Luc M. Gilleman

"Luc M. Gilleman of South Hadley, Massachusetts died at home after long illness in the early morning of February 28, 2012. He was born to Andre and Blanche Gilleman on July 9, 1959, in the coastal town of Oostende, Belgium, the youngest of three children. Belgium was where Luc lived the first half of his life, studying biology and then serving in the Belgian national army. He then earned his engineering degree and served for several years as a radio navigation officer in the merchant marines. When he tired of life at sea, he earned his MA in Philology from the Free University of Brussels and received a national scholarship to study at Indiana University, Bloomington, where he earned his PhD with a dissertation on dialogue structures in postwar British drama. Since 1995 he has been a professor at Smith College, teaching and writing about drama and modern British culture. Luc was drawn to the study of systems and circuitry—natural and unnatural—and much of his research focused on literary theory, psychoanalysis, bodies and machines, and the relationship between literature and science. His book John Osborne: Vituperative Artist was published by Routledge in 2001. A three-year battle with cancer interrupted his work on a new book project, tentatively titled, Inside the Maze: Studies in the Theatre of Entrapment, about the labyrinthine structures of modern characters' interactions. Though he was a brilliant, consummate intellectual, Luc's true calling was not as an academic but as a father and outdoorsman: being with his children and being in nature were his truest joys. He is survived by his devoted wife of 13 years, Sarah Gilleman, and their two children, Janna and Toby, ages 10 and 7. He is also survived by his loving and beloved Belgian family, parents Andre and Blanche and siblings Yves and Christine, and his American in-laws Terry, Cindy, Kelly, and Jennifer Grover. A small, private memorial service was held on February 29, 2012 at Beers and Story in South Hadley. A larger service, to which all will be invited, will be held at Smith College in the Spring. In lieu of flowers, those planning an expression of sympathy are asked to make a donation to Amnesty International, Heifer, or the ACLU, some of Luc's favorite charities. "