author
Joseph Blotner
1923–2012
Best known as William Faulkner’s great biographer, this American literary scholar combined deep archival research with first-hand knowledge of the writer he studied. His work helped shape how generations of readers and scholars understand Faulkner and other major American authors.
1 Audiobook
The political novel
by Joseph Blotner
About the author
Born in New Jersey in 1923, Joseph Blotner served in the Army Air Forces during World War II; his college years were interrupted by the war, and after returning he completed his studies and went on to build an academic career in English. He later taught at the University of Virginia and the University of Michigan, where he became professor emeritus.
Blotner is remembered above all for his landmark biography of William Faulkner. He helped bring Faulkner to the University of Virginia as a writer-in-residence, became a friend of the novelist, and was later given unusual access by the Faulkner family to letters, papers, and personal materials. That access, combined with years of careful scholarship, made Faulkner: A Biography a defining work in literary biography.
He also wrote and edited widely on American literature, including books on Robert Penn Warren, J. D. Salinger, and the American political novel. Blotner died in Oakland, California, in November 2012, leaving behind a reputation as one of the most respected literary biographers of his generation.