Human Rights and Literature (Fall 2015)

In this class, we will be reading literary and cultural documents to contemplate the concept of “human rights.” What rights do all humans have, simply by virtue of being human? Who counts as human? Do current understandings of human rights exclude some people? Do humans have more rights than other species? How do questions of gender and sexuality fit into the discussion of human rights? As we seek to answer these questions, we will trace the development of human rights discourses from the Enlightenment to the present, looking at literature from a variety of cultures and human rights documents from a variety of sources. We will supplement our readings with outreach to local human rights organizations. A photo of this Fall 2015 class was taken as part of Professor Bob Tobin\u27s ongoing class photo tradition