Nathaniel Parker Willis

Portrait shot by Mathew Brady, mid 1850s

Nathaniel Parker Willis (born January 20, 1806 in Portland, Maine , † January 20, 1867 ) was an American writer, poet and editor who has worked with numerous well-known writers, including Edgar Allan Poe and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow . At the height of his career, he was the highest paid writer in the United States. His brother was the composer Richard Storrs Willis , and his sister Sara wrote under the stage name Fanny Fern . Harriet Jacobs wrote her autobiography while working as a nanny for his family.

Willis came from a publishing family. His grandfather, Nathaniel Willis, owned newspapers in Massachusetts and Virginia, and his father of the same name founded Youth's Companion , the first magazine aimed specifically at children. During his studies at Yale , Willis became interested in literature and published poetry. After graduating, he worked as an overseas correspondent for the New York Mirror . Eventually he moved to New York and built his reputation in the world of literature. In 1846 he founded his own magazine, the Home Journal , which is now the oldest magazine in the United States that is still published under the name Town & Country . Shortly thereafter, he moved to a country estate on the Hudson River , where he led a life of largely seclusion until his death.

Willis brought his own personality to his writing and addressed his audience on a personal level, particularly in his travelogues, so his reputation was in part based on his character. Critics, including his sister in her keystone book, Ruth Hall , sometimes described him as unmanly and too influenced by Europe. Willis has published numerous poems, short stories, and a play. Despite being very popular at times, Willis was almost forgotten when he died.

literature

• Auser, Cortland P. Nathaniel P. Willis . New York: Twayne Publishers, Inc., 1969.
• Baker, Thomas N. Sentiment and Celebrity: Nathaniel Parker Willis and the Trials of Literary Fame . New York, Oxford University Press, 2001. ISBN 0-19-512073-6
• Pattee, Fred Lewis. The First Century of American Literature: 1770-1870 . New York: Cooper Square Publishers, 1966.
• Tomc, Sandra. "An Idle Industry: Nathaniel Parker Willis and the Workings of Literary Leisure," American Quarterly . Vol. 49, Issue 4, December 1997: 780-805.
• Yellin, Jean Fagan. Harriet Jacobs: A Life . Cambridge, Massachusetts: Basic Civitas Books, 2004. ISBN 0-465-09288-8

Web links

Commons : Nathaniel Parker Willis  - Collection of images, videos and audio files