Terry Eagleton
Terry Eagleton is a prominent British literary theorist and critic, known for his Marxist perspective and engaging writing style. Born in 1943 in a working-class town near Manchester, Eagleton's Irish Catholic heritage significantly influenced his work, particularly his exploration of Irish culture and history. He studied at Trinity College, Cambridge, where he was mentored by notable cultural critic Raymond Williams. Eagleton gained widespread recognition with his 1983 book, *Literary Theory: An Introduction*, which argues for the inseparability of literature from its cultural and historical contexts.
Over his academic career, Eagleton held prestigious positions at notable institutions, including Oxford University and the University of Manchester, and received honorary degrees from various universities. His body of work includes critical examinations of Irish literary figures and society, as well as reflections on modern cultural criticism and religion. Eagleton has authored several influential books, such as *After Theory*, *Why Marx Was Right*, and *Culture*, continuing to engage with contemporary issues in literature and philosophy. His intellectual contributions have sparked both admiration and debate within academic circles, making him a significant figure in literary studies.
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Terry Eagleton
- Born: February 22, 1943
- Place of Birth: Salford, Lancashire, England
Biography
Terry Eagleton’s Literary Theory: An Introduction, published in 1983, became one of the most widely used and influential books in academia. His Marxist perspective led England’s Prince Charles to refer to him as “that dreadful Terry Eagleton.” Eagleton posited that literature and criticism had died. While Eagleton attracted both acclaim and criticism for his views, he nevertheless became respected for his witty and often cogent writing.
Eagleton was born in an economically depressed, working-class town near Manchester, England, in 1943. Eagleton’s family was Irish Catholic, and his background would later foster several books on Irish history and culture. Eagleton started postsecondary studies at De La Salle College but went on to earn degrees from Trinity College, Cambridge. Between 1964 and 1969, Eagleton was a fellow in English at Jesus College, Cambridge, and earned a PhD there in 1968. While at Cambridge, Eagleton was a student of prominent Marxist cultural critic Raymond Williams.
Beginning in 1969, Eagleton spent thirty-two years at Oxford University and eventually became the Thomas Warton Professor of English and literature at St. Catherine’s College in 1992. Eagleton left Oxford in 2001 for the University of Manchester, where he became professor of cultural theory and John Rylands Fellow. Salford University, the National University of Ireland, and Santiago di Compostela University each awarded honorary degrees to Eagleton. Literary Theory: An Introduction earned Eagleton widespread plaudits for his argument that literature cannot be separated from its cultural and historical contexts.
Eagleton directed his scholarship toward Irish culture in several books. Heathcliff and the Great Hunger: Studies in Irish Culture from 1995 was Eagleton’s scathing indictment of works that ignored the effect of the Irish potato famine on writers like Yeats and Wilde. In Crazy John and the Bishop, and Other Essays on Irish Culture, published in 1998, Eagleton discussed both well-known and overlooked Irish writers. Eagleton illuminated the Dublin intelligentsia of the 1800s in Scholars and Rebels in Nineteenth Century Ireland, published in 1999.
The Truth About the Irish, from 2000, had a somewhat breezy quality, given Eagleton’s choice to publish the book as an encyclopedic reference on Irish myths, anecdotes, and stereotypes. The Truth About the Irish was considered irreverent but revealing.
The Gatekeeper (2001) was Eagleton’s memoir and was told in vignettes. In After Theory, published in 2003, Eagleton lamented that many modern cultural critics had become sidetracked by irrelevant, pop-culture diversions. After 2006, he became a vocal critic of so-called New Atheism, publishing a number of books based on religion and theology, including Reason, Faith, and Revolution: Reflections on the God Debate (2009) and Culture and the Death of God (2014). His later works include Why Marx Was Right (2011), How to Read Literature (2013), and Hope without Optimism (2015). Between 2016 and 2022, he published six additional books: Culture (2016), Materialism (2017), Radical Sacrifice (2018), Humour (2019), Tragedy (2020), and Critical Revolutionaries: Five Critics Who Changed the Way We Read (2022). He also published an essay in 2022 on UnHerd titled "Ludwig Wittgenstein’s War on Philosophy," exploring literary philosophy. This was followed in 2022 by Critical Revolutionaries: Five Critics Who Changed the Way We Read. In it, Eagleton reflects on the impact T. S. Eliot, I. A. Richards, William Empson, F. R. Leavis, and Raymond Williams have had on how literature is read and understood in the twenty-first century.
Bibliography
Hughes, Kathryn. "Critical Revolutionaries by Terry Eagleton Review – five Critics Who Changed the Way We Read." Guardian, 21 Apr. 2022, www.theguardian.com/books/2022/apr/21/critical-revolutionaries-by-terry-eagleton-review-five-critics-who-changed-the-way-we-read. Accessed 11 Oct. 2024.
"Professor Terry Eagleton." Lancaster University, www.lancaster.ac.uk/english-literature-and-creative-writing/people/terry-eagleton. Accessed 11 Oct. 2024.
"Terry Eagleton." British Council, literature.britishcouncil.org/writer/terry-eagleton. Accessed 11 Oct. 2024.
"Terry Eagleton." The Gifford Lectures, giffordarchives.org/lecturers/terry-eagleton. Accessed 11 Oct. 2024.
Terry Eagleton. "Ludwig Wittgenstein’s War on Philosophy." UnHerd, 16 May 2022, unherd.com/2022/05/ludwig-wittgensteins-war-on-philosophy. Accessed 11 Oct. 2024.