Nigel Smith, Princeton Literature Professor to Speak about John Milton at W&L
Nigel Smith, the William and Annie S. Paton Foundation Professor of Ancient and Modern Literature at Princeton University, will give a lecture at Washington and Lee University on Sept. 22 at 5 p.m. in Northen Auditorium, Leyburn Library.
The Smith’s lecture, which is free and open to the public, is titled “John Milton and the Literary Accomplishments of the English Revolution.” The talk is sponsored by University Lectures, Medieval and Renaissance Studies and the Department of English.
His major works include “Andrew Marvell: The Chameleon” (2010); “Is Milton Better than Shakespeare” (2008); the “Longman Annotated English Poets Edition of Andrew Marvell’s Poems” (2003); and “Literature and Revolution in England 1640-1660” (1994). He has also co-edited the “Oxford Handbook to Milton” (2009).
Smith also is co-director of the Center for the Study of Books and Media at Princeton. He has published mostly on early modern literature, especially the 17th century. His interests have included poetry and poetic theory; the social role of literature; politics and religion; literature and visual art; heresy and heterodoxy; and women’s writing, among other things.
He is the co-founder of the rock band Rackett (2004-2010), where he was chief songwriter, bass player and backing vocals. He co-founded a new band, Wayside Shrines, in 2010.
Smith has been a member of Princeton’s faculty since 1999. He previously taught at the University of Oxford; Keble College, Oxford; The Queen’s College, Oxford; Merton College, Oxford and the University of London.
