Edward Shanks
Encyclopedia
Edward Richard Buxton Shanks (11 June 1892–4 May 1953) was an English writer
, known as a war poet
of World War I
, then as an academic and journalist, and literary critic and biographer. He also wrote some science fiction
.
He was born in London
, and educated at Merchant Taylors' School
and Trinity College, Cambridge
. He passed his B.A. in History in 1913. He was editor of Granta
from 1912-13. He served in World War I with the British Army
in France, but was invalided out in 1915, and did administrative work until war's end.
He was later a literary reviewer, working for the London Mercury
(1919-22) and for a short while a lecturer at the University of Liverpool
(1926). He was the chief leader-writer for the Evening Standard
from 1928 to 1935.
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
, known as a war poet
War poet
A War poet is a poet writing in time of and on the subject of war. The term, which is applied especially to those in military service during World War I, was documented as early as 1848 in reference to German revolutionary poet, Georg Herwegh.-Crimean War:...
of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, then as an academic and journalist, and literary critic and biographer. He also wrote some science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
.
He was born in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, and educated at Merchant Taylors' School
Merchant Taylors' School, Northwood
Merchant Taylors' School is a British independent day school for boys, originally located in the City of London. Since 1933 it has been located at Sandy Lodge in the Three Rivers district of Hertfordshire ....
and Trinity College, Cambridge
Trinity College, Cambridge
Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Trinity has more members than any other college in Cambridge or Oxford, with around 700 undergraduates, 430 graduates, and over 170 Fellows...
. He passed his B.A. in History in 1913. He was editor of Granta
Granta
Granta is a literary magazine and publisher in the United Kingdom whose mission centers on its "belief in the power and urgency of the story, both in fiction and non-fiction, and the story’s supreme ability to describe, illuminate and make real." In 2007, The Observer stated, "In its blend of...
from 1912-13. He served in World War I with the British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
in France, but was invalided out in 1915, and did administrative work until war's end.
He was later a literary reviewer, working for the London Mercury
London Mercury
The London Mercury was the name of several periodicals published in London from the seventeenth to the twentieth centuries. The earliest was a newspaper that appeared during the Exclusion Bill crisis; it lasted only 56 issues...
(1919-22) and for a short while a lecturer at the University of Liverpool
University of Liverpool
The University of Liverpool is a teaching and research university in the city of Liverpool, England. It is a member of the Russell Group of large research-intensive universities and the N8 Group for research collaboration. Founded in 1881 , it is also one of the six original "red brick" civic...
(1926). He was the chief leader-writer for the Evening Standard
Evening Standard
The Evening Standard, now styled the London Evening Standard, is a free local daily newspaper, published Monday–Friday in tabloid format in London. It is the dominant regional evening paper for London and the surrounding area, with coverage of national and international news and City of London...
from 1928 to 1935.
Works
- Songs (1915) poems
- Hilaire Belloc, the man and his work (1916) with C. Creighton Mandell
- Poems (1916)
- The Queen of China and Other Poems (1919) poems
- The Old Indispensables (1919) novel
- The People of the Ruins (1920) novel Text at Project Gutenberg AustraliaProject Gutenberg AustraliaProject Gutenberg Australia, abbreviated as PGA, is an Internet site which was founded in 2001 by Colin Choat. The site hosts free ebooks or e-texts which are in the public domain in Australia. The ebooks have been prepared and submitted by volunteers...
- The Island of Youth and Other Poems (1921) poems
- The Richest Man (1923) novel
- First Essays On Literature (1923) criticism
- Bernard Shaw (1924) criticism
- The Shadowgraph and Other Poems (1925)
- Collected Poems (1900-1925) (1926)
- The Beggar's Ride (1926) drama
- Second Essays On Literature (1927) criticism (W.Collins Sons & Co. Ltd., London)
- Queer Street (1933)
- The Enchanted Village (1933)(A sequel "Queer Street", however, this one more uncommon)
- Poems 1912-1932 (1933)
- Tom Tiddler's Ground (1934)
- Old King Cole (1936) novel
- Edgar Allan Poe (1937)
- Rudyard Kipling - A Study in Literature and Political Ideas (1940)
- Poems 1939-1952 (1953)
Further reading
- Ross, Robert H. (1965). The Georgian Revolt, 1910-1922 : Rise and Fall of a Poetic Ideal, Carbondale : Southern Illinois University Press.