Teaching with Eudora Welty's Correspondence
Eudora Welty wrote and received thousands of letters over the course of her life, letters to and from family, friends, agents, editors, fellow writers, academics, and admirers of her work. A number of individuals with whom she regularly corresponded saved her letters and had them returned to her after their deaths. She in turn saved much of the correspondence she received, and she left both sides of her correspondence to the Mississippi Department of Archives and History (MDAH). By doing so, she chose to open it to the public. We are so grateful that she did.
Few documents tell us more about Welty, her ideas, her habits of mind, the nature of her friendships, the contacts that enriched her life, what she and those close to her valued and what they opposed, than these letters. In this year's workshop, we will explore Welty's letters as a resource that can supplement and expand our understanding of her fiction. Taking the MDAH's Eudora Welty Digital Archives as our textbook, we will both search for what Ezra Pound once called "luminous details" and consider letters as a literary genre of their own.
The workshop will take place on Friday, February 28, 2025 from 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. A light breakfast, lunch, and refreshments will be provided.
Participants will receive .5 CEU credits from Millsaps University.
Space is limited, the cost to attend is $10, and registration is required.
Registration will start on Friday, January 31, 2025. For more information or to register, email info@eudoraweltyhouse.com.
