Stanford Root

Schedule

Stanford Root

Schedule

ENGLISH 135A

Literature Against the Law (ENGLISH 235)

UNITS:5
GRADING:Letter or Credit/No Credit
LEVEL:Undergrad
GER:WAY-EDP

The legal censorship of literature is on the rise again. But current efforts have their roots in a range of statutes from the last hundred and fifty years. In this course, we read politically significant literature that was subject to censorship alongside the various legal instruments used to censor them. These include more familiar statues like obscenity and sedition, as well as less likely suspects like libel law, customs agencies, and even blasphemy! If you enjoy fiction and are considering law school, this course is for you!

Syllabus for selected term:
View Autumn 2026 Syllabus

Sections

1 Term
Seminar 1Open
ID: 25838
0 / 15 enrolled
DAYS:Monday, Wednesday
TIME:10:30 AM – 12:20 PM
LOCATION:Thornton 207
INSTRUCTOR:
Kantor, Roanne
5units

ENGLISH 135A: Literature Against the Law (ENGLISH 235)

5 units · Letter or Credit/No Credit · GER: WAY-EDP

The legal censorship of literature is on the rise again. But current efforts have their roots in a range of statutes from the last hundred and fifty years. In this course, we read politically significant literature that was subject to censorship alongside the various legal instruments used to censor them. These include more familiar statues like obscenity and sedition, as well as less likely suspects like libel law, customs agencies, and even blasphemy! If you enjoy fiction and are considering law school, this course is for you!

Offered in Autumn 2026 at Stanford University.

Autumn 2026 sections

  • Seminar — Monday Wednesday 10:30 AM – 12:20 PM — Thornton 207 — Kantor, Roanne (Undergrad)

More ENGLISH courses

  • ENGLISH 119: Pitching and Publishing in Popular Media (FEMGEN 118)
  • ENGLISH 123: How Do We Get Out of Here? Global Ecocide (EARTHSYS 223E, ENGLISH 223, FEMGEN 223E)
  • ENGLISH 124: The American West (AMSTUD 124A, ARTHIST 152, HISTORY 151, POLISCI 124A)
  • ENGLISH 125A: Introduction to Asian American Literature (AMSTUD 126A, ASNAMST 126E)
  • ENGLISH 125C: The Lost Generation: American literature between the World Wars (AMSTUD 125C)
  • ENGLISH 131: Chaucer's Troilus and Criseyde: Love and War in the Middle Ages
  • ENGLISH 137: Discard Studies and Environmental Literature
  • ENGLISH 139B: American Women Writers, 1850-1920 (AMSTUD 139B)
  • ENGLISH 139C: American Literature and Social Justice (AMSTUD 139C, ASNAMST 139C, CHILATST 139C, CSRE 139C, FEMGEN 139C)
  • ENGLISH 142: Environmental Justice and Literature (EARTHSYS 142J)
  • ENGLISH 142A: Trans Literature (FEMGEN 142A, TAPS 142A)
  • ENGLISH 145B: The Gothic and the Supernatural (RELIGST 145)

All ENGLISH courses · All departments