PROFILE WEDNY STEINER: Prof's new book defends artists' expression

Artist Andres Serrano's photograph "Piss Christ" depicts Jesus on a crucifix immersed in a jar of urine. But while many people have been offended by this and similar pieces of art, English Department Chairperson Wendy Steiner said she believes obscenity is always in the eye of the beholder. The controversy spawned by Serrano's exhibit, in addition to the work of artists like photographer Robert Mapplethorpe and author Salman Rushdie, is the subject of Steiner's recent book, The Scandal of Pleasure: Art in an Age of Fundamentalism. Steiner said today's conflict between artists and the general public is stronger than ever. "People think that everything should be inoffensive to everyone," she said. "They're literalists -- they take whatever art says as a statement, instead of fiction." In her book, Steiner points out that artistic meaning is largely a matter of interpretation. "It's a problem when some vocal element of the general public decides that a piece of art is immoral," she said. Steiner added that she believes there is no place in society for legal restriction on speech. "There's also no limit on civility, but the more we try to enforce it, the more we interfere," she added. In Scandal of Pleasure, Steiner writes that controls on speech do not belong in "a university dedicated to freedom of inquiry and expression." She explained that colleges should not, under any circumstances, adopt speech codes intent on restricting anyone's First Amendment rights. And Steiner said she attempts to carry this idea into her classroom. "I'm not there to teach people how to behave," she stated. "I'm not going to make them pass a moral exam. "The classroom shouldn't force students to think a certain way," she added. In her book, Steiner writes that the role of educators is a difficult one. She said they must have faith in their own beliefs but also accept students' ideas that they may disagree with. "I try to give a fair chance to many points of view," she said. Indeed, Steiner perceives a conflict between academia and the rest of society. She said academics have not made enough of an effort to reach out to the general public, and this is a cause for concern. "We're locked in our own little world," Steiner explained. "The rest of the world doesn't benefit from what academics learn." And the battle over political correctness has not made professors' roles any easier. "Whichever side of the fence one stands on," she writes in Scandal, "'Political Correctness' is an intellectual virus spewing out mind-numbing contradictions -- an ideological gene gone wrong." But she pointed out that political correctness is not the only bridge that lies between academics and their critics. "The selectivity gets me," she said. "Why is violence okay, but not sex?" She also explained that in the end, protests over artwork have little, if any, effect on society as a whole. "It's much easier to burn a book than to change social behavior," she said. Steiner said she is ultimately optimistic about art's future in society, confident that it will continue to flourish despite the fact that it is not supported as much financially as in the past. But she nonetheless acknowledged that when a government supports the arts, the outcome is never negative. "I think it's to America's credit to support culture," Steiner said. "It's a gesture of great civility for governments to care about the quality of life of the people." This includes opposition to censorship and the encouragement of free expression, she added. "All art should be able to be, to exist," she said. "No one should be able to make that decision for you."