Book banning seems an archaic notion to many. Yet as outmoded as banning may seem, censorship is still a huge part of the United States literary culture. Book banning is most often successful at the young adult literature level. Parents, and other objectors, utilize the censorship process in an effort to protect children and young adults from books that they deem dangerous. Public libraries, school libraries, and English classrooms are where these censorship attempts are being waged, often successfully. Indeed, more than 97% of challenges take place in public libraries, school libraries, and classrooms (“ALA Challenges by Initiator”).When these challenges succeed, they also succeed in taking important, compelling, worthwhile literature from the hands and minds of students. Book banning in public schools and libraries is unethical, counterproductive, and futile; not only is it impossible to shield young people from the themes found in realistic fiction, but those themes often serve as incredible coping devices as well as powerful teaching tools. Why ban books in the first place; what is the purpose of taking literature out of the grasp of young people? Those who do challenge do so for a host of reasons. Parents, community members, and religious groups usually challenge books in an effort to protect the young people in the community from things that are contrary to their value system. They hope that by banning these pieces of literature they can protect their children, and community, from themes that are too mature or immoral. These pieces of challenged literature run the gamut of subject and objected content. Among the books banned in the last decade are I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou which was banned... ... middle of paper ... ... Association. Web. 13 Aug. 2011. Blume, Judy. "Judy Blume Talks About Censorship." Judy Blume on the Web. Web. 07 Aug. 2011. Blume, Judy. Letters to Judy: What Your Kids Wish They Could Tell You. New York: Putnam, 1986. Print. Boston, Rob. "Fanning the Flames: The “Golden Age” of American Book Burning." Humanist 68 (Jul/Aug 2008): 36-37. Foerstel, Herbert N. Banned in the U.S.A.: a Reference Guide to Book Censorship in Schools and Public Libraries. Westport, CT: Greenwood, 1994. Print. Moon, Jin. "Freedomforum.org: Popular Children's Author Relates '3 S's' of Book Censorship." The Freedom Forum. Web. 14 Aug. 2011. "Upfront-Informed Parental Consent." Pabbis.org. Web. 13 Aug. 2011. Wooden, Cindy. "CNS STORY: Vatican Newspaper Says Harry Potter Film Champions Values." Catholic News Service Home Page. Web. 14 Aug. 2011.
Have you ever read a book and wondered “How is this book allowed in public libraries?” Most students do not pay attention to content; however, many parents disagree with the content their children are reading, whether the book is being taught in class or the child picked it up in the school library. Surprisingly, some school librarians and teachers disagree with certain books permitted in schools. The book Forever by Judy Blume is an example of a challenged and controversial book. Judy Blume is a children’s book author, which most people would not think that her books have been challenged.
In the article censorship: a personal view by Judy bulme she discusses and touches on censorship in literature in children and young adolescence books. Now in article there are a lot of possible exigencies listed threw out the article one of the main exigencies is that Judy bulme has personal experience with censorship as a little girl, with that personal account she has familiarity that compels and gives her credibility to write this article. With exigencie their also comes a purpose bulme’s purpose in the article is trying to convince parents that you should not coddle a young teen or an adolescent from literature that may not be suitable for them, but let their mind wonder and explain it after they read it. Also she communicates that censorship on books are not right because it’s unconstitutional violating the first amendment freedom of press. The audience she speaks to in article is the group of parents that are like middle age and older that have one track minds, and have to young teens and adolescent ages between 12-9 years old that are hesitant to let their children to read edgy books, teens who were her age and, have or experience the same thing she went thought as a kid, teachers and facility that believe in her cause that have lost their job over edgy books that were not age appropriate to their students. The context that you have to consider in the time of Judy bulme article is there is are a lot of issues going on the America culture that censorship of government felt need be. For inesxctie like the cold war was going on and nobody knew if another war was going to break out at any time. So any material that seemed edgy or conserverial it was going to be censored or restricted by the censors to the minors. Then th...
Books are banned for many reasons but more times than not it is because of the sensitive information found within the novel that agitates the reader. As long as people have been able to develop their own opinions, others have sought to prevent them from sharing. At some point in time, every idea has ultimately become objectionable to someone. The most frequently challenged and most visible targets of such objection are the very books found in classrooms and public libraries. These controversial novels teach lessons that sometimes can be very sensitive to some but there is much more to challenged books than a controversial topic. What lies within these pages is a wealth of knowledge, such as new perspectives for readers, twisting plots, and expressions that are found nowhere else. For example, To Kill A Mockingbird, contains references to rape, racial content, and profanity that have caused many to challenge the novel in the first place. The book was banned from countless
Foerstel, Herbert N. Banned in the U.S.A.: a Reference Guide to Book Censorship in Schools and Public Libraries. Westport, CT: Greenwood, 1994. Print.
Trelease, Jim. "Book Banning Violates Children and Young Adult Freedoms." Book Banning. Ed. Ronnie D. Lankford. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2007. At Issue. Rpt. from "Censorship and Children's Books." Trelease-on-Reading.com. 2006.Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 31 Mar. 2014.
Censorship is “the restriction or removal of information, or the prevention of free expression” (Taylor 8). There are many things that can be censored such as books, movies, TV shows, newspapers, and the way people dress. People censor things for a number of reasons- they do not agree with it, find it offensive, or think that it is just inappropriate in general. Different people consider different things inappropriate, so the content of what is censored varies. Anyone can censor, including parents, teachers, school officials, and board members (Taylor 8-10) Many things are censored in schools and places where children are present because parents do not want their kids to be exposed to inappropriate content (Taylor 10). Students are entitled to their First Amendment rights just as much as adults are, but schools still censor things like newspapers, books, and clothing.
