Modern Language Association, To 1982

The Richard Wendorf Papers fill nineteen boxes and span the period 1965-1986. The papers are composed of eight categories: biographical materials, education files, correspondence, teaching files, administrative files, professional organizations files, papers presented before professional organizations, and publications.

The small amount of biographical material contains curricula vitae, bibliographies, Wendorf's B. Phil. certificate from the University of Oxford, and a small amount of medical information.

The education files are arranged according to each degree received by Wendorf: a Bachelor of Arts, a Bachelor of Philosophy, a Master of Arts, and a Doctor of Philosophy. The bulk of the files contain lecture and reading notes, and student papers from the courses attended by Wendorf. The Doctor of Philosophy section includes a typescript of Wendorf's dissertation.

The correspondence section consists of two parts: general correspondence arranged in folders chronologically by year (1975-1986), and subject correspondence arranged alphabetically by folder title. Wendorf's frequent correspondence with many individuals and organizations can be found in the subject category. All correspondence primarily concerns Wendorf's teaching and writing activities.

The teaching files illustrate Wendorf's interdisciplinary interests. The files include lecture notes, correspondence, student papers, and related materials for courses in Art History, English, General Studies, and the Humanities. The majority of these files document courses Wendorf taught at Northwestern. However, a few files exist from courses he taught at Princeton and Williams College.

The administrative files contain primarily memoranda relating to various committees Wendorf served in the English department and the College of Arts and Sciences.

The professional organizations files include planning materials for regional and national meetings, especially the 1986 meeting of the Midwest Region of the American Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies, which was held at Northwestern. Also of interest are eight folders of correspondence and essays for the annual contests sponsored by the Phi Beta Kappa Association of the Chicago Area.

The papers presented before professional organizations files contain correspondence, notes, and drafts. They are arranged alphabetically according to the title of the organization to whom Wendorf presented his paper.

The publications section is the largest with ten boxes and is arranged into two parts relating to books and articles.

Each part is further arranged alphabetically according to the publication's title. Correspondence, notes, and drafts for Wendorf's four books and numerous articles are found in this section.