Nigel H Foxcroft's interdisciplinary areas of research focus on modern Anglo-American and Russian literature. He is an international authority on the English late modernist writer, Malcolm Lowry, especially on his psychogeographic perception of the interconnectedness of East-West cultures and civilizations.
His monograph, The Kaleidoscopic Vision of Malcolm Lowry: Souls and Shamans (Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, 2019) is an interdisciplinary investigation of his multifaceted insight through an analysis of his works and correspondence. It provides a historical lens spotlighting literature’s role in augmenting awareness of the roots of contemporary issues of universal significance. Its URL is:<https://rowman.com/ISBN/9781498516570/The-Kaleidoscopic-Vision-of-Malcolm-Lowry-Souls-and-Shamans>.
Reviews of The Kaleidoscopic Vision of Malcolm Lowry
"Malcolm Lowry, born in England and longtime resident of Mexico and Canada, is one of the greatest yet also one of the least understood and least appreciated of twentieth-century English writers. Nigel Foxcroft's scrupulous study unravels Lowry's heterogeneous erudition and what he calls his 'kaleidoscopic vision of the world'. Foxcroft provides the biographical, historical, cultural and above all the literary contexts of a magpie writer who drew upon American, Norwegian, German and Russian literatures, European silent cinema, contemporary anthropology and philosophy and mystical and esoteric sources to create the remarkable writing, global in scope, of 'an international modernist visionary'. This rich and illuminating account will help readers appreciate more fully the singularity and the achievement of this extraordinary writer."
— Dr Alistair Davies, University of Sussex
"I have just finished reading The Kaleidoscopic Vision of Malcolm Lowry and am deeply impressed by Nigel H. Foxcroft’s truly informative and powerful discussion. I am overwhelmed by his wide range of reading and extensive research, from anthropology and ancient religion to European, Russian, and American writings, and even to Indian and Chinese thoughts. I am also attracted by Lowry's religious dimensions, somehow comparable to those of shamans. I am so encouraged to tackle Lowry's works again. I think that this monograph is an important corrective to the Euro-centred understanding of modernism, to be read not only by Lowry specialists but also by everyone interested in modernism in general.Another point that interested me is that In Ballast to the White Sea - the latest work to be published and a key text bridging the early and mature Lowry - seems to occupy the near centre in Foxcroft’s discussion of the Lowrian canon. The Kaleidoscopic Vision of Malcolm Lowry is quite unique in that respect."
— Dr Kazuo Yokouchi, Professor of English Literature and Vice-Dean of the School of Humanities, Kwansei Gakuin University, Nishinomiya, Japan
“The Kaleidoscopic Vision of Malcolm Lowry is an engaging and enjoyable book that provides a wealth of insights into this important writer. […] this is […] a work that uncovers so much and in a generous manner that will open up the works for generations of readers.”
— Andrew Hadfield, Professor of English, University of Sussex, in Notes and Queries, 2021-02-23, Oxford Journals, ISSN: 0029-3970
"The Kaleidoscopic Vision of Malcolm Lowry is an excellent and important publication. While I have long been aware of the spiritual and cultural influences in Lowry’s writings, Nigel H. Foxcroft has thoroughly examined those influences and their impacts. Therefore, he has highlighted and connected many new thoughts and ‘visions’ for all those interested in Lowry. Moreover, he does so in a style that is clear and concise. He has made me once again be amazed at Lowry’s ‘kaleidoscopic’ interests and knowledge, and his ability to weave those interests into such unique and riveting novels and short stories. Foxcroft has made me want to re-read all of Lowry’s works again as I now have some fresh insights! I am also amazed at the research that he has conducted, and the rigorous ways in which he has drawn that research together – a major undertaking."
— Sheryl Salloum, an independent scholar, Vancouver
"I have finished The Kaleidoscopic Vision of Malcolm Lowry. I really enjoyed it! The writing is clear and direct, which is a big plus. What I really enjoyed is that Nigel H. Foxcroft has tried to take ALL Lowry’s works, including the letters, and put them into a common, coherent framework. Most commentators just concentrate on ‘Volcano’ or one of the other novels. Foxcroft’s work gives a better idea than any of the others of the depth of Lowry’s reading and the inter-connectedness of his thoughts. I particularly enjoyed Foxcroft’s comments on Donnelly, Charles Fort, J. W. Dunne, and Ouspensky. Now I’m going to have to re-read the Lowry works again."
