Critic, editor, essayist. E. P. Whipple, as he was known, grew up in Salem and developed an early interest in literature and history. He took his first newspaper job when he was fourteen. He became an important literary critic in the Boston area and also contributed to "Graham's Magazine" in Philadelphia and other periodicals. His major works were the two-volume "Essays and Reviews" (1849) and "Lectures on Subjects Connected with Literature and Life" (1850). Historian Perry Miller called Whipple "Boston's most popular critic." He also became a public lecturer and a central figure in the lyceum movement. He was also a member of the Board of Trustees of the Boston Public Library. He had a close friendship with several literary figures, including novelist Nathaniel Hawthorne, for whom he served as pallbearer at his funeral. Other friends included Ralph Waldo Emerson, Louis Agassiz, and Charles Sumner; Whipple published recollections on each of them. He also published a full-length biography of Charles Dickens. Among his other published books were "Character and Characteristic Men," "Literature of the Age of Elizabeth," and "Outlooks on Society." Many of Whipple's words are often included in dictionaries of famous quotations.
Critic, editor, essayist. E. P. Whipple, as he was known, grew up in Salem and developed an early interest in literature and history. He took his first newspaper job when he was fourteen. He became an important literary critic in the Boston area and also contributed to "Graham's Magazine" in Philadelphia and other periodicals. His major works were the two-volume "Essays and Reviews" (1849) and "Lectures on Subjects Connected with Literature and Life" (1850). Historian Perry Miller called Whipple "Boston's most popular critic." He also became a public lecturer and a central figure in the lyceum movement. He was also a member of the Board of Trustees of the Boston Public Library. He had a close friendship with several literary figures, including novelist Nathaniel Hawthorne, for whom he served as pallbearer at his funeral. Other friends included Ralph Waldo Emerson, Louis Agassiz, and Charles Sumner; Whipple published recollections on each of them. He also published a full-length biography of Charles Dickens. Among his other published books were "Character and Characteristic Men," "Literature of the Age of Elizabeth," and "Outlooks on Society." Many of Whipple's words are often included in dictionaries of famous quotations.
Bio by: Midnightdreary
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