Luke Carson

Dr. Luke Carson is an Associate Professor in the Department of English at the University of Victoria, currently on leave. His research focuses on modern and contemporary American poetry, aesthetic theory, and comparative literature, with notable expertise in Marianne Moore, John Ashbery, and Hölderlin. He serves as an Associate Director of the editorial board for the Marianne Moore Digital Archive and Series Editor of her datebooks. Carson holds a BA from McGill University and a PhD from UCLA.

His work bridges literary analysis with interdisciplinary studies, exploring themes like poetic form, existential vision, and psychoanalytic theory. Notable publications include analyses of Ashbery’s engagement with Heidegger and Hölderlin, Mallarmé’s influence on Ashbery, and Marianne Moore’s intertextual readings. Carson’s monograph Hoelderlin and the Question of the Father (2007) critically translates and expands Jean Laplanche’s psychoanalytic study of Hölderlin’s poetry.

Publications span journals like Contemporary Literature, Twentieth-Century Literature, and Genre, reflecting a commitment to both close reading and theoretical frameworks. While no awards are explicitly mentioned, his scholarly contributions highlight rigorous interdisciplinary engagement. He collaborates frequently, as seen in co-authored works with Heather Cass White on Marianne Moore. Carson’s teaching and research emphasize modernist aesthetics, transatlantic literary networks, and the intersection of poetry with philosophy.