Papers of Reuben A. Brower

Reuben Arthur Brower, Cabot Professor of English at Harvard University, was born in Lanesboro, Pennsylvania in 1908. He received a Bachelor's degree from Amherst College in 1930, received a Master’s degree from Christ’s College, Cambridge University, and received a Ph.D. from Harvard University. Brower taught Greek and Latin at Harvard from 1932 to 1935 and English from 1936 to 1939. He then taught at Amherst College from 1939 to 1953 before rejoining the Harvard faculty as full professor in 1953. Brower was named Cabot Professor of English in 1971, a position he held until his death in 1975. At Harvard, Brower was known for his Humanities 6 course, Introduction to Literature, which he created. He was also master of Adams House.

Brower’s scholarship focused primarily on British authors, Greek authors, and literary criticism. He was also interested in studying the effect of literature on the reader. His teachers included Robert Frost, I. A. Richards, and F. R. Leavis. Brower received Guggenheim Fellowships in 1956-1957 and 1965-1966 and a Fulbright Fellowship in 1968-1969. He was also a fellow of the Center for Advanced Study in Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University in 1961-1962, a member of the managing committee of the American School of Classical Studies in Athens, and a trustee of Radcliffe College. Brower died on March 27, 1975.