Richard G. (Richard Green) Moulton

Born in England in 1849, Richard Green Moulton was a professor, author, and trained lawyer who became known for writing and lecturing about literature in a clear, public-facing way. He studied at the University of Cambridge and went on to teach English literature, later becoming closely associated with the University of Chicago.

Moulton is especially remembered for treating the Bible as literature as well as religion, an approach that shaped several of his best-known books and lectures. He also wrote on Shakespeare, literary criticism, and the place of world literature in general education, helping bring demanding texts to wider audiences.

His work fits naturally with the rise of adult and extension education in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He died in 1924, leaving behind a body of writing aimed at making great books more readable and more rewarding for ordinary readers.