Putting classics into the public domain spurs new art

Novels from the Harlem Renaissance, a classic Cole Porter show tune and a short film featuring a Mickey Mouse animation are among the works of art from 1928 that, under U.S. copyright law, are now free for all to use.

Every January 1, U.S. copyright law, which protects both the livelihoods of creators and the use of future generations, allows for the release of a trove of stories, songs and films for public use.

This year thousands of releases from 1928 — which fell near the height of the Roaring ’20s, when art and literature documented a time of rapid social change — will be made available. The releases include novels by W.E.B. Du Bois and Claude McKay, key figures in the Harlem Renaissance, a movement of Black artists and intellectuals that celebrated Black culture.

This year’s releases to the public domain also include the Charlie Chaplin comedy The Circus, a film that holds a place in the Library of Congress’ National Film Registry, and the words and music to Porter’s song, “Let’s Do It, Let’s Fall in Love,” according to the Center for the Study of the Public Domain at Duke University.

Jennifer Jenkins, the center’s director, says that while musical compositions from 1928 are now available, sound recordings are covered under a separate copyright. (Sound recordings released to the public domain this year are from 1923.)

Free use of art and literature after a set period of time is a core tenet of U.S. copyright law, which balances the right of creators to seek compensation for their work with the desire to preserve cultural artifacts for future generations to use and enjoy.

Based in the U.S. Constitution, copyright is a form of intellectual property law that protects original works of authorship including poems, novels, songs, architecture and even computer software. Other forms of intellectual property law include patents (which protect inventions) and trademarks (which protect the symbols or slogans used in advertising).

The two main aspects of copyright — a period of exclusive rights, followed by subsequent freedom of use — provide incentives to creators in different ways.

While a copyright is in effect, authors can reap payment for their work. The Authors Guild, a union representing novelists, poets, historians and journalists, says, “Effective copyright protection is the linchpin of professional authorship; it enables authors to make a living writing.”

But releasing literature from copyright increases the availability of old songs and stories and allows their use in new creations. Renowned literary critic Northrop Frye says in his book Anatomy of Criticism, “Poetry can only be made out of other poems; novels out of other novels.”

And Jenkins calls the public domain “a wellspring for creativity.” She says that “the whole point of copyright is to promote creativity, and the public domain plays a central role in doing so.”

A version of this story was published in prior years.