  • Buffalo Afternoon (1989)
  • Green Island (1994)
  • The Golden Rope (1996)
  • The Autobiography of Foudini M. Cat (1997)
  • The Snow Fox (2004)
  • Poison (2006)
  • The Witch and the Weather Report (1972) - poetry
  • Granite Lady (1974) - poetry
  • The Rhymes and Runes of the Toad (1975) - poetry
  • Alphabet for the Lost Years (1976) - poetry
  • The Bible of the Beasts of the Little Field (1980) - poetry
  • The Queen of Egypt (1980) - short stories
  • The Dragons of North Chittendon (1986) - children's book
  • The Four Hoods and Great Dog (1988) - children's book
  • Numerous other short stories and poetry volumes

Style & Themes

Literary Style
psychological realismcharacter-driven narrativesexperimental narration
Recurring Motifs
memory and the pasttrauma and sufferingfemale perspective

Health

  • Stroke (complications)
    2009–2011
    Forced to stop teaching in March 2009 due to illness; after a long illness died in 2011 from complications following a stroke

Legacy

An American writer and poet active from the late 20th to early 21st century, noted for psychological characterization and experimental techniques. Multiple O. Henry Award winner and influential as a teacher to younger writers.

Academic Societies

  • University of Chicago Alumni Association (honored)

In Popular Culture

  • Known as an influential teacher (e.g., mentoring Ramona Lofton/Sapphire), indirectly connected to cultural works such as the novel Push and its film adaptation Precious

Quotes

  • I find Nabokov 'the most intellectual novelist to write in English since James Joyce.'
    Source: Dissertation/interview (cited on Wikipedia)

Trivia

  • Won the O. Henry Award in 1978, 1997 and 2006.
  • Known for mentoring Ramona Lofton (pen name: Sapphire).
  • Taught at Brooklyn College for more than thirty years.