2023 Week Six: A Life of Literature

July 29–August 5

Of all art forms, literature enjoys a special sort of permanence and authority, creating canons for generation after generation to study and enjoy — and to interpret, adapt, and make their own. With new technologies, new genres, innovations in form and practice and, above all, evolving sensibilities and tastes, we look at how and why literature can take on new meaning for new readers. Who, and what, gives literature that meaning? In our history, how has literature provided a lens for our past and envisioned our future, or even shaped our future? Steeped in Chautauqua’s 150-year literary tradition, this week we explore the life of literature and how the literature of tomorrow is being shaped today.