This chapter describes the course “Reading & Writing Texts” for undergraduate humanities majors at the University of Texas at Dallas. It is a highly structured course, moving from a seven-line poem to a monograph, from highly directed research to independent application of theoretical material, and from modules on creative writing to literary analysis and historical study. It includes material that assumes the hegemonic status of English and uncovers the dependence of monolingual culture on the work of translators and the erasure of other languages. At the same time, it reframes canonical texts and disrupts monolingual culture, creating support and space for outsider experiences. Translation is defined as both individual and social: it occurs in a gap between languages where a translator makes interpretive choices, using language systems implicated in complex networks of social power.