Oil painting portrair Michel de Montaigne in red robes and white collar

Michel de Montaigne

(1533 - 1592)

Sepia toned photograph of Lewis Carroll in a suit, reading a book

Lewis Carroll

(1832 - 1898)

Juvenal

(c. 60 - c. 130)

Frances Warfield

(1884 - 1969)

Black and white photo of Herbert Spencer with long, hairy mutton chops and a stern expression

Herbert Spencer

(1820 - 1903)

Ambrose Bierce

Ambrose Bierce

(1842 - c. 1914)

black and white photo of Steve Martin wearing a white dinner jacket and black tie

Steve Martin

Engraving of William Shakespeare from the first folio edition.

William Shakespeare

(1564 - 1616)

Photograph of President Abraham Lincoln sitting in a chair.

Abraham Lincoln

(1809 - 1865)

Photo of stone Aristotle statue face

Aristotle

(384 BC - 322 BC)

Painting of Jean de la Bruyère wearing a red cape.

Jean de La Bruyère

(1645 - 1696)

Portrait bust of presumed author of the Iliad and the Odyssey Homer.

Homer

(c. 800 BC - 725 BC)

Sculpture bust of Roman teacher and writer Quintilian.

Quintilian

(35 - c. 96)

Classical engraving of Aristophanes with a long beard.

Aristophanes

(c. 446 BC - c. 386 BC)

color oil painting of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in a red tunic with gray hair

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

(1756 - 1791)

Lewis Lapham at his desk

Lewis H. Lapham

(1935 - 2024)

American feminist, activist, and editor Gloria Steinem.

Gloria Steinem

Jonathan Swift

Jonathan Swift

(1667 - 1745)

Woody Allen in thick black rim glasses

Woody Allen

Don DeLillo standing outside in a jacket, black and white photo

Don DeLillo

Billy Collins

Stanley Kubrick

(1929 - 1999)

Photograph of African-American poet and writer Langston Hughes.

Langston Hughes

(1902 - 1967)

black and white photo of James Thurber lighting a cigarette in the new york times office

James Thurber

(1894 - 1961)

Image of French poet François Villon.

François Villon

(1431 - c. 1463)

photograph of David Foster Wallace speaking at a podium

David Foster Wallace

(1962 - 2008)

Ukrainian-born Russian novelist Nikolai Gogol.

Nikolai Gogol

(1809 - 1852)

Color photograph of comedian and writer Rob Delaney.

Rob Delaney

Sepia colored photo of Oscar Wilde sitting on a rock with a book in his hand

Oscar Wilde

(1854 - 1900)

Italian courtier, diplomat, and writer Baldassare Castiglione.

Baldassare Castiglione

(1478 - 1529)

Pastel drawing of George Eliot.

George Eliot

(1819 - 1880)

black and white photo of Groucho Marx wearing glasses and smoking a cigar from the side of his mouth

Groucho Marx

(1890 - 1977)

Daniil Kharms looking serious with an intent stare

Daniil Kharms

(1905 - 1942)

Black and white photograph of American entertainer Joan Rivers.

Joan Rivers

(1933 - 2014)

Image of Renaissance humanist and scholar Poggio Bracciolini.

Poggio Bracciolini

(1380 - 1459)

Charlie Chaplin

(1889 - 1977)

Calvin Trillin standing in front of a refrigerator in a black and white photograph

Calvin Trillin

Photograph of American author Ben Tarnoff.

Ben Tarnoff

Color drawing of Jane Austen sitting in a chair wearing a blue dress

Jane Austen

(1775 - 1817)

Painting of Charles Lamb wearing a black suit against a red backdrop.

Charles Lamb

(1775 - 1834)

color photograph of Victor Frankl with his hand on his chin looking pensive

Victor Frankl

(1905 - 1997)

Kurt Vonnegut

(1922 - 2007)

Joseph Heller

Joseph Heller

(1923 - 1999)

Painting of François Rabelais.

François Rabelais

(1494 - 1553)

Henri Bergson

Henri Bergson

(1859 - 1941)

Colorized engraving of Voltaire wearing a wig.

Voltaire

(1694 - 1778)

Portrait of George Vasey in a suit with a long white beard

George Vasey

(1822 - 1893)

Flann O'Brien in an overcoat standing next to a Dublin Diversion sign

Flann O’Brien

(1911 - 1966)

Samuel Beckett, 1977. Photograph by Roger Pic.

Samuel Beckett

(1906 - 1989)

Robert Benchley

Robert Benchley

(1889 - 1945)

Photograph of Charles Baudelaire

Charles Baudelaire

(1821 - 1867)

Painting of Thomas Hobbes

Thomas Hobbes

(1588 - 1679)

black and white pencil drawing of Moliere in an ornate frame

Molière

(1622 - 1673)

Portrait of Chinese fiction writer Pu Songling.

Pu Songling

(1640 - 1715)

Black and white photograph of Austrian neurologist Sigmund Freud with cigar.

Sigmund Freud

(1856 - 1949)

Black and white photo of Harry S. Truman holding a newspaper with the headline "Dewey defeats Truman"

Harry S. Truman

(1884 - 1972)

Dorothy Parker working at her typewriter.

Dorothy Parker

(1893 - 1967)

Depiction of Greek philosopher Plato.

Plato

(c. 427 BC - c. 347 BC)

Abu Nuwas

(c. 755 - c. 814)

Color mosaic of earl Church father St. John Chrysostom.

St. John Chrysostom

(347 - 407)

Black and white photo of Lenny Bruce being frisked by an officer

Lenny Bruce

(1925 - 1966)

Black and white photograph of a young Mark Twain with dark hair.

Mark Twain

(1835 - 1910)

Black and white photograph of Mencken looking over his shoulder at the camera

H.L. Mencken

(1880 - 1956)

Portrait of Philip Dormer Stanhope wearing a blue sash.

Philip Dormer Stanhope

(1694 - 1773)

Photograph of English professor and author Andrew McConnell Stott.

Andrew McConnell Stott

black and white photograph of Sara Silverman performing at the Upright Citizens Brigad

Sarah Silverman

David Simon sitting outside wearing an Irish driver cap

David Simon

Photograph of Soviet author Mikhail Zoshchenko in military uniform.

Mikhail Zoshchenko

(1895 - 1958)

Black and white image of French classical author La Rochefoucauld.

La Rochefoucauld

(1613 - 1680)

Illustration of Plautus with red robes and hat

Plautus

(c. 254 BC - c. 184 BC)

Japanese diarist and poet Sei Shōnagon.

Sei Shonagon

(c. 966 - c. 1025)

Spanish writer Miguel de Cervantes.

Miguel de Cervantes

(1547 - 1616)