The staff of the archives are pleased to announce that the papers of author Nancy Friday are now open for research. Friday (1933-2017) was an author and pop psychologist active from the early 1970s into the 2000s, whose work dealt with topics such as women’s sexuality, gender roles, and family dynamics.
Most of the materials in the collection cover Friday's adult and professional life from 1970-2000s, including hundreds of letters sent to Friday about sexual fantasies (some of which Friday reprinted in her books), among other personal and professional materials such as correspondence with publishing houses, contracts, and recorded interviews. Because of the sensitive nature of some materials in the collection, access to this collection is mediated by an NDA; this will protect the privacy of people who wrote to Nancy about their personal experiences and fantasies while still facilitating access to this incredible record of sexuality and human experience from the late 20th century.
Friday's collection joins others at Barnard that relate to the Feminist Sex Wars, including the records of the Barnard Center for Research on Women (which document the 1982 Scholar & Feminist Conference on Sexuality).
The collection was processed by Records Coordination and Processing Archivist Olivia Newsome and Archives Graduate Fellow Mia Ciallella (BC '19).
View the guide to the Nancy Friday Papers on our finding aids website; to make an appointment to view the papers, please contact archives@barnard.edu and see more information for researchers.