The Ralph Cohen Prize was founded in 2010 to honor the achievements of the founder and forty-year editor of New Literary History. It especially acknowledges Ralph Cohen’s longstanding commitment to encouraging and publishing the work of junior scholars.
Graduate students, untenured faculty, and independent scholars are eligible to submit essays for the competition on any topic appropriate to the aims of New Literary History. They are encouraged to familiarize themselves with the journal’s guidelines and scholarly profile. Endnotes are used rather than bibliographies. Chicago style is preferred. Contributions should not exceed 9,000 words, including notes, and must include an abstract. Essays should not be under consideration elsewhere. The deadline for submissions for the 2026 prize is June 15th 2026. All submissions should be clearly marked “Ralph Cohen prize” and emailed to newliteraryhistory@virginia.edu.
The winner of the award will receive a $2,000 honorarium. The essay will be published in a future issue of New Literary History. Download a PDF flyer announcement.
2025 Winner
Congratulations to Thomas W. Howard for his essay, “Anesthetic Reading: Ether, Nitrous Oxide, and Nineteenth-Century Interpretation,” which has won the 2025 Ralph Cohen Prize. His essay will be published next year in New Literary History.