Dr John Voelker, PhD

Dr John Voelker, PhD teaches at the Institute of English Studies, Department of English Literatures and Cultures, at the University of Pécs’ Faculty of Humanities in Hungary, teaching literature and history, culture and linguistics, in British and North American contexts.

There are two prolific writers of late 20th Century North American literature whose works are not currently appreciated as they might deserve: The nationally acclaimed and treasured Canadian Man of Letters Robertson Davies, and the controversially mysterious East Coast American writer J.D. Salinger. One writer is an entirely public figure, drawing the world to himself; while the other was an example of an attempt at a hidden life, withdrawing from the world. But Robertson’s and Salinger’s works should be reappraised in the early 21st century. This lecture will attempt to present each author’s life and works for a brief reconsideration, comparison and reclamation for the reading public who function as the literary and cultural clerisy of our modern time.

Part II: New York/East Coast America’s J.D. Salinger

With major publishers rejecting J.D. Salinger’s years’-crafted, classic 1951 novel The Catcher in the Rye, one small New York publisher gave it a chance, which resulted in a discovered literary work that set publishing records, and still sells half a million new copies worldwide each year. It also gave its author incandescent fame and success, so much so that he continued writing but mostly stopped publishing in his lifetime, even unto his attempts at escaping from the popular culture’s literary scene of succeeding decades. Why The Catcher in the Rye? And what did the relentlessly mysterious, ascetic Salinger do with such talent and success as he possessed? Having published one novel and only a handful of other works while still living, what is the meaning of his literary legacy, and what waits to be revealed from the trove of finished manuscripts he left for posthumous publication?

Wydarzenie można zaliczyć w ramach programu OSA:

• Opiekun: dr Justyna Budzik
• Liczba godzin OSA: 2 godziny
• Forma zaliczenia: sporządzenie krótkiej notatki w języku angielskim lub polskim (max. 500-600 znaków), dotyczącej tematyki poruszanej podczas wykładu i przesłanie jej dr Justynie Budzik nie później niż 28 marca.

Wydarzenie kierowane jest do wszystkich Studentek i Studentów IAiSP.