G. Wilson Knight
Encyclopedia
George Richard Wilson Knight (1897–1985) was an English literary critic and academic, known particularly for his interpretation of mythic
content in literature, and his essays The Wheel of Fire on Shakespeare's drama. He was also an actor and theatrical director, and considered an outstanding lecturer.
He was educated at Dean Close School
and Dulwich College
and, after serving as a dispatch rider in World War I
, at St Edmund Hall, Oxford
,
he went into teaching. His first academic post was at Trinity College, Toronto
in 1931. He taught at Stowe School
from 1941 to 1946 and then was Reader in English Literature at the University of Leeds
, where he became a professor in 1956.
The classical scholar William Francis Jackson Knight (1895–1964), of whom he wrote a biography, was his brother.
Mythology
The term mythology can refer either to the study of myths, or to a body or collection of myths. As examples, comparative mythology is the study of connections between myths from different cultures, whereas Greek mythology is the body of myths from ancient Greece...
content in literature, and his essays The Wheel of Fire on Shakespeare's drama. He was also an actor and theatrical director, and considered an outstanding lecturer.
He was educated at Dean Close School
Dean Close School
Dean Close School is a co-educational independent school in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England. The school is divided into pre-prep, preparatory and senior schools located on separate but adjacent sites outside Cheltenham town centre, occupying the largest private land area in the town...
and Dulwich College
Dulwich College
Dulwich College is an independent school for boys in Dulwich, southeast London, England. The college was founded in 1619 by Edward Alleyn, a successful Elizabethan actor, with the original purpose of educating 12 poor scholars as the foundation of "God's Gift". It currently has about 1,600 boys,...
and, after serving as a dispatch rider in 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...
, at St Edmund Hall, Oxford
St Edmund Hall, Oxford
St Edmund Hall is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. Better known within the University by its nickname, "Teddy Hall", the college has a claim to being "the oldest academical society for the education of undergraduates in any university"...
,
he went into teaching. His first academic post was at Trinity College, Toronto
University of Trinity College
The University of Trinity College, informally referred to as Trin, is a college of the University of Toronto, founded in 1851 by Bishop John Strachan. Trinity was intended by Strachan as a college of strong Anglican alignment, after the University of Toronto severed its ties with the Church of...
in 1931. He taught at Stowe School
Stowe School
Stowe School is an independent school in Stowe, Buckinghamshire. It was founded on 11 May 1923 by J. F. Roxburgh, initially with 99 male pupils. It is a member of the Rugby Group and Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference. The school is also a member of the G20 Schools Group...
from 1941 to 1946 and then was Reader in English Literature at the University of Leeds
University of Leeds
The University of Leeds is a British Redbrick university located in the city of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England...
, where he became a professor in 1956.
The classical scholar William Francis Jackson Knight (1895–1964), of whom he wrote a biography, was his brother.
Works
- Myth and Miracle: an Essay on the Mystic Symbolism of Shakespeare (1929)
- The Wheel of FireThe Wheel of FireIn a literary context, the Wheel of Fire may refer to the chain of tortuous or dire consequences that result from a single action.-In mythology:...
, Interpretations of Shakespearian Tragedy (1930) - The Imperial Theme (1931)
- The Shakespearian Tempest (1932)
- The Christian Renaissance, with interpretations of Dante, Shakespeare, and Goethe, and a note on T. S. Eliot (1933)
- Shakespeare and Tolstoy (1934)
- Principles of Shakespeare's Production (1936)
- Atlantic Crossing: an Autobiographical Design (1936)
- The Burning Oracle, Studies in the Poetry of Action (1939)
- The Sceptred Isle: Shakespeare's Message for England at War (1940)
- The Starlit Dome: studies in the Poetry of Vision (1941)
- Chariot of Wrath: the Message of John Milton to Democracy at War (1942)
- The Olive and the Sword: a Study of England's Shakespeare (1944)
- The Dynasty of StoweStowe HouseStowe House is a Grade I listed country house located in Stowe, Buckinghamshire, England. It is the home of Stowe School, an independent school. The gardens , a significant example of the English Landscape Garden style, along with part of the Park, passed into the ownership of The National Trust...
(1945) - Hiroshima, on Prophecy and the sun-bomb (1946)
- The Crown of Life: Essays in Interpretation of Shakespeare's Final Plays (1946)
- Christ and Nietzsche: an Essay in Poetic Wisdom (1948)
- The Imperial Theme: Further Interpretations of Shakespeare's Tragedies, including the Roman Plays (1951)
- Lord Byron: Christian Virtues (1952)
- Byron's Dramatic Prose (1953)
- The Last of the Incas, a Play on the Conquest of Peru (1954)
- Laureate of Peace: on the Genius of Alexander Pope (1954)
- The Mutual Flame: on Shakespeare's Sonnets and The Phoenix and the Turtle (1955)
- Lord Byron's Marriage: The Evidence of Asterisks (1957)
- The Sovereign Flower: on Shakespeare as the poet of Royalism (1958)
- Ibsen (1962)
- The Golden Labyrinth: a Study of British Drama (1962)
- Byron and Hamlet (1962)
- The Saturnian Quest: a Chart of the Prose Works of John Cowper PowysJohn Cowper Powys-Biography:Powys was born in Shirley, Derbyshire, in 1872, the son of the Reverend Charles Francis Powys , who was vicar of Montacute, Somerset for thirty-two years, and Mary Cowper Johnson, a descendent of the poet William Cowper. He came from a family of eleven children, many of whom were also...
(1964) - Byron and Shakespeare (1966)
- Gold-Dust, with Other Poetry (1968)
- Shakespeare and Religion: Essays of Forty Years
- Neglected Powers: Essays on 19th and 20th Century Literature (1971)
- Jackson Knight: a Biography (1975)
- Virgil and Shakespeare (1977)
- Shakespeare's Dramatic Challenge: on the Rise of Shakespeare's Tragic Heroes (1977)
- Symbol of Man: on Body-soul for Stage and Studio (1979)
- Shakespearian Dimensions (1984)
- Visions and Vices: Essays on John Cowper PowysJohn Cowper Powys-Biography:Powys was born in Shirley, Derbyshire, in 1872, the son of the Reverend Charles Francis Powys , who was vicar of Montacute, Somerset for thirty-two years, and Mary Cowper Johnson, a descendent of the poet William Cowper. He came from a family of eleven children, many of whom were also...
(1989)