Carol James

Madison - Carol Lee Plyley James died in her sleep on Saturday, May 4, at Oak Park Place, 718 Jupiter Drive, Madison, Wisconsin 53718. She was born to Winifred Dale Plyley and Theodore James Plyley on August 7, 1942, in Chillicothe, Ohio. She earned a BA degree at Ohio University, an MA at Indiana University, and a Ph.D. at the University of Minnesota; all three degrees were in French Literature. She was a recognized expert on the work of the French artist Marcel Duchamp. She taught French at Wisconsin State University at Eau Claire (now the University of Wisconsin - Eau Claire), Miami University of Ohio, DePaul University in Chicago, Roosevelt University in Chicago, the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. She is survived by her husband of 43 years, Charles Joseph James, of Madison, Wisconsin; her sister, Judith Eileen Plyley Brown of Sugar Grove, Illinois, along with Judy's husband, Richard Brown, and their children, Terry (with wife Kristin) and Kennon (with husband Bob Reinard); her sisters-in-law, Patricia James, Margaret Shaffer, and Barbara Scroggs, with their extended families in and around Kansas City, Missouri. We are profoundly grateful to the staff at Oak Park Place for over 15 years of care and support during Carol's long illness. We are also grateful to Agrace Hospice Care for their assistance during Carol's final days, as well as to Cress Funeral Home for their sensitive arrangement of Carol's cremation. A memorial service is being planned for a later date.