Book banning is a prime target for censorship. Censorship in print media, notably book banning, occurs across homes, schools, stores, and other facilities daily. Censorship in the schools is the most widespread and exposed place for book banning. Do administrators and school boards have the right to ban books? Are we taking away the rights of children to read? In case of Island Trees Schools District V. Pico in New York, the Supreme Court gave the school board broad discretion to frame curriculum and teach civic and moral values. This case resulted in the school board removing ten books from the school library for being "anti-american, anti-christian, anti-semitic, and just plain filthy." Another case involving book banning was Hazelwood School District V. Kuhlmeier. In this case the Supreme Court again gave school officials the broad discretion to control curriculum. This time the court left open the question if this affects the school libraries. In Olathe, Kansas, the district's superintendent made the decision to remove all copies of Nancy Gardner's Annie On My Mind because of it imposing views for gay actions. This standpoint resulted in a public book burning by a homophobic community group. At Hempfield High School in Western Penn...
Censorship is a shroud for the intolerable, a withdrawal from the cold truths of humanity, and ultimately, the suppression of expression. When a book such as The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is banned in classrooms, students are not only stripped of an enriching work of literature, but also consequently stripped of the cultural and moral awareness required to survive in a world stained with imperfection and strewn with atrocity.
According to “Freedom of Speech” by Gerald Leinwand, Abraham Lincoln once asked, “Must a government, of necessity, be too strong for the liberties of its people, or too weak to maintain its own existence (7)?” This question is particularly appropriate when considering what is perhaps the most sacred of all our Constitutionally guaranteed rights, freedom of expression. Lincoln knew well the potential dangers of expression, having steered the Union through the bitterly divisive Civil War, but he held the Constitution dear enough to protect its promises whenever possible (8).
Should public libraries allow children under the age of 18 to check out censored material? Censorship has and will always be a debatable topic in America and other countries. America in particular has always had a difficult time with the issue of censorship because of the extreme importance the constitution places on freedom of speech. A boundary must be drawn between freedom of speech and the well-being of the public, and that is where censorship must come into play. I feel that public libraries should not allow patrons under 18 to check out books, movies, or music that are considered unacceptable for the following reasons: They include sexually explicit material; display graphic violence; and lastly, they include the use of questionable language.
The American Association of School Administrators (AASA) defines censorship as: “The removal, suppression, or restricted circulation of literary, artistic, or educational materials… of images, ideas, and information…on the grounds that these are morally or otherwise objectionable in light of standards applied by the censor” (Miner 1998). In schools there are three types of censorship, one type is a “parent who doesn’t want their child to read a particular book. Another is a parent, teacher, administrator, or school board member who argues that no one in the class, or school should read the book in dispute. Lastly, there is censorship that involves someone who is part of an organized campaign, whether of a local or national group, and who goes in ready for a fight and wants to make a broader political point” (Miner 1998). Although there are many others ways that a piece of literature could get censored, most censored works are asked to be removed from classrooms and school libraries.
The United States Bill of Rights guarantees its citizens the freedom of expression, but how far does that freedom extend? Does the right to express yourself include the right to observe the expressions of others? According to pro-censorship view holders, it does not. But to those who feel strongly against censorship, the freedom of information, or the “right to know,” should be an absolute right granted to the American public. Censoring material is the responsibility of the individual, not the institution itself, and certainly not the job of a separate institution. Also, the definition of what is censor-worthy is by no means clear.
Retrieved December 2, 2002 from Lexis-Nexis/Academic database. This article addresses some of the reasons that censors attempt to remove books from the curriculum: Many censors feel that works are not age appropriate for students. Staff, Wire Reports. (2002 October 3). Book banning spans the globe.
A child’s learning process initiates the minute they enter the world. Beginning as early as the first seconds, a child learns through observation, identifying, processing and analyzing the details of the surrounding environment. They carefully watch and listen, slowly piecing together every image, sound and interaction. These pieces then serve as clues, defining socially accepted and expected behavior. Children process basic human relationships and the world around them not only through first person experience, but also through modern cultural occurrences such as television, internet and literature. It is crucial for young children to witness both the positive, as well as the negative aspects of society, so they can form ideas and opinions which will guide them as adults. A scholastic education provides an outlet for children to explore, test and reject or accept these thoughts. As parents paranoia rises, in hopes of protecting their children’s innocence in a mature world, many schools, public and private, have begun to censor student’s literature selection, internet usage and free speech in student publications. However, by censoring scholastic literature and internet exploration, as well as student’s ability to publish their personal thoughts, schools are restricting student’s social and mental abilities during the most influential and impressionable stage of their development.
The most debatable and controversial form of censorship today is the banning of books in school libraries. Banning books that educate students is wrong and selfish. Censorship of books in school libraries is neither uncommon nor an issue of the past. Books with artistic and cultural worth are still challenged constantly by those who want to control what others read. The roots of bigotry and illiteracy that fuel efforts to censor books and free expression are unacceptable and unconditional. Censoring school books in libraries can often lead to censorship of our basic freedoms guaranteed in the First Amendment. In some cases, a minority ends up dictating the majority in censorship cases. To be told what is permissible reading material and what is not is a direct violation of the First Amendment of the Constitution.