Newman the Master Prose Writer

Author

• Aline Pepin, Xavier University of Louisiana

Date of Award

7-27-1932

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts

Keywords

John Henry Newman, Victorian Prose, Oxford Movement, Catholic Conversion, English Literature, Sermons, Apologia Pro Vita Sua, Idea of a University, Victorian Literature, Religious Biography

Abstract

This thesis, submitted to Xavier University in partial fulfillment of requirements for a Bachelor of Arts degree in English in 1932, presents a biographical and critical study of John Henry Newman, examining his life and identifying him as the master prose writer of the Victorian Age. Pepin traces Newman's early education, his fellowship at Oriel College, his ordination as an Anglican deacon, and his rise to leadership within the Oxford Movement through the "Tracts for the Times," before turning to his 1845 conversion to Roman Catholicism, his ordination as a Catholic priest, his founding of the Birmingham Oratory, his tenure as rector of the Catholic University of Ireland, and his eventual elevation to cardinal in 1879.

The thesis then turns to a critical examination of Newman's writing, organized by genre and major work. His sermons, including "Waiting for Christ" and "The Second Spring," are discussed alongside his treatises, including "The Idea of a University," "A Grammar of Assent," and "Apologia Pro Vita Sua," the last of which is presented as his most significant literary contribution, written in response to Charles Kingsley's public charge of insincerity. The thesis also addresses Newman's poetry, including "Lead, Kindly Light" and "The Dream of Gerontius," and his novel "Callista," concluding that although his poetic output was comparatively limited, his prose style, characterized by clarity, cadence, and intellectual depth, secured his lasting influence on English literature and on later Victorian writers.

Note: No original abstract was included; this abstract is provided by the XULA Digital Commons editors.

Recommended Citation

Pepin, Aline, "Newman the Master Prose Writer" (1932). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 117.
https://digitalcommons.xula.edu/etd/117