Edward Wagenknecht facts for kids

Edward Wagenknecht (born March 28, 1900 – died May 24, 2004) was an American literary critic and teacher. He loved books and movies, especially those from the 1800s in America. He wrote and edited over sixty books. He also taught at many universities, like the University of Chicago and Boston University. He even wrote reviews for famous newspapers and magazines such as The New York Times and The Atlantic Monthly.

About Edward Wagenknecht

Edward Wagenknecht was born in Chicago. He grew up in Oak Park, Illinois. From a young age, he loved many art forms. He enjoyed theater, opera, and movies. He was also a big fan of the Oz novels by L. Frank Baum.

He was very interested in a critic named Gamaliel Bradford. Bradford would deeply study an author's life and work. Then he would write a special kind of biography called a "psychography." This meant he tried to understand the writer's mind and personality.

Edward Wagenknecht earned his Ph.D. (a high university degree) from the University of Washington in 1932. His main project for this degree was a "psychography" about the famous writer Charles Dickens. In the same year, he married Dorothy Arnold. They had three sons together.

Wagenknecht taught for many years at different schools. He taught at the University of Chicago and the University of Washington. He also taught at the Illinois Institute of Technology, Boston University, and Harvard University. He was known for his strict and traditional teaching style. He often gave his students challenging exams.

Throughout his teaching career and even after he retired, Wagenknecht kept writing. He wrote about his great loves: literature and film. Some of his most famous books are Cavalcade of the English Novel and Cavalcade of the American Novel.

He wrote or edited books about many different people. These included writers like Henry James, John Milton, and Geoffrey Chaucer. He also wrote about famous figures like Marilyn Monroe, Lillian Gish, Jenny Lind, and Theodore Roosevelt. His first book came out in 1927. His last book was published in 1994. He even wrote novels under the pen name Julian Forrest. These novels were about historical figures like Joan of Arc and Mary, Queen of Scots. He wrote more than sixty books in total!

After retiring from teaching, Wagenknecht remained an active writer. He continued writing well into his nineties. People described him as a very intelligent, perceptive, and decent person.

Selected Books

Here are some of the many books Edward Wagenknecht wrote or edited:

• Lillian Gish: An Interpretation (1927)
• The Man Charles Dickens: A Victorian Portrait (1929)
• Mark Twain: The Man and His Work (1935)
• Cavalcade of the English Novel (1942)
• Cavalcade of the American Novel (1952)
• The Seven Worlds of Theodore Roosevelt (1958)
• The Movies in the Age of Innocence (1962)
• Marilyn Monroe: A Composite View (editor, 1969)
• The Films of D.W. Griffith (1975)