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Max Ehrmann

Coordinates: 39°28′35″N 87°20′52″W / 39.476398°N 87.347801°W / 39.476398; -87.347801
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This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Dayirmiter (talk | contribs) at 23:15, 17 May 2020 (Corrected math on age at composition: 1872 to 1927 makes it 55.). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Max Ehrmann
Born(1872-09-26)September 26, 1872
Terre Haute, Indiana
DiedSeptember 9, 1945(1945-09-09) (aged 72)
Terre Haute, Indiana
Resting placeHighland Lawn Cemetery, Terre Haute, Indiana
39°28′35″N 87°20′52″W / 39.476398°N 87.347801°W / 39.476398; -87.347801
NationalityAmerican
Alma materDePauw University
Harvard University
Occupation(s)Attorney, businessman
Known forProse poem "Desiderata" (1927)
SpouseBertha Pratt King Ehrmann
Notes

Max Ehrmann (September 26, 1872 – September 9, 1945) was an American writer, poet, and attorney from Terre Haute, Indiana, widely known for his 1927 prose poem "Desiderata" (Latin: "things desired"). He often wrote on spiritual themes.

Education

Ehrmann was of German descent; both his parents emigrated from Bavaria in the 1840s. Young Ehrmann was educated at the Terre Haute Fourth District School and the German Methodist Church.

He received a degree in English from DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana, which he attended from 1890 to 1894. While there, he was a member of Delta Tau Delta's Beta Beta chapter[3] and was editor of the school newspaper, Depauw Weekly.[2]

Ehrmann then studied philosophy and law at Harvard University, where he was editor of Delta Tau Delta's national magazine The Rainbow, circa 1896.[4]

Professional life

Ehrmann returned to his hometown of Terre Haute, Indiana, in 1898 to practice law. He was a deputy state's attorney in Vigo County, Indiana, for two years. Subsequently, he worked in his family's meatpacking business and in the overalls manufacturing industry (Ehrmann Manufacturing Co.)[5] At age 40, Ehrmann left the business to write. At age 55, he wrote Desiderata, which achieved fame only after his death.[1][6]

Legacy

Ehrmann was awarded Doctor of Letters honorary degree from DePauw University in about 1937.[7] He was also elected to the Delta Tau Delta Distinguished Service Chapter, the fraternity's highest alumni award.[3]

Ehrmann died in 1945 and is buried in Highland Lawn Cemetery in Terre Haute, Indiana.

In 2010 the city honored Ehrmann with a life-size bronze statue by sculptor Bill Wolfe. He is depicted sitting on a downtown bench, pen in hand, with a notebook in his lap. "Desiderata" is engraved on a plaque next to the statue and lines from the poem are embedded in the walkway. The sculpture is in the collection of Art Spaces, Inc. – Wabash Valley Outdoor Sculpture Collection.[8] Art Spaces also holds an annual Max Ehrmann Poetry Competition.[9]