— Dr Glenn Woodsworth, an independent scholar, Vancouver
Nigel's research aspires to contribute to developing a framework for probing the international dimensions of modernism. It aims to lay a foundation for analyzing the influence of cultures and civilizations on modernist authors and avant-garde artists.
He brings a wide-range of practices to his literary research and scholarship, including the influence of cultural, historical, and psychogeographic forces. His wider interests include modernist, postmodernist, postcolonial, and contemporary fiction; the Golden Age of Russian literature and culture (and beyond); and the history of Anglo-Hungarian cultural contacts. As well as English, he has considerable experience in teaching Hungarian and Russian.
E-mail: N.H.Foxcroft@brighton.ac.uk
Featured Works and Projects
Malcolm Lowry: Shamanism and Psychogeography
An Interdisciplinary Study of the Shamanic, Psychogeographic, and Cross-Cultural Consciousness of Malcolm Lowry
Russian Literature
Nigel Foxcroft’s research into Russian literature makes use of literary interests in psychoanalysis and innovative close-reading methods.
Blog: Sabbatical Field Trip to Mexico for the Day of the Dead, 2010
Trip to incorporate an analysis of Aztec and Zapotec world-views through a detailed study of the origins of the Mexican Day of the Dead Festival.
Research Activities and Esteem
Refereeing and Editorships
- Reviewer for Edinburgh University Press and the University of Ottawa Press since 2014.
- Academic referee for the Leverhulme Trust for a grant application for an international research project in 2007-08.
- Academic consultant for Russian, Careers Research and Advisory Centre (CRAC), Cambridge in 1999-2001.
- Member of the editorial board of Rusistika, 2008 onwards.
Keynote Speeches
2020 ‘The Aztec and Zapotec Roots of the Mexican Day of the Dead in The Kaleidoscopic Vision of Malcolm Lowry’ (keynote), XV Coloquio Internacional Malcolm Lowry (online), Fundación Malcolm Lowry, Mexico, 31st Oct -2nd Nov: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SXQSxauMUP0 (2nd Nov).
2019 ‘Malcolm Lowry and the Interconnectedness of East-West Cultures and Civilizations’ (keynote lecture), XIV Malcolm Lowry International Colloquium 2019, Biblioteca Municipal Camões, Lisbon, Portugal, 30th October.
2012 ‘Malcolm Lowry and the Mexican Day of the Dead: Anthropological, Cosmic, and Shamanic Perspectives’ (keynote speech), The Mexican Day of the Dead: Interdisciplinary Perspectives: A One-Day Symposium, Canterbury Cathedral Lodge, University of Kent, 2nd November.
2010 ‘Shamanic Influences on Malcolm Lowry: East-West Connections’, keynote lecture, 4th International Malcolm Lowry Colloquium: A Tribute to Raúl Ortiz y Ortiz, Malcolm Lowry Foundation/ Museo de la Casona Spencer, Cuernavaca, Mexico, 2nd November (http://malcolmlowry.blogspot.co.uk/search?q=foxcroft).
Conference Sessions Chaired
2014 'Humanities: Literature & Literary Studies', NACAH2014 IAFOR Conference, Marriott - Downtown, Providence, Rhode Island, USA, 18th-21st Sept.
2013 ‘Ethnicity, Difference, Identity’, ECAH2013 IAFOR Conference, Thistle, Brighton, 18th-21st July.
Awards
2014 Santander staff travel grant (£1700) for research visit to Mexico (Oct-Nov).
Interviews
2014 Interview in Jorge Sifuentes Cañas, ‘Foxcroft presenta ante público morelense sus investigaciones’, La Jornada Morelos, Cuernavaca, Mexico, 7th Nov 2014, 14 (http://malcolmlowry.blogspot.co.uk/search?q=foxcroft).
Recent Conference Papers:
2022 'Marxist Influences on Earle Birney and Malcolm Lowry,' HSS Research Away Day, Ironworks Studios, Brighton, 28th Apr
2021 'Malcolm Lowry and the Mexican Day of the Dead,' Day of the Dead 2021, Cellar Magnifique, Woking, 30th Oct
2020 ‘The Aztec and Zapotec Roots of the Mexican Day of the Dead in The Kaleidoscopic Vision of Malcolm Lowry’ (keynote), XV Coloquio Internacional Malcolm Lowry (online), Fundación Malcolm Lowry, Mexico, 31st Oct -2nd Nov: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SXQSxauMUP0 (2nd Nov).
