We might think book bans are something that belong in the past, but literature is banned and suppressed in a myriad of ways hidden and obvious – even today. The Rushdie affair, the ongoing debates in the U.S. surrounding LGBTQ-literature in libraries, as well as Turkey’s recent imprisonment of several authors are just a few of many powerful reminders that literature still isn’t free.
While “censorship” generally refers to bans and interventions made by a government, there are still a host of other institutions and forces that limit an author’s freedom to write and publish literature. At every step from author to reader, a book’s journey is met with moral or political objections, and the landscape is constantly changing.
With the lecture series “Forbidden books“, The House of Literature shines a light on the ways in which literature is banned, censored and suppressed, historically and today. In this series, some of Norway’s foremost thinkers will provide the big pictures of censorship history by examining current and historical events and debates.
What forces limit the free writing of literature, and what kinds of literature do they wish to limit?
As a part of this series, The House of Literature will also publish a digital anthology of new short fiction by Norwegian and international authors. The anthology will be made available from the 5th of September 2023.
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