children birth_place subject influences imagesize nationality birth_date genre article_title name occupation
david , katherine and daniel ware , massachusetts , united states colonial america , transcendentalism , and religious history alan academic -rrb- heimert , perry miller , daniel aaron -lrb- 210px united states 14 june 1950 history and literature philip f. gura
 philip f. gura scholar , writer , editor , educator
philip f. gura

philip f. gura -lrb- born june 14 , 1950 -rrb- is an american scholar , writer , editor , and educator .
he currently serves as william s. newman distinguished professor of american literature and culture at the university of north carolina at chapel hill , where he holds appointments in the departments of english and comparative literature , religious studies , and american studies .
gura was born in ware , massachusetts .
a graduate of phillips academy -lrb- 1968 -rrb- , he received his ab , `` magna cum laude '' , in history and literature in 1972 from harvard college , and his phd , in the history of american civilization in 1977 , from harvard university , where he lived in lowell house .
he is the author or editor of twelve books , including `` the wisdom of words : language , theology , and literature in the new england renaissance '' -lrb- 1981 -rrb- , `` a glimpse of sion 's glory : puritan radicalism in new england , 1620 -- 1660 '' -lrb- 1984 -rrb- , the prize-winning `` america 's instrument : the banjo in the 19th century '' -lrb- 1999 -rrb- , `` buried from the world : inside the massachusetts state prison , 1829 -- 1831 '' -lrb- 2001 -rrb- , `` c. f. martin and his guitars , 1796 -- 1873 '' -lrb- 2003 -rrb- , `` jonathan edwards : america 's evangelical '' -lrb- 2005 -rrb- , `` american transcendentalism : a history '' -lrb- 2007 -rrb- , which was a national book critics circle award finalist in non-fiction , `` the american antiquarian society , 1812 -- 2012 : a bicentennial history '' -lrb- 2012 -rrb- , `` truth 's ragged edge : the rise of the american novel '' -lrb- 2013 -rrb- , and `` jonathan edwards : writings from the great awakening '' -lrb- 2013 -rrb- .
some of his essays , which number over fifty , have been collected in `` the crossroads of american history and literature '' -lrb- 1996 -rrb- .
he also serves as an editor for the `` norton anthology of american literature '' .
gura is an elected member of the american antiquarian society , the massachusetts historical society , the colonial society of massachusetts , and the society of american historians .
in 2008 , the division on american literature to 1800 of the modern language association honored him with its distinguished scholar award .
he plays the clawhammer banjo in a traditional appalachian style , known as `` old-time . ''
