Two Books Examine Art, Literature, Identity, and New Moral Censorship

In 'L'arte sotto controllo' (Johan and Levi, 2020), Carole Talon-Hugon, a philosophy professor at Université de Nice-Côte d'Azur, examines the 2017 uproar surrounding Dana Schutz's 'Open Casket,' which Hannah Black called for the removal of. She argues that contemporary censorship is fueled by social media and petitions, resulting in artists practicing self-censorship. Walter Siti's 'Contro l'impegno' (Rizzoli, 2021) offers a defense of literature's inherent ambiguity while cautioning against the pitfalls of 'buonismo' in a culture driven by shareability. Both authors underscore the influence of social media, the intricacies of artistic form, and the difficulties in engaging in dialogue about identity politics, referencing Harriet Beecher Stowe's 'Uncle Tom's Cabin' (1851).