/lit/ - Literature

>only 38 out of 150 current threads reference a specific book by name
>only 11 of those threads discuss the content of said book beyond a superficial level
Jesus Christ /lit/

This board is really obsessed with non-fiction literature, but how come your non-fiction readings are pretty much exclusively limited to politics and philosophy/religion? (especially when those are the two topics are what's allegedly against the rules in the sticky)
There's so much great non-fiction lit out there which doesn't get discussed at all here, and is less prone to shitflinging arguments.
Why not read about ecology and nature writings and Audubon books?
Why not histories and criticisms or art or biographies of artists?
Why not books about national parks?
Why not books about building things, like log cabins or boats?
Why not comedy, cinema, fishing or a gazillion other interesting things besides politics?
It sometimes appears as though this board is against the notion of taking pleasure in your reading, or having fun while doing it.
ITT: Recommend non-fiction books which aren't mainly about politics, philosophy or religion.

This board would probably be a lot more fun and interesting if we gatekept less and encouraged more discussion of poetry, plays and novels. We're stuck in a rut right now of shilling the same philosophers and religious texts over and over again every single day.

I just got my reading list for my American Literary Traditions class and this is it:

>Of Plymouth Plantation - William Bradford
>Bartleby, The Scrivener - Herman Melville
>Yellow Wallpaper & Other Stories - Charlotte Perkins Gilman
>The Red Badge of Courage - Stephen Crane
>Country of Pointed Firs & Other Stories - Sarah Orne Jewett
>The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin

What the hell is wrong with academics? This is a class meant to show American literary traditions and the reading list includes nothing by Cooper, Twain, Hawthorne, Poe, Thoreau and most sickeningly: nothing by Emerson. How can you expect to have a class on American Literary Tradition and not include the father of American literature.

The one work included by Melville is assigned in every high school in America.

Three of these books were published in the 1890s leaving a 50 year gap in the mix in which many of America's most important authors are completely ignored.

The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin is undoubtedly a cool book, but what influence does it really have on the formation of American literature?

In short: What the hell is wrong with professors these days?