This course examines literary texts that are transgressive, revolutionary, or concerned with taboo subjects. Reading material will consist of excerpts from longer texts, many of them full-length novels or works of creative non-fiction. Students will study the historical and political context of these texts as well as the content of the texts, and the interpretation of underlying themes connected to the cultures represented by the authors. Because this class is designed to have a multicultural focus, the texts chosen should cover a variety of reasons for censorship, including but not limited to decisions based on politics, sexuality, religion, and social themes.
Upon successful completion of the course, students should be able to demonstrate the following knowledge or skills:
1. Demonstrate understanding of the reason books are banned.
2. Explain how individual works demonstrate transgressive themes.
3. Explain the cultural and political influences that caused specific books to be banned.
4. Identify specific evidence within books that supports assertions about why they were banned.
5. Explain the cultural significance of a variety of banned books..
6. Differentiate between multiple reasons for the banning of books.
7. Explain cultural and ideological differences between groups who support or oppose specific books.
8. Use a framework of modern cultural values to criticize, or even support the banning of specific books.
9. Write, formally and informally, in a way that demonstrates the application of critical thinking skills to texts.
10. Explain ways in which transgressive texts have the potential to change cultural values.
PO4 Students will be able to recognize or articulate personal/interpersonal aspects of, or connections between, diverse cultural, social, or political contexts.
PO5 Students will be able to solve problems by gathering, interpreting, combining and/or applying information from multiple sources.
1. Explain basic ideas of censorship and book banning.
2. Differentiate between reasons for banning: prurient interest, political differences, suppression of dangerous ideas, etc.
3. Explain what groups traditionally have been in charge of banning books.
4. Provide an overview of specific censorship "movements" including anti-lgbtq, anti-pornography/obscenity, anti-communist, etc. (Note: "anti-pornography/obscenity" refers to texts with specific, identifiable characteristics linking them to specific cultures, such as Roy's "God of Small Things," Walker's "The Color Purple," or Ginsberg's "Howl and Other Poems.")
5. Use a thematic framework to discuss books chosen by the instructor which were banned or censored. Themes should include, but not be limited to the following (with representative examples:)
A) Suppression on Political Grounds
1) Black Boy (Richard Wright)
2) The Grapes of Wrath (John Steinbeck)
3) Johnny Got His Gun (Dalton Trumbo)
4) 1984 (George Orwell)
B) Suppression on Sexual Grounds
1) The Bluest Eye (Toni Morrison)
2) Candide (Voltaire)
3) The Handmaid's Tale (Margaret Atwood)
4) How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents (Julia Alvarez)
C) Suppression on Social Grounds
1) Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (Mark Twain)
2) Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl (Anne Frank)
3) The Bell Jar (Sylvia Plath)
4) The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian (Sherman Alexie)
D) Suppression on Religious Grounds
1) Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems (Galileo Galilei
2) The Cartoons that Shook the World (Jytte Klausen)
3) On the Origin of Species (Charles Darwin)
4) Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (J. K. Rowling)
- Students should be regularly assessed based on their understanding of the assigned texts. This can be in the form of periodic quizzes, midterm and final, etc. The goal is to ensure that they are encountering a broad range of texts.
- While there will be some lecture, the course is designed to facilitate student interaction and discussion.
- Film excerpts may be substituted for written texts, but with the understanding that trigger warnings and possible alternative assignments may be necessary. Excellent choices would be films like Brewster's Millions (1945) which was banned in Memphis because an African-American servant was treated too well, or Curley (1947) which was banned (again in Memphis) for portraying an integrated school.
- Students must complete at least one formal essay.
- It is recommended that student be assigned a group project in which they examine the interrelationships between the cultures and communities depicted in the texts, as well as the cultures and communities that recommended banning them.