David R Sorensen

David R. Sorensen is a Professor and Associate Director Honors at the University of South Carolina, affiliated with the Department of English, Writing and Journalism. His work bridges literary scholarship and historical inquiry.

• BA (University of Toronto, 1976)
• MPhil (London University, 1980)
• DPhil (Oxford University, 1983)

His research focuses on Victorian culture, Enlightenment and Romanticism, and intellectual history, with a particular emphasis on Thomas Carlyle and 19th-century historiography. He has edited major scholarly editions of Carlyle's works, including Past and Present and The French Revolution, contributing to debates on revolutionary narratives and artistic aesthetics.

Sorensen's publications reflect a trajectory of textual editing and historical contextualization, often intersecting with English-French intellectual exchange and Victorian responses to political upheaval. His editorial work includes 50 volumes of the Carlyles' collected letters.

• National Endowment for the Humanities Scholarly Editions Award (2021-24)
• Modern Language Association Scholarly Editions Award (2021)

As co-founder of the Victorian Lives and Letters Consortium and editor of the Carlyle Studies Annual, he has shaped collaborative digital humanities initiatives. His pedagogical style combines lecture and discussion formats.