Carolyn ALLEN

1943 - 2023

Carolyn (Johnson) Allen was born on February 22, 1943, to Hallien Hickman Johnson and Gardner Johnson. She was born and raised in Spokane, WA, with her two siblings, Stephen Johnson (Julee Johnson) and Mary Beth Johnson (Charlie Petrosky). She graduated from Lewis and Clark High School (Spokane) in 1961.

She earned her B.A. at the University of Washington in 1965, majoring in English. She met Jerry Allen there; they married in 1967. She earned her MA in American literature at the Claremont Graduate School in 1967. She and Jerry moved to Alaska and lived in Anchorage for two years. They then moved to Minneapolis, where they both earned Ph. D.s, Carolyn's in English from the University of Minnesota in 1972, writing her dissertation on the American poet Robert Lowell.

Carolyn began her position as a faculty member in the University of Washington's Department of English in 1972. She was an inspiring presence in the classroom, an influential editor, and a notable literary theorist with a focus on feminist literature, affect theory, and theories of gender and sexuality. Her signature monograph, Following Djuna: Women Lovers and the Erotics of Loss, was published in 1996. Together with Judy Howard, a faculty member in Sociology, she co-edited Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society (1995 – 2000), one of the most prestigious academic journals for feminist scholarship.

After 46 years at UW, Carolyn retired in 2018. Brian Reed, the English Department Chair at the time, remarked on the breadth of her administrative accomplishments, among them service on the Department's Executive Committee. directing the graduate program, and directing the Expository Writing Program. Other UW academic and administrative bodies also sought her out. She served on the Executive Committee of the Simpson Center for the Humanities and the College Council of the College of Arts & Sciences.

Carolyn received the UW Distinguished Teaching Award in 1980, one of the most meaningful recognitions in her career. Her devotion to her students was the core of Carolyn's calling as a professor. Outside the classroom, she mentored her undergraduate students, graduate students, and junior colleagues, who became her life-long friends.

Carolyn's dedication to contemporary literature and writers did not end at the boundaries of the UW campus. As Rebecca Brown notes: "Carolyn was a huge one for bridging town and gown; I first met her through Red and Black Books Collective. She was a firm believer in literature for readers beyond the academy and outside the mainstream. She welcomed and supported me and countless others over the years. I will always be grateful."

Carolyn was a foodie; she adored a fine meal at Seattle's most celebrated restaurants. Place Pigalle and Campagne were her main go-to's, perhaps in part because the owners knew her, and always called her by name. They knew she'd judge the wine – no matter how expensive.

And she loved to travel. France was her most beloved destination, but she also traveled to England often, to Greece, Costa Rica, South Africa, and South America, among others. Having a long leisurely lunch in the Provence countryside, relaxing with bottles of wine, was heaven for her.

Friends, colleagues, and writers crowded into Carolyn's home at her retirement party. Many had not met and yet most felt themselves to be among her treasured friends. They came from her three book groups (!), travel companions, English Department, and closest circle of friends. Friendships were her anchor and many of them lasted decades. It is also important to recognize her neighbors, Patti Gorman and Dick Knudsen, and Sarah and Steve Hauschka. No one could ask for more present, committed, loyal neighbors.

Carolyn's family has also kept their ties over the many years. Steve and Mary Beth have benefited greatly from Carolyn's advice and cocounsel support on various life challenges. Carolyn has always followed attentively the lives of Steve and Julee's three children, Craig, Kristin, and Eric. She was also an unofficial aunt to Leah, Jerry, and Betsy's daughter.

Carolyn hoped to remain at home during her last years, a wish fulfilled thanks to loving and professional caregivers and her care manager, as well as to the Wider Horizons community and the new friends she made there. Special recognition is also due to her neighbors, Patti, Dick, Sarah, and Steve, friends with whom she shared E. McGraw but also on whom she depended when the need arose. Special recognition is also due to the "care team" she appointed in 2020, her longtime friends Judy Howard, Pat Novotny, and Emily Warn, and her Wider Horizons friends, Kay Beisse and Sue Lerner.

A memorial service for Carolyn will be held on February 26th from 1-3 pm at the Center for Urban Horticulture ( 3501 NE 41st St, Seattle, WA 98105).

Tributes to Carolyn may be made to Wider Horizons Village, Hedgebrook (Women Authoring Change), and the Department of Gender, Women, and Sexuality Studies at the University of Washington.