Edith Rickert
Encyclopedia
Edith Rickert was an influential medieval scholar at the University of Chicago
, whose foundational work includes the Chaucer Life-Records and the eight-volume "Text of the Canterbury Tales (1940).
Rickert's name and achievements are inextricably linked with those of John M. Manly (1865–1940). Close colleagues and collaborators for some 40 years at the University of Chicago
, they worked jointly on the Chaucer Life-Records and the Text of the Canterbury Tales, which took sixteen years to complete, the first volume of which Rickert did not live to see published. Manly, president of the Modern Language Association of America (1920) and later of the Medieval Academy of America
(1929–30), was posthumously recognized by being awarded such honors as the Haskins Medal
for his work on the Chaucer manuscripts. Rickert, however, was eclipsed by Manly's shadow and is only now beginning to receive her the recognition she deserves.
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
, whose foundational work includes the Chaucer Life-Records and the eight-volume "Text of the Canterbury Tales (1940).
Rickert's name and achievements are inextricably linked with those of John M. Manly (1865–1940). Close colleagues and collaborators for some 40 years at the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
, they worked jointly on the Chaucer Life-Records and the Text of the Canterbury Tales, which took sixteen years to complete, the first volume of which Rickert did not live to see published. Manly, president of the Modern Language Association of America (1920) and later of the Medieval Academy of America
Medieval Academy of America
The Medieval Academy of America is the largest organization in the United States promoting excellence in the field of medieval studies. It was founded in 1925 and is based in Cambridge, Massachusetts...
(1929–30), was posthumously recognized by being awarded such honors as the Haskins Medal
Haskins Medal
The Haskins Medal is an annual medal awarded by the Medieval Academy of America. It is awarded for the production of a distinguished book in the field of medieval studies.-Award:...
for his work on the Chaucer manuscripts. Rickert, however, was eclipsed by Manly's shadow and is only now beginning to receive her the recognition she deserves.
Works
- Manly, John M. & Edith Rickert eds. (1940): The Text of the Canterbury Tales: studied on the basis of all known manuscripts; with the aid of Mabel Dean, Helen McIntosh and Others. With a chapter on illuminations by Margaret Rickert, 8 vols. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
- Rickert, Edith (1902): Out of the Cypress Swamp [A novel.]. London: Methuen.
- Rickert, Edith (1948): Chaucer's World. Compiled by E. Rickert. Edited by Clair C. Olson and Martin M. Crow. Illustrations selected by Margaret Rickert. Oxford University Press: London; Columbia Univ. Press.