Kahlil Gibran: Godfather of the “New Age”
Published in 1923, The Prophet became a perpetual best-seller, birthed a genre, and marked the poet as retrograde, sentimental, and florid.
“The Poet Is a Man Who Feigns”
Portuguese modernist Fernando Pessoa channeled a grand, glorious chorus of writers—heteronyms, he called them—robust inventions of his unique imagination.
The Incredible Versatility of Adrienne Rich
Rich challenged the language of the past in poetry and prose while not quite embracing a fully inclusive future.
From the Black Queer South to the World
Across its twelve-year lifespan, Atlanta-based Venus magazine brought southern voices to the larger Black queer print media network.
The Blu’s Hanging Controversy
Some have argued that the 1997 novel Blu's Hanging perpetuates East Asian racism against Filipinos while undermining criticism through violent sexuality.
The Spy Who Shared My Foyer
Luminaries from Agatha Christie to Walter Gropius gravitated to London’s “Lawn Road Flats.” So too did a far less conspicuous cohort: assets for the USSR.
When Lord Byron Tried to Buy a Twelve-Year-Old Girl
The English poet fell in love with Teresa Makri while he was traveling in Greece and subsequently tried to purchase her from her mother.
The Caricature Who Couldn’t Appear on American Born Chinese
The television adaptation of Gene Luen Yang's graphic novel called for significant changes to the character of Chin-Kee.
What if Robinson Crusoe was a Girl?
In nineteenth-century England, stranding a (fictitious) girl on an island made a good argument for imperialism.
Canada’s Most Controversial Novel
Marian Engel's 1976 novel Bear is famous for its embrace of bestiality, but it also offers a commentary on humans' relationship with the natural world.