Jack Kerkering
Jack Kerkering Published by Cambridge University Press
Jack Kerkering, PhD, an English professor in the College of Arts and Sciences, is set to have The Cambridge Companion to Nineteenth-Century American Literature and Politics published by Cambridge University Press in February 2025.
The book brings together essays exploring how nineteenth-century literature engaged with political ideas and pressing social issues, including nationalism, sovereignty, slavery, immigration, and gender roles.
“Professor Kerkering’s scholarship shines a light on the sometimes intimate connection between literature and politics,” said Peter J. Schraeder, Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. “His research and teachings encourage students to engage with how the history of literature reflects and shapes the political ideas that define societies.”
Kerkering was invited to propose the collection by an editor at Cambridge University Press. In his introduction, he promotes literary history as a way to study literature’s political context, distinguishing it from more theoretical approaches.
“I hope that my introduction’s effort to promote the practice of literary history will prove beneficial to readers not only as they consult the volume's many essays but also as they engage in literary interpretation beyond the confines of this volume,” Kerkering stated.
Kerkering argues that nineteenth-century American writers were deeply concerned with national identity.
“What made the Unites States distinct was often thought to be its political institutions, so it's a literature in which political themes frequently arise as overt topics,” Kerkering explained. “This makes this period’s literary works a rich archive for those who wish to understand important nuances in political thought.”
Kerkering’s research focuses on the history of literary form, particularly poetry, and how it shapes our understanding of personhood. In both his research and teaching, Kerkering explores “emergence narratives”– the idea that ‘given’ concepts we take for granted today were not always obvious or available.
“By presenting my students and readers with early works where our givens are absent, and then moving gradually through later works in which our givens take a recognizable form and shape, I demonstrate that our ideas have a history,” Kerkering explained.
In his essay for this volume, he examines how the concept of “double consciousness” emerged in response to nineteenth-century nationalism. By tracing how these ideas developed, Kerkering believes important questions naturally arise– such as whether these changes were for the better, whether history could have taken a different path, or how these ideas might continue to evolve.
“Asking such questions provides us with a valuable opportunity for critical reflection upon ourselves and our present,” Kerkering stated.
Learn more about Kerkering and his book The Cambridge Companion.
About the College of Arts and Sciences
The College of Arts and Sciences is the oldest of Loyola University Chicago’s 13 schools and colleges. More than 150 years since its founding, the College is home to 20 academic departments, 31 interdisciplinary programs, and 7 interdisciplinary centers, more than 450 full-time faculty, and nearly 8,000 students. The 2,000+ classes that we offer each semester span an array of intellectual pursuits, ranging from the natural sciences and computational sciences to the humanities, the social sciences, and the fine and performing arts. Our students and faculty are engaged internationally at our campus in Rome, Italy, as well as at dozens of university-sponsored study abroad and research sites around the world. Home to the departments that anchor the university’s Core Curriculum, the College seeks to prepare all of Loyola’s students to think critically, to engage the world of the 21st century at ever deepening levels, and to become caring and compassionate individuals. Our faculty, staff, and students view service to others not just as one option among many, but as a constitutive dimension of their very being. In the truest sense of the Jesuit ideal, our graduates strive to be “individuals for others.”
Jack Kerkering, PhD, an English professor in the College of Arts and Sciences, is set to have The Cambridge Companion to Nineteenth-Century American Literature and Politics published by Cambridge University Press in February 2025.
The book brings together essays exploring how nineteenth-century literature engaged with political ideas and pressing social issues, including nationalism, sovereignty, slavery, immigration, and gender roles.
“Professor Kerkering’s scholarship shines a light on the sometimes intimate connection between literature and politics,” said Peter J. Schraeder, Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. “His research and teachings encourage students to engage with how the history of literature reflects and shapes the political ideas that define societies.”
Kerkering was invited to propose the collection by an editor at Cambridge University Press. In his introduction, he promotes literary history as a way to study literature’s political context, distinguishing it from more theoretical approaches.
“I hope that my introduction’s effort to promote the practice of literary history will prove beneficial to readers not only as they consult the volume's many essays but also as they engage in literary interpretation beyond the confines of this volume,” Kerkering stated.
Kerkering argues that nineteenth-century American writers were deeply concerned with national identity.
“What made the Unites States distinct was often thought to be its political institutions, so it's a literature in which political themes frequently arise as overt topics,” Kerkering explained. “This makes this period’s literary works a rich archive for those who wish to understand important nuances in political thought.”
Kerkering’s research focuses on the history of literary form, particularly poetry, and how it shapes our understanding of personhood. In both his research and teaching, Kerkering explores “emergence narratives”– the idea that ‘given’ concepts we take for granted today were not always obvious or available.
“By presenting my students and readers with early works where our givens are absent, and then moving gradually through later works in which our givens take a recognizable form and shape, I demonstrate that our ideas have a history,” Kerkering explained.
In his essay for this volume, he examines how the concept of “double consciousness” emerged in response to nineteenth-century nationalism. By tracing how these ideas developed, Kerkering believes important questions naturally arise– such as whether these changes were for the better, whether history could have taken a different path, or how these ideas might continue to evolve.
“Asking such questions provides us with a valuable opportunity for critical reflection upon ourselves and our present,” Kerkering stated.
Learn more about Kerkering and his book The Cambridge Companion.
About the College of Arts and Sciences
The College of Arts and Sciences is the oldest of Loyola University Chicago’s 13 schools and colleges. More than 150 years since its founding, the College is home to 20 academic departments, 31 interdisciplinary programs, and 7 interdisciplinary centers, more than 450 full-time faculty, and nearly 8,000 students. The 2,000+ classes that we offer each semester span an array of intellectual pursuits, ranging from the natural sciences and computational sciences to the humanities, the social sciences, and the fine and performing arts. Our students and faculty are engaged internationally at our campus in Rome, Italy, as well as at dozens of university-sponsored study abroad and research sites around the world. Home to the departments that anchor the university’s Core Curriculum, the College seeks to prepare all of Loyola’s students to think critically, to engage the world of the 21st century at ever deepening levels, and to become caring and compassionate individuals. Our faculty, staff, and students view service to others not just as one option among many, but as a constitutive dimension of their very being. In the truest sense of the Jesuit ideal, our graduates strive to be “individuals for others.”