Barrett Wendell

Barrett Wendell was a prominent American professor, literary critic, and historian, known for his work at Harvard University, where he taught alongside notable figures such as William James and Charles Eliot Norton. Wendell's academic career spanned multiple fields, including literature, history, and philosophy, with a particular focus on the works of William Shakespeare, John Milton, and Ralph Waldo Emerson. His literary criticism and historical writings were influenced by the ideas of Matthew Arnold, Thomas Carlyle, and Herbert Spencer. As a member of the Harvard Faculty, Wendell was part of a vibrant intellectual community that included scholars such as George Santayana, Josiah Royce, and Bernard Berenson.

● Early Life and Education

Barrett Wendell was born in Boston, Massachusetts, to a family with strong ties to the city's intellectual and cultural scene, including connections to the Boston Athenaeum and the Massachusetts Historical Society. He attended Harvard College, where he studied under the guidance of prominent professors such as Francis James Child and James Russell Lowell. Wendell's undergraduate education was followed by graduate studies at Harvard University, where he earned his Ph.D. in 1880, with a dissertation on the works of John Dryden and Alexander Pope. During his time at Harvard, Wendell was exposed to the ideas of Charles Darwin, Karl Marx, and Friedrich Nietzsche, which would later influence his literary criticism and historical writings.

● Career

Wendell's academic career began in 1880, when he was appointed as an instructor in English literature at Harvard University. He quickly rose through the ranks, becoming a full professor in 1898, and serving as the chair of the English department from 1905 to 1912. During his tenure, Wendell taught a wide range of courses, including classes on Chaucer, Spenser, and Milton, as well as seminars on literary criticism and theory, which were influenced by the works of Aristotle, Immanuel Kant, and Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel. Wendell's teaching style was known for its emphasis on close reading and historical context, and he was particularly admired by students such as T.S. Eliot, Ezra Pound, and John Dos Passos. As a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, Wendell was part of a community of scholars that included figures such as William Dean Howells, Mark Twain, and Edith Wharton.

● Literary Criticism and Works

Wendell's literary criticism and historical writings were widely respected in his time, and he was particularly known for his work on the English Renaissance, including studies of Shakespeare, Marlowe, and Jonson. His book, "A Literary History of America", published in 1900, was a comprehensive survey of American literature from the colonial period to the late 19th century, and included discussions of authors such as Edgar Allan Poe, Herman Melville, and Walt Whitman. Wendell's criticism was influenced by the ideas of Matthew Arnold and Thomas Carlyle, and he was a strong advocate for the importance of literary study in the university curriculum, as seen in the works of John Henry Newman and Cardinal Newman. As a literary critic, Wendell was part of a broader intellectual community that included scholars such as Leslie Stephen, George Saintsbury, and Andrew Lang.

● Teaching and Legacy

Wendell's teaching legacy at Harvard University was profound, and he played a significant role in shaping the university's English department, which would go on to become one of the most prestigious in the country. His emphasis on close reading and historical context influenced a generation of scholars, including Perry Miller, Harry Levin, and Quentin Anderson. Wendell's students went on to become prominent writers, critics, and scholars in their own right, and his teaching style and literary criticism continue to be studied by scholars today, including those at Yale University, Princeton University, and Stanford University. As a member of the Modern Language Association, Wendell was part of a community of scholars that included figures such as Henry James, Edith Wharton, and Theodore Dreiser.

● Personal Life

Wendell was a member of the Boston Brahmin class, and his family had strong ties to the city's intellectual and cultural scene, including connections to the Boston Symphony Orchestra and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. He was a close friend and colleague of many prominent scholars and writers, including William James, George Santayana, and Bernard Berenson. Wendell's personal life was marked by a deep love of literature and learning, and he was known for his wit, charm, and generosity, as seen in his relationships with figures such as Ralph Adams Cram, Charles Follen McKim, and Stanford White. As a member of the American Philosophical Society, Wendell was part of a community of scholars that included figures such as William Osler, Woodrow Wilson, and Elihu Root.