Russell Peck (scholar)

Russell A. Peck (December 17, 1933 – February 20, 2023)[1] was an American medievalist, scholar of medieval literature, and author. At the time of his retirement in 2014, he was John Hall Deane Professor of English at the University of Rochester, where he began teaching in 1961.[2]

This article is about the writer and scholar of medieval literature. For the American composer, see Russell Peck.

Education and early career

After a childhood in Wyoming and an undergraduate education at Princeton University, Peck earned a Ph.D. in English from Indiana University in 1963, writing a dissertation on number symbolism in the works of Geoffrey Chaucer. He was a visiting professor at the University of Hull, England, from 1967 to 1968.[3]

Career

Peck wrote extensively on medieval literature, folklore, cognitive theory, and pedagogy; he shaped the field of medieval literature by founding the Middle English Text Series in 1990.[2] He also edited several important works of Middle English Literature, including a comprehensive three-volume edition of John Gower's Middle English Confessio Amantis.[4][5][6] He taught at the University of Rochester from 1961 to 2014,[7] facilitating the foundation of the Rossell Hope Robbins Library[8] and leading an annual winter theater course in London for over twenty years.[2][9]

Awards

His research was supported by the Guggenheim Foundation[10] and the National Endowment for the Humanities.[3] In 2014, an Artistic Directorship at the University of Rochester was endowed in honor of Peck and his wife, Ruth; it is currently held by Nigel Maister.[11] In 2015, he was awarded the Robert L. Kindrick-CARA Award for Outstanding Service to Medieval Studies by the Medieval Academy of America.[12]

References
  1. "Russell Peck Obituary (2023) - Legacy Remembers". Legacy.com. Retrieved February 28, 2023.
  2. "Russell Peck: Celebrating 50 Years of Excellence at the University of Rochester". Retrieved May 20, 2015.
  3. "Russell Peck: CV" (PDF). Retrieved May 20, 2015.
  4. "Confessio Amantis, Volume 1". Retrieved May 20, 2015.
  5. "Confessio Amantis, Volume 2". Retrieved May 20, 2015.
  6. "Confessio Amantis, Volume 3". Retrieved May 20, 2015.
  7. "The Professor's Tale". March 2012. Retrieved May 20, 2015.
  8. Pieterse, Janice (2014). Our Work Is But Begun: A History of the University of Rochester, 1850–2005. Rochester, NY: Meliora Press. p. 148. ISBN 978-1580465045.
  9. "Our Faculty: Retiring Faculty 2014-15". University of Rochester. Retrieved July 23, 2015.
  10. "Russell Peck: Guggenheim Fellow". Retrieved May 20, 2015.
  11. "Nigel Maister Named First Recipient of Russell and Ruth Peck Artistic Directorship at the University of Rochester". March 5, 2014. Retrieved May 20, 2015.
  12. "Russell Peck to receive award from Medieval Academy of America". February 25, 2015. Retrieved May 20, 2015.
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