Freedom of Expression in To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee

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Recommended: Negative impact of censorship

Censorship should not be allowed because in the Constitution, rights are guaranteed to the American people, such as freedom of speech, freedom of the press, and the freedom to petition. Also, these rights demonstrate that the American people live in country which has long been established for its people. Therefore, censorship should not be allowed to occur because the rights of Americans are assured in the Constitution. In addition, past presidents such as George Washington and Thomas Jefferson instituted the rights of freedom of speech, freedom of the press, and the freedom to petition so that the people would realize that they do indeed matter and that they are the core of America. Allowing Harper Lee’s “To Kill a Mockingbird” to become censored would make the rights granted by the Constitution worthless, Americans would no longer be able to freely choose to read or not read “To Kill a Mockingbird”, and the government would be ignoring its duty to defend the Constitution.

Americans take pride in the Constitution because of the rights that it protects, and if “To Kill a Mockingbird” is allowed to be censored; then the rights would become null and void. Also, these rights are located in the U.S. Constitution, mainly in the First Amendment of the Bill of Rights which guarantees the American rights. Moreover, the freedom of speech that is expressed by Harper Lee’s “To Kill a Mockingbird” does not mean that readers have to actually like what she wrote in it, but it is their choice whether or not to read it. Therefore, it should not be censored because other Americans believe her book is inappropriate (Olsen 2). Chris Crutcher, who is a banned book author, said, “We don’t believe that everything in print is worthy, but we don’t thin...

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...oexist in a united country.

Works Cited

“Harper Lee’s “To Kill a Mockingbird”.” SIRS Renaissance. 20 May 2005: n.p. SIRS Renaissance. Web. 31 Mar 2011.

John-Hall, Annette. “An Influence That Persists.” Los Angeles Times (Los Angeles, CA). 11 Sep 2010: D8. SIRS Renaissance. Web. 31 Mar 2011.

Jolley, Susan Arpajian. “Integrating Poetry and “To Kill a Mockingbird”.” English Journal. Nov. 2002: 34-40. SIRS Renaissance. Web. 31 Mar 2011.

Kennedy, Elizabeth. “Book Censorship and Banning of Children’s Books.” About.com. Web. 22 Mar 2011.

ProQuest Staff. “Topic Overview: Censorship.” ProQuest LLC. 2011: n.pag. SIRS Researcher. Web. 22 Mar 2011.

Olson, Marie. “Censorship Meets Its Challenge: Banned Book Author Promotes Talking about Uncomfortable Topics, not Banning Them.” Daily Republic, The (Mitchell, SD) (25 Sep. 2008). Newspaper Source. Web. 22 Mar 2011.

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