Department of English

This first-year seminar explores literary works that have been historically perceived as dangerous. The history of what is now considered “great literature” is also a history of censorship, prohibition, and book burning—whether for moral, political, or religious reasons. In his Republic, Plato famously proposed banning literature, arguing that its imitative nature made it corruptive. Others, however, have celebrated the literary imagination as a force for social progress and individual liberation. Beginning with classical debates about the dangers of literature and the arts in general, the course examines a wide array of literary works across the genres of drama, poetry, and the novel, deemed scandalous, obscene, irreligious, immoral, or politically subversive—a body of transgressive literature that challenged prevailing norms and endured across generations. Alongside close reading and literary analysis, students will gain familiarity with major literary movements and historical periods. By engaging closely with “dangerous literature” across time, students will deepen their understanding of the texts as well as historical, aesthetic, and philosophical contexts from which they emerged. This inquiry will encourage students to question literature’s value and its complex entanglement with culture, politics, and society today.