Northrop Frye

Herman Northrop Frye (1912–1991) was a Canadian literary critic and theorist, widely regarded as one of the most influential figures of the 20th century. He gained fame with Fearful Symmetry (1947), a reinterpretation of William Blake's poetry, and established his reputation with Anatomy of Criticism (1957), which proposed a systematic framework based on mythic patterns and archetypes in literature. Frye taught at the University of Toronto, served as its chancellor from 1978 until his death, and was ordained a minister in the United Church of Canada.