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Wallace Earle Stegner

ウォレス・アール・ステグナー

Wallace Earle Stegner

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1909-02-18 （Lake Mills, Iowa, U.S.）
Died
1993-04-13 （Santa Fe, New Mexico, U.S.） age 84
Nationality
United States
Languages
English
Religion
Lutheran
Residence History
Great Falls, Montana, U.S. → Salt Lake City, Utah, U.S. → Eastend, Saskatchewan, Canada → Greensboro, Vermont, U.S. → Los Altos Hills, California, U.S.

Career

Occupations
novelist, writer, historian, environmentalist, short story writer, educator (university professor)
Active Years
1937-1993
Affiliations
Stanford University, Harvard University, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Sierra Club (board member)
Memberships
American Academy of Arts and Letters (member), National Institute (member), Sierra Club (board member)
Influenced By
Bernard DeVoto, John Wesley Powell (subject/figure influencing his non-fiction)
Influenced
Wendell Berry, Edward Abbey, Ken Kesey, Larry McMurtry, Robert Stone

Education

University of Utah
Degree: BA
Period: 1926–1930
Year of Graduation: 1930
Country: United States
Initiated into Sigma Nu fraternity while at the university
University of Iowa
Degree: MA
Period: 1930–1932
Year of Graduation: 1932
Country: United States
Earned a master's degree
University of Iowa
Degree: PhD
Period: 1932–1935
Year of Graduation: 1935
Country: United States
Completed doctorate

Awards

Little, Brown Prize
1937
Work: Remembering Laughter
Organization: Little, Brown and Company
Result: 受賞
Anisfield-Wolf Book Award
1945
Work: One Nation
Organization: Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards
Result: 受賞
Pulitzer Prize for Fiction
1972
Work: Angle of Repose
Organization: The Pulitzer Prizes
Result: 受賞
National Book Award for Fiction
1977
Work: The Spectator Bird
Organization: National Book Foundation
Result: 受賞
Commonwealth Club Gold Medal
1967
Work: All the Little Live Things
Organization: Commonwealth Club of California
Result: 受賞
Commonwealth Club Gold Medal
1976
Work: The Spectator Bird
Organization: Commonwealth Club of California
Result: 受賞
Guggenheim Fellowship
1949
Organization: John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation
Result: 受賞
Guggenheim Fellowship
1959
Organization: John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation
Result: 受賞
P.E.N. Center USA West Award
1990
Work: body of work
Organization: P.E.N. Center USA West
Result: 受賞
California Arts Council Award
1991
Work: body of work
Organization: California Arts Council
Result: 受賞
Golden Plate Award
1991
Organization: American Academy of Achievement
Result: 受賞
National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) award (refused)
1992
Organization: National Endowment for the Arts
Result: 辞退
O. Henry Award (three times)
Organization: O. Henry Awards
Result: 受賞（複数回）
Los Angeles Times Kirsch Award (lifetime achievement)
1980
Work: lifetime achievement
Organization: Los Angeles Times
Result: 受賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Angle of Repose

1971 Novel (historical fiction)

A multi-generational novel set in the American West from the late 19th to early 20th century, exploring family, migration and settlement. Stegner incorporated material based on the letters of Mary Hallock Foote, which later sparked controversy over sourcing.

the American Westmigration and settlementfamily historymemory and legacy

The Spectator Bird

1976 Novel

Follows a retired protagonist who reflects on past events and life choices; mixes humor and melancholy to explore relationships and memory.

recollectionfriendshipsatire

Crossing to Safety

1987 Novel (semi-autobiographical)

A story of friendship, family and trust following the long-term relationships of two couples; a semi-autobiographical novel that achieved both critical acclaim and commercial success.

friendshipfamilytrust

Beyond the Hundredth Meridian: John Wesley Powell and the Second Opening of the West

1954 Non-fiction (biography/history)

A biography of John Wesley Powell that examines western expansion and water-resource issues, discussing Powell's work and the challenges of developing the American West.

western historywater resourcesexploration

Wolf Willow: A History, a Story, and a Memory of the Last Plains Frontier

1962 Non-fiction (memoir/history)

A semi-autobiographical work blending personal recollection with history of the Plains, drawing on Stegner's childhood in places such as Saskatchewan.

memoryfrontier historyland and people

Bibliography

  • Remembering Laughter (1937)
  • The Big Rock Candy Mountain (1943)
  • Second Growth (1947)
  • All the Little Live Things (1967)
  • Beyond the Hundredth Meridian (1954)
  • Wolf Willow (1962)
  • Angle of Repose (1971)
  • The Spectator Bird (1976)
  • Crossing to Safety (1987)
  • Collected Stories of Wallace Stegner (1990)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
realist portrayals of the Westdetailed character studyblend of history and personal narrative
Recurring Motifs
nature and conservationland and identitymemory and recollectionconflict of migration vs. settlement

Legacy

Wallace Stegner, often called 'The Dean of Western Writers,' is known for his deep portrayals of the American West, its history, environment and communities. He left a legacy of award-winning literature and institutional contributions, including the Stegner Fellowship at Stanford and environmental advocacy.

Museums

  • Wallace Stegner Collection (J. Willard Marriott Library, University of Utah) Special Collections Division, J. Willard Marriott Library, University of Utah
  • Wallace Stegner Research Collection (Montana State University Archives) Archives and Special Collections, Montana State University, Bozeman, Montana

Academic Societies

  • American Academy of Arts and Letters
  • National Institute

Archives

  • Wallace Earle Stegner papers (Ms0676), J. Willard Marriott Library, University of Utah
  • Wallace Stegner Research Collection (Collection 2443), Montana State University Archives and Special Collections

In Popular Culture

  • Song influenced by Stegner: "Little Live Thing / Cross to Safety" (Mambo Sons, 2003)
  • Stegner Fellowship at Stanford University (creative writing fellowship)
  • Wallace Stegner Lecture series at Lewis-Clark State College

Quotes

  • “There’s an awakening in the rest of the country to the West and what it’s about. And the West is waking up to itself.”
    Source: Wallace Stegner (written shortly before his death, 1993) (1993)
  • “I lived in twenty places in eight states and Canada.”
    Source: Wallace Stegner (memoir/remarks)

Trivia

  • Refused a National Endowment for the Arts medal in 1992.
  • Stated he had 'lived in twenty places in eight states and Canada.'
  • Founded the creative writing program (Stegner Fellowship) at Stanford University.
  • His childhood house in Eastend, Saskatchewan, was restored in 1990 as a residence for artists.