Bibliography

  • Max Ehrmann (1898). A Farrago Cooperative publishing co. Cambridge Mass [4]
  • Max Ehrmann (1900). They Mystery of Madeline le Blanc Cooperative publishing co. Cambridge Mass
  • Max Ehrmann (1901). A Fearsome Riddle Bowen-Merrill Co., Indianapolis
  • Max Ehrmann (1904). Breaking Home Ties Dodge Publishing Co. New York
  • Max Ehrmann (1906). A Prayer and Selections New York
  • Max Ehrmann (1906). Max Ehrmann's Poems Viquesney Publishing Co
  • Max Ehrmann (1907). Who Entereth Here Dodge Publishing Co.
  • Max Ehrmann (1910). The Poems of Max Ehrmann Dodge Publishing Co. New York
  • Max Ehrmann (1911). The Wife of Marobuis and Other Plays Mitchell Kennerley, New York
  • Max Ehrmann (1912). Fort Harrison on the Banks of the Wabash, 1812-1912 (contributor) by Fort Harrison Centennial Association
  • Max Ehrmann (1912). Eugene V. Debs, what his neighbors and others say of Him (contributor) Edited by James H. Hollingsworth
  • Max Ehrmann (1915). Jesus: A Passion Play Baker & Taylor Co. New York
  • Max Ehrmann (1915). In Memoriam Elbert and Alice Hubbard (contributor) Ed. Elbert Hubbard Jr., The Roycrofters, East Aurora, Erie County, New York
  • Max Ehrmann (1916). An Invitation to You and your Folks from Jim and Some of the Home Folk (contributor) Compiled by George Ade, Bobbs-Merrill Co.
  • Max Ehrmann (1917). David and Bathsheba The Drama vol. 7 Edited by Vandervort Sloan
  • Max Ehrmann (1922). A Virgin's Dream and Other Verses of Scarlet Women Henry J Fuller
  • Max Ehrmann (1922). The Bank Robbery in A Book of One Act Plays edited by Barbara Louise Schafter
  • Max Ehrmann (1924). Paul Dresser: Composer of 'On the Banks of the Wabash' A Sketch Paul Dresser Memorial Assoc. Terre Haute
  • Max Ehrmann (1925). The Gay Life Indiana Publishing Co. Terre Haute (Scarlet woman series)
  • Max Ehrmann (1925). A Goose with a Rose in Her Mouth Indiana Publishing Co. Terre Haute (Scarlet woman series)
  • Max Ehrmann (1925). His Beautiful Wife and Other Stories Indiana Publishing Co. Terre Haute (Scarlet woman series)
  • Max Ehrmann (1925). Scarlet Sketches Indiana Publishing Co. Terre Haute (Scarlet woman series)
  • Max Ehrmann (1925). Be Quiet, I'm Talking, Being Conversations ed. Edna Smith, Indiana Publishing Co. Terre Haute (Scarlet woman series)
  • Max Ehrmann (1926). Love From Many Angles Haldeman-Julius Co., Girard, Kansas (Little Blue Book No. 1113)
  • Max Ehrmann (1927). Book of Farces: The Bank Robbery; The Plumber Indiana Publishing Co. Terre Haute
  • Max Ehrmann (1934). Worldly Wisdom: Being the Wisdom of Jesus Sirach Girard, Kansas: Haldeman-Julius Company (Little Blue Book No. 1735)
  • Max Ehrmann (before 1938). The Plumber[7]
  • Bertha Pratt King Ehrmann (1948). The Poems of Max Ehrmann (includes Desiderata) Bruce Humphries Inc. Boston
  • Bertha Pratt King Ehrmann (1951). Max Ehrmann: A Poet's Life Bruce Humphries Inc. Boston
  • Bertha Pratt King Ehrmann (1952). The Journal of Max Ehrmann Bruce Humphries Inc. Boston
  • Max Ehrmann (1972). Desiderata illustrated by Emil Antonocci, Brooke House, New York, distributed by Crown Publishers Inc.
  • Max Ehrmann (1992). Randy The Reckless Reindeer A children's pop-up book, GoodTimes Publishing
  • Tim Dalgleish (2018). Worldly Wisdom Revisited by Max Ehrmann
  • Tim Dalgleish (2018). Lifting The Veil: Beloved Dead, Biography & Other Appreciations by Max Ehrmann

References

  1. ^ a b Drummy, Deborah Curtis (March 1, 1992). "Historical Treasure Article: Terre Haute writer-philosopher remembered". Vigo County Historical Society. Indiana State University. Archived from the original on June 27, 2009. Retrieved March 29, 2009.
  2. ^ a b "Max Ehrmann Pamphlets – Biography". Terre Haute, Indiana: Vigo County Public Library. Retrieved March 29, 2009. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |month= (help)
  3. ^ a b "Alumni: Subpage – Distinguished Service Chapter Citation". Delta Tau Delta. Archived from the original on June 27, 2009. Retrieved March 30, 2009. Max Ehrmann, Beta Beta (DePauw), 1894
  4. ^ a b Matthews, James Newton (1897). "Deltas in Literature". The Rainbow of the Delta Tau Delta. (DTK Beta Upsilon 1878). Delta Tau Delta Fraternity. pp. 298–299. {{cite book}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |month= (help); External link in |chapterurl= (help); Unknown parameter |chapterurl= ignored (|chapter-url= suggested) (help) V. 21. Original from the New York Public Library. Digitized October 25, 2006.
  5. ^ McCormick, Mike (September 8, 2002). "Idealist, philosopher, 'word technician' Max Ehrmann a Terre Haute treasure". Terre Haute Tribune Star. Archived from the original on November 23, 2008. Retrieved November 22, 2014.
  6. ^ Katz, Barbara J. (November 27, 1977). "Popular Prose-Poem is No Work of the Ages. 'Desiderata': a Product of an Obscure Lawyer" (Fee). Washington Post. p. 31. Retrieved March 29, 2009. Reproduced by Volkert Braren Archived December 26, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  7. ^ a b Northwest Territory Celebration Committee, 1938 (1938). "Max Ehrmann Poet, Prophet, Philosopher". The Wabash Valley Remembers: A Chronicle, 1787–1938 (PDF). Terre Haute. pp. 52–52. Retrieved March 30, 2009. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |month= (help); External link in |chapterurl= (help); Unknown parameter |chapterurl= ignored (|chapter-url= suggested) (help)CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  8. ^ Wittmeyer, Sara (August 31, 2010). "Max Ehrmann Statue Unveiled in Terre Haute". Indiana Public Media. Archived from the original on July 18, 2011. Retrieved September 15, 2010.
  9. ^ "2014 Max Ehrmann Poetry Competition Winners Announced". Wabash Valley Art Spaces. Archived from the original on October 12, 2014. Retrieved September 25, 2014.
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