2020 'Mexican Perspectives in The Kaleidoscopic Vision of Malcolm Lowry', Day of the Dead Digital Festival: Literature section, Mexican Embassy, London, 26th Oct – 5th Nov, https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=youtu.be&v=sPIGEhdwGgc&fbclid=IwAR1wPgFCTDNH7TM6WD3uVhxQ_3x-CaXbIKy-xMqP1bwYWh5BqkTaXgBQf6E&app=desktop (29th Oct).
2019 ‘Malcolm Lowry and the Interconnectedness of East-West Cultures and Civilizations’ (keynote lecture), XIV Malcolm Lowry International Colloquium 2019, Biblioteca Municipal Camões, Lisbon, Portugal, 30th October.
2017 ‘Malcolm Lowry: The Russian Dimension’, ‘Under the Volcano’, 70 Years On International Conference, Liverpool John Moores University and Bluecoat, Liverpool, 28th-29th July.
2016 ‘Surrealist Influences: The Inter-Connectedness of Malcolm Lowry’s Modernism’, 2nd Sussex Modernism Lecture Series, Centre for Modernist Studies @ University of Sussex & Towner, Eastbourne, 25th May.
2015 ‘Visions of History: Chance and Certainty in A. S. Pushkin’s The Bronze Horseman and Boris Godunov’, ICCEES IX World Congress 2015, Kanda University of International Studies, Makuhari, Japan,3rd-8th Aug.
2014 ‘The Influence of Mexican and Russian Civilizations on Malcolm Lowry’s Shamanic Perceptions’, Updates on ‘Under the Volcano’ Round Table, International Malcolm Lowry Colloquium 2014, Malcolm Lowry Foundation/ Museo de la Casona Spencer, Cuernavaca, Mexico, 30th Oct-2nd Nov.
2014 ‘Malcolm Lowry: The Russian Connection’, NACAH2014 (The IAFOR N. American Conference on Arts and Humanities), Marriott – Downtown, Providence, Rhode Island, USA, 18th-21st Sept, & chair of lit session.
2014 ‘Dynamic Conflict in Alexander Pushkin’s Boris Godunov and The Bronze Horseman’, New UK Research in C19 Russian Literature Symposium, Darwin College, Cambridge, 1st Feb.
2013 ‘The Power of Non-Verbal Communication in J. M. Coetzee’s Foe’, ECAH2013 IAFOR Conference, Thistle, Brighton, 18th-21st July & chair of session on ‘Ethnicity, Difference, Identity’.
2013 ‘Psychogeographic Impact on Malcolm Lowry's Consciousness: From the Zapotec and Aztec Civilizations to Taoism’, LibrAsia2013 IAFOR Conference, Ramada, Osaka, Japan, 4th-7th Apr.
2012 ‘Malcolm Lowry and the Mexican Day of the Dead: Anthropological, Cosmic, and Shamanic Perspectives’ (keynote speech), The Mexican Day of the Dead: Interdisciplinary Perspectives: A One-Day Symposium, Canterbury Cathedral Lodge, University of Kent, 2nd Nov.
2012 ‘Aztecs and Zapotecs: The Day of the Dead and the Cosmic Phantoms of Malcolm Lowry’, Malcolm Lowry, Encore International Conference, Centre Culturel Int de Cerisy-la-Salle, France, 27th Jun–4th Jul.
2010 ‘Shamanic Influences on Malcolm Lowry: East-West Connections’, keynote lecture, 4th International Malcolm Lowry Colloquium: A Tribute to Raúl Ortiz y Ortiz, Malcolm Lowry Foundation/ Museo de la Casona Spencer, Cuernavaca, Mexico, 2nd Nov (<http://malcolmlowry.blogspot.co.uk/search?q=foxcroft>).
2010 ‘Malcolm Lowry and the Day of the Dead – An Escape to Aztec Civilization?, Faculty of Arts Research Festival, June.
2010 ‘The Shamanic Psyche of Malcolm Lowry: An Intercontinental Odyssey’, English Lit Research Seminar Series, University of Brighton, Mar.
2009 ‘Souls and Shamans: The Cosmopolitan Psychology of Malcolm Lowry’, 2009 Malcolm Lowry Centenary International Conference, University of British Columbia (UBC), Vancouver, July.
2007 ‘A Shamanic Visionary: The Intercontinental Inspiration of Malcolm Lowry’s Magic’, Malcolm Lowry: Fifty Years On International Symposium, Modernist Studies, University of Sussex, June.