Mark van Doren   [1894-1972]

Arts and Letters

Mark Van Doren, and his older brother Carl, were both literary authors and university professors. Each brother earned the Pulitzer Prize during his respective life time, each brother received his respective Ph. D. from Columbia University, and each brother held a professorial appointment at Columbia University. Their ages differed by nine years.

Van Doren was the son of a country doctor, but he was reared on a family farm, near the town of Hope, in Eastern Illinois. His Dutch American background dated back ten generations to his Dutch forbears. The name of his earliest forbear, eight generations back, was Jacob Van Doorn, who used the original Dutch spelling, later changed to Van Doren.

Mark Van Doren followed in the footsteps of his older brother Carl, and attended Columbia University, from where he received his Ph. D. in English literature. In 1924, he became the literary editor of “The Nation”, and remained there until 1928. He returned to “The Nation” in 1935, to become its literary critic, a position he held until 1938. In 1942, he was appointed to professor of English at Columbia University, a position he retained until 1959, when he retired from Columbia at age 65.

Van Doren was a poet, author and critic. He was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in 1940 for “Collected Poems”, published in 1939. Most of his published output consists of poetry or is related to poetry. His first publication in poetry was “The Poetry of John Dryden”, published in 1920. In 1924 he published a book of his own poetry, entitled, “Spring Thunder”, followed in 1931 with “Jonathan Gentry” and in 1935 with “Winter Diary”. Two additional books on poetry followed, “The Mayfield Deer” in 1941, and “The Last Days of Lincoln” in 1959. In 1951, he also wrote “Introduction to Poetry”.

Other publications consist of “The Transients”, a novel published in 1935, “Shakespeare” in 1939, “Windless Cabins” in 1940, “Tilda” in 1943, “The Noble Voice” in 1946, “Nathaniel Hawthorne” in 1949, and “The Happy Critic, and Other Essays” in 1961.

Mark Van Doren was born on June 13, 1894 in Hope, Illinois. He was married to Dorothy Graffe, a novelist, in 1922. Their son, Charles Van Doren, was born on February 12, 1926. Charles became a TV personality and gained some notoriety during the fifties for his participation in a TV Quiz Show. Mark Van Doren passed away in Torrington, Connecticut on December 10, 1972, at the age of 78.

 

 

REFERENCES

Mark Van Doren, http://www.nndb.com/people/225/000048081/

Mark Van Doren, http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9074771/Mark-Van-Doren (link no longer active)

Famous Badie Descendants

 

E-BOOKS AVAILABLE FROM AMAZON; GOOGLE: Kindle Store Pegels

 

PROMINENT DUTCH AMERICANS, CURRENT AND HISTORIC

EIGHT PROMINENT DUTCH AMERICAN FAMILIES: THE ROOSEVELTS, VANDERBILTS AND OTHERS, 2015

FIFTEEN PROMINENT DUTCH AMERICAN FAMILIES: THE VAN BURENS, KOCH BROTHERS, VOORHEES AND OTHERS, 2015

PROMINENT DUTCH AMERICANS IN U.S. GOVERNMENT LEADERSHIP POSITIONS, 2015

 

DUTCH PEGELS INVOLVED IN WARS

ALLIED EUROPE CAMPAIGN—1944/1945: TACTICAL MISTAKES, 2017

THE SECOND WORLD WAR IN THE NETHERLANDS: MEMOIRS, 2017

FRENCH REVOLUTION, NAPOLEON AND RUSSIAN WAR OF 1812, 2015

About the New Netherland Institute

For over three decades, NNI has helped cast light on America's Dutch roots. In 2010, it partnered with the New York State Office of Cultural Education to establish the New Netherland Research Center, with matching funds from the State of the Netherlands. NNI is registered as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Contributions are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law. More

The New Netherland Research Center

Housed in the New York State Library, the NNRC offers students, educators, scholars and researchers a vast collection of early documents and reference works on America's Dutch era. More

 

Subscribe Now

Subscribe to NNI's  e-Marcurius and DAGNN-L to receive information about New Netherland-related events, activities, conferences, and research.

Dutch American Group (DAG)

To learn more about the Dutch American Group or to join go to DAG

 

Support NNI

By supporting NNI you help increase awareness of the 17th century Dutch colony of New Netherland and its legacy in America.