BANNED BOOK SUMMARY

Tropic of Cancer BY Miller, Henry

From ( http://osgoode.yorku.ca/media2.nsf/83303ffe5af03ed585256ae6005379c9/fd41e3933ac3318285256e3d0050fc19!OpenDocument) "Once scandalous, an insult fades Henry Miller's Tropic of Cancer celebrates its 70th anniversary this year, REBECCA CALDWELL writes, and time has not been kind By REBECCA CALDWELL Saturday, Feb. 14, 2004 Seventy years ago, Americanauthor Henry Miller released the novel that would become one of the most notorious of the 20th century. Tropic of Cancer, his thinly veiled account of his first year in Paris as a struggling artist, was not a book, he warned: "It is libel, slander, defamation of character. This is not a book in the ordinary sense of the word. No, this is a prolonged insult, a gob of spit in theface of Art, a kick in the pants to God, Man, Destiny, Time, Love, Beauty . . .whatyou will."

Miller probably knew this book was going to be censored from the minute he put down the pen. It's exactly as he himself describes it. Sex is prominent and casual. Women are cunts, and whores. Whores are easily and frequently had. Some of the characters are terrible people, and some are brilliant. Sickness abounds (the clap and a dose) and no respect is given any institution. Yes.. there was no doubt that this would be banned.

Appears on the Opus Dei list ofbanned books

From ( http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Tropic-of-Cancer-and-Tropic-of-Capricorn/Henry-Miller/e/9780802138439) "Initially banned in America as obscene, Tropic of Cancer was first publishedin Paris in 1934. Only a historic court ruling that changed American censorship standards permitted its publication. Tropic of Cancer is now considered, as Norman Mailer said, "one of the ten or twenty great novels of ourcentury."Also banned in America for almost thirty years, Tropic of Capricorn is now considered a cornerstone of modern literature. Together, Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn are a lasting testament to one of the greatest American writers of the twentieth century and his contribution not only to literature but to the cause of free speech.

From ( http://www.thefileroom.org/documents/dyn/DisplayCase.cfm/id/1275)

Artist: Henry Miller (1891 -1980): US novelist

Confronting Bodies: US government and British government

Date of Action: 1934 - 1964

Specific Location: USA

Description of Artwork: March 9- In 1938, the U.S. Government banned Henry Millers novel Tropic of Cancer, saying it dealt too explicitly with his sexual adventures and challenged models of sexual morality. To further drive the point home, the government went on to ban all of Millers works from entering the United States. In 1961, the ban was lifted, but his work continued to be labeled obscene by the Citizens for Decent Literature. "Tropic of Cancer" (1934) along with the follow-up "Tropic of Capricorn" (1939)are the most controversial of Henry Miller's works due to their sexually explicit content. The books are an autobiographical account of a poor expatriate living in France during the early 1930s. With no real narrative plot, the novels follow the everyday life of the narrator. What make both works so controversial are the numerous sexual encounters that are depicted with shocking and unprecedented detail and frankness.

Description of Incident: In 1938, the U.S. Government banned Henry Millers novel Tropic of Cancer, saying it dealt too explicitly with his sexual adventures and challenged models of sexual morality. To further drive the point home, the government went on to ban all of Millers works from entering the United States.

Results of Incident: In 1961 the US ban on Henry Miller's novels was finally lifted, but the controversy surrounding his books (in particular "Tropic of Cancer") continued. "Tropic of Cancer" was still labeled as "obscene" by the US government and nationwide there were attempts to stop the sale of Miller's novel. In the fall of 1961, police officials in the Chicago area systematically intimidated bookstores who sold the "Tropic of Cancer", making several arrests. The book's publisher, Grove Press, along with the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed a lawsuit arguing it is illegal for officials to interfere with the sale of the novel. During the first year of publication Grove Press spent more than $100,000 fighting 60 cases nation wide.It was not until 1964 that the US Supreme Court finally declared "Tropic of Cancer" not to be obscene and its sale protected by the US constitution. Source: Censorship: A World Encyclopedia. Ed. Derek Jones. Chicago;London:Fitzroy Dearborn, 2001.