Modern Languages and Dissent: The Case of T.B. Rudmose-Brown
A seminar by Prof Michael Cronin (Department of French, TCD) as a part of the School of Language, Literatures and Cultural Studies Seminar Series (SLLCS).
Thomas Brown Rudmose-Brown, Professor of Romance Languages from 1909 and then of French from 1937 to his death in 1942, dominated French Studies in Trinity for the first half of the 20th century. He was remembered with much fondness by a number of his former students, notably Samuel Beckett who wrote in a brief note to Roger Little in May 1983: 'Much needed light came to me from Ruddy, from his teaching and friendship. I think of him often with affection and gratitude.' Historians of the College were less forthcoming in their praise. R.B. McDowell and David Webb in their academic history of TCD claimed that '[h]e is a difficult man to estimate, for his undoubted literary sensitivity and awareness of contemporary French poetry was masked by a partly assumed cynicism and all too genuine laziness.' In this lecture, I want to contend that the 'laziness' lies less in the imagined work practices of Rudmose-Brown than in a methodological laziness that assesses academic influence as invariably taking certain, conventional forms. In exploring different dimensions of Rudmose-Brown's life and career--as partly revealed in his correspondence with the French regionalist writer Henri Pourrat--it will be argued that Rudmose-Brown displays the particular qualities of a life lived in modern languages which had crucial consequences for the society in which he found himself.
The School of Languages, Literatures and Cultural Studies Seminar Series (SLLCS) promotes Literary and Cultural Studies, including political and social thought, narratology and imagology, film, textual and visual studies, questions surrounding language learning and translation studies, and also practice-led research. We encourage comparative, interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary research, as our intellectual inquiry is in the service of national and international debate and knowledge advancement, particularly on the construction of identity and otherness in literature and culture. The seminar series provides a forum for the dissemination and exchange of current and developing research from staff and postgraduate researchers within the school, and also from national and international guest speakers.
This event is run in accordance with Trinity’s Dignity and Respect policy, and its commitment to nurturing a respectful and inclusive research culture.
Please indicate if you have any access requirements, such as ISL/English interpreting, so that we can facilitate you in attending this event. Contact: hanrahaj@tcd.ie