author
John Churton Collins
1848–1908
An English literary critic and essayist with a gift for sharp argument, he spent his career championing serious reading and lively debate about the classics. His books on writers such as Shakespeare, Milton, and Pope helped shape how English literature was discussed in the late 19th century.
1 Audiobook
Ephemera Critica; Or, Plain Truths About Current Literature
by John Churton Collins
About the author
Born in Bourton-on-the-Water, Gloucestershire, on March 26, 1848, he was educated at King Edward's School in Birmingham and at Balliol College, Oxford, graduating in 1872. He then turned quickly to a literary life, working as a journalist, essayist, editor, and lecturer.
He became known as an energetic and often combative critic, writing on major English authors and producing studies of Shakespeare, Milton, Gray, and Pope. His first book was a study of Sir Joshua Reynolds, and over time he also edited important English writers and published collections of criticism that reflected his strong views on literature and scholarship.
Later in life he was associated with university extension teaching and the growing academic study of English literature. He died in 1908, leaving behind a reputation as a forceful, learned voice in Victorian literary criticism.