ABSTRACT
This chapter considers a question central to politics and literature: is revolution possible? The chapter describes canonical thinkers who have considered this question as well as more recent theorists who discuss the roles of emotion and memory in hindering or enabling radical change. Two case studies—the depiction of Cade’s Rebellion in Shakespeare’s Henry VI, Part Two, and the depiction of a contemporary Black actor’s audition for the role of Othello in Keith Hamilton Cobb’s American Moor —bookend the analysis. The first example models the way that literature often contributes to foreclosing the possibility of true revolution. However, the second example suggests how reform—especially in the way audiences and readers react to canonical literature—might offer a radical version of revolt.
