author
John Campbell Shairp
1819–1885
A Scottish poet, critic, and teacher, he brought a warm love of literature and landscape to both his writing and his lectures. Best known for his work at St Andrews and Oxford, he wrote with a reflective, humane style that still feels inviting.
2 Audiobooks
Robert Burns
by John Campbell Shairp
On poetic interpretation of nature
by John Campbell Shairp
About the author
Born in 1819 at Houstoun House in West Lothian, he was educated at Edinburgh Academy, the University of Glasgow, and Balliol College, Oxford. He won the Newdigate Prize early in life, then went on to build a career that joined scholarship, teaching, and literary criticism.
He taught at Rugby before becoming Professor of Latin at the University of St Andrews, and later served as Principal of the United College there. In 1877 he was elected Professor of Poetry at Oxford, a role that confirmed his standing as an admired literary voice as well as an academic leader.
Shairp wrote poetry, essays, and criticism, and he was especially drawn to the moral and emotional power of literature, nature, and religious feeling. His best-known books include Kilmahoe, Studies in Poetry and Philosophy, and Aspects of Poetry; he died in 1885.