Transgressive fiction is a genre of literature that focuses on characters who feel confined by the norms and expectations of society and who use unusual and/or illicit ways to break free of those confines. Because they are rebelling against the basic norms of society, protagonists of transgressional fiction may seem mentally ill, anti-social and/or nihilistic. The genre deals extensively with taboo subject matters such as drugs, sex, violence, incest, pedophilia, and crime.
The genre of "transgressive fiction" was defined by Los Angeles Times literary critic Michael Silverblatt.[1] Anne H. SoukTransgressive fiction is a genre of literature that focuses on characters who feel confined by the norms and expectations of society and who use unusual and/or illicit ways to break free of those confines. Because they are rebelling against the basic norms of society, protagonists of transgressional fiction may seem mentally ill, anti-social and/or nihilistic. The genre deals extensively with taboo subject matters such as drugs, sex, violence, incest, pedophilia, and crime.
The genre of "transgressive fiction" was defined by Los Angeles Times literary critic Michael Silverblatt.[1] Anne H. Soukhanov, a journalist for the The Atlantic Monthly, described transgressive fiction thus:
A literary genre that graphically explores such topics as incest and other aberrant sexual practices, mutilation, the sprouting of sexual organs in various places on the human body, urban violence and violence against women, drug use, and highly dysfunctional family relationships, and that is based on the premise that knowledge is to be found at the edge of experience and that the body is the site for gaining knowledge.
The genre has been the subject of controversy, and many forerunners of transgressional fiction, including William S. Burroughs and Hubert Selby Jr., have been the subjects of obscenity trials.
Transgressional fiction shares similarities with splatterpunk, noir and erotic fiction in its willingness to portray forbidden behaviors and shock readers. But it differs in that protagonists often pursue means to better themselves and their surroundings—albeit unusual and extreme ones. Much transgressional fiction deals with searches for self-identity, inner peace and/or personal freedom. Unbound by usual restrictions of taste and literary convention, its proponents claim that transgressional fiction is capable of pungent social commentary.
There is also some overlap with Literary minimalism, as many Transgressional writers use short sentences and simplistic style....more
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A book club-esque list of transgressivefiction.info 's 'Book of the Month' tab.
List started on May, 2019.
(We are not affiliated with transgressivefiction.info, simply fans of the website).
Book club curated by women interested in challenging constructs of society.
A book club-esque list of transgressivefiction.info 's 'Book of the Month' tab.
List started on…more