The course also attempts to uncover the deeper meaning of these texts, many of which are actually powerful reflections of the norms of societies, Kaiser says.

The Story of the Eye, in particular, was “pretty brutal and pornographic,” Matthew Rienzo ’11 says.

Not all of Kaiser’s students shared that sentiment. Kelly Bodwin ’11 questioned whether the novel was over-pornographasized.

“I don’t think the sex in the book was important to the meaning or the plot. It was just pornographic,” Bodwin says.

“I think it’s important to introduce students to erotica and pornographic texts, especially because we live in such a ‘pornographisized’ society,” Kaiser says. “If I talk about sex only using high-brow discourse, I would be doing the students a disservice.”

Rienzo says that Kaiser’s lectures are particularly engaging because of his ability to find the meaning in the graphic novels that the students read and because of his knack of presenting his thoughts accessibly.

“When I went into the class, I saw the graphic videos and texts as just titillating,” Iris Lee ’12 says. “It was novel. But later in the class, Professor Kaiser explains how sexuality was taking sex too seriously.”

Sex, Kaiser explains, is merely a “biological act.”

On the other hand, “sexuality is the cultural weight and meaning that is placed upon that act,” Kaiser says.

This difference, according to Head Teaching Fellow R.J. Jenkins, informs the curriculum of the class.

“The course is structured in such a way that you basically have novels that are pro-sexuality and novels that are anti-sexuality, and they are presented in that way,” Jenkins says. “However, Professor Kaiser states explicitly that he is anti-sexuality.”

“Sexuality as a concept is very detrimental has led to violence, injustice, prejudice,” Jenkins added. “That agenda is masked as Kaiser talks about pro-sexuality novels.”

Jenkins attributes part of the class’s success with students to its relevance, as “sexuality is such a common topic every day.”

“Sex makes for a great course material. Sex makes for great reading,” Jenkins says. “There’s a running joke in English departments—you’ll double enrollment if you put ‘sex’ in your title.”

—Staff writer Gautam S. Kumar can be reached at gkumar@college.harvard.edu.