French and Francophone Studies

It is with sadness that the Department of French and Francophone Studies announces the death of Professor Emeritus Edward J. Ahearn, who passed away on December 11, 2023, at the age of 86.

Ed was born and raised in a close-knit family in Brooklyn, NY, where he spent his childhood, excelling academically and athletically as well as in the arts. An accomplished painter, captain and star pitcher of his baseball team, Ed was granted a full scholarship to Regis High School and then to Manhattan College in New York, distinguishing himself as the first person in his family to go to college. Ed went on to pursue graduate studies at Yale University, receiving his PhD in 1963 before accepting a position at Brown University, where he was beloved by students, admired for his influential and ambitious work on nineteenth-century French literature, and distinguished by his administrative service, which included terms as chair of both the French and Comparative Literature departments. A strong advocate for the Humanities, for students, and for his four younger brothers, Ed was also a loving husband and father, a fiercely competitive athlete on the tennis courts, and a respected intellectual voice at Brown for 49 years.

A celebration of his life was held at Manning Chapel on December 20, 2023.