Established in 1999 this lecture and funded by the family of Isidore Silver, this series was supported by his wife, Edith Silver, to bring a scholar in French Renaissance studies to the University each year.
Isidore Silver taught in the Department of Romance Languages and Literatures in Arts & Sciences from 1957 until his retirement in 1975.
About Isidore Silver
Silver earned a doctorate from Columbia University in 1938 and received a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1948. By the time he came to Washington University, he was considered the world’s leading authority on the French Renaissance poet Pierre de Ronsard. In 1968, he was named the Rosa May Distinguished University Professor in the Humanities.
Among Silver’s published works are The Pindaric Odes of Ronsard, The Intellectual Evolution of Ronsard, Ronsard and the Hellenic Renaissance in France, Three Ronsard Studies and numerous articles in scholarly journals. One of his most distinguished contributions to Ronsard scholarship was a monumental critical edition of the poet’s oeuvre. To commemorate Silver’s work, his colleagues from around the world contributed to a volume titled Ronsard, Figure de la Variete, published in 2002.
In recognition for his contributions to French culture, Silver has been honored by the French government. In 1962, he was decorated with the insignia of “Chevalier de l’Ordre des Palmes Academique,” advancing in this order to the rank of officer in 1970. Five years later, he became the first American to be honored with the award of insignia of “Commandeur,” and in 1985 he was designated a “chevalier” of the National Order of the Legion of Honor by then-President Francois Mitterand.