Gideon Burton

Gideon Burton, a member of the English Department since 1994, specializes in Renaissance literature, the history of rhetoric, and Mormon literature and criticism. He maintains two academic websites, Silva Rhetoricae: The Forest of Rhetoric and The Mormon Literature Database. A native of Salt Lake City, Utah, Gideon attended the University of Utah briefly before attending and graduating from Brigham Young University in 1989. At the University of Southern California he received an M.A. in English in 1992, a Master of Professional Writing (MPW) degree in 1995, and his Ph.D. in Rhetoric, Linguistics, and Literature in 1994. He joined the BYU English Department faculty in 1994. He and his wife, Karen, reside in Springville, Utah. They are the parents of four sons.

Toward a Mormon Criticism: Should We Ask “Is This Mormon Literature?”

Articles/Essays – Volume 32, No. 3

Consider the Restoration of the gospel as a paradigm for Mormon criticism. Sensing some apostasy from truth, the critic rectifies this falling away through an act of restoration. As Joseph Smith sensed something incomplete about…

The State of Mormon Literature and Criticism

Articles/Essays – Volume 32, No. 3

Two decades have passed since Dialogue last published an issue entirely devoted to Mormon literature. In the meantime literary writing about Latter-day Saints has been burgeoning both in LDS and national markets—so much so that it is difficult for literary critics to keep up with this growing body of novels, plays, poetry, and literary nonfiction. It is very important, however, that they try. To have a sense of the future of Mormon literature, it is vital that we see how present writings articulate with traditions from the past.