Public Thinkers in Profile: Susan Sontag

Undergraduate / Graduate

Susan Sontag (1933-2004) was one of the most influential intellectuals of the 20th century. She was and remains known for her extensive, stylistically dazzling essays on art, politics, and culture. This course examines Sontag's major essays, as well as her personal writing, her fiction, and her public appearances. We will also examine Sontag as a model of the "serious" thinker, who refuses to have their public contributions disciplined by the needs of any larger political or social group. While working out Sontag's particular stances and contributions to literature, art, and cultural criticism, we will use her as a lens to consider the changing role of the public intellectual during her lifetime.