‘It Might Be Made to Bear the Burden of My Experience’: A Testimonial Analysis of the Black Existence & the Western Canon

In his essay “Why I Stopped Hating Shakespeare” James Baldwin discusses his complicated relationship with the Bard and, by extension, the Western Canon. He confesses to a deep frustration with the Canon’s inability to capture his experience as an African American, while also lamenting his inability to draw such connections on his own. In this talk, I take a cue from Baldwin and offer a critical examination of the concept of “Canonicity” and its relationship to Black scholarship, politics, and personal experience.

Inspired by Baldwin’s conception of “the artist as witness,” I explore these relationships using the lens of testimony – a storied form of discourse in which speakers draw generalizable insights by reflecting on their concrete, personal experiences. In doing so, I outline three distinct understandings of the Canon supported by my experiences with three different academic institutions and their curricula: the so-called “Great Books” of the University of Notre Dame’s Program of Liberal Studies, the “Fundamental Works” of the University of Chicago’s Committee on Social Thought,” and the “Basic Texts” taught by the faculty of the Graham School of Continuing Liberal and Professional Studies. Baldwin’s concerns remain relevant, particularly in the lives of humanists – whether they be professional academics or dedicated students of human cultural production.

By narrating my personal, scholarly, and political engagements with these labels and institutions, I make a case for reimagining the Canon in the twenty-first century amidst an air of great pessimism and uncertainty in the academy, the humanities, and society.