“On the first day of class, I tell my students that when we’re discussing literature, they should never take my word for it,” writes Scott Stein, who teaches at Drexel University. “I’m not going to stand at the board listing facts for them to copy and regurgitate on a midterm—I’m not Cliff’s Notes. I want them to read, think, and bring their own understanding of the text to class discussions. If we disagree about the meaning or purpose of something we read and want to persuade people that ours is a valid interpretation, the only evidence that matters is the work itself.
“My degrees and academic title are not bludgeons of truth. Yes, I’ve spent a lot more time doing this than my students have. I’ve read the work before, thought about it for longer. I will be able to point to details and angles they might not have considered, but they should never accept my interpretation because I said so.
“I believe this egalitarian or nonauthoritarian view of literature, which recognizes only the text as authority—an authority that all readers can access—and treats students like full adults intellectually, is incompatible with the recent trend of providing specific trigger or content warnings before students read potentially offensive material.”
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