Why Not to Ban Erik Larson’s The Devil in the White City? The general public may think that the novel The Devil in the White City is inappropriate for the education system due to the fact that it has subjects such as murder and the irrelevant history of Chicago which is a fallacy. The inclusion of Erik Larson’s The Devil in the White City in the education system is essential as it gives insight into benefiting themes, the historical context of Chicago, and writers' craft, thereby giving students an understanding of important lessons and new tools to improve their writing. The teaching of The Devil in the White City is crucial as it explores themes of the balance between good and bad, and how appearances do not depict reality. In "The Devil in the White City," the theme of the balance between good and bad is shown through the narrative of Daniel Burnham, an architect striving to create beauty and progress in Chicago. For example, one instance of this theme is when Burnham faces challenges and setbacks with the building of the Liberal Arts Building. He responded to …show more content…
It shows students new and innovative ways to write and allows them to incorporate these skills into their writing. For example, the main characters are described as having bright blue eyes. Larson states that “he had dark hair and striking blue eyes”(Larson 35) while describing Holmes and also states that “Burnham was handsome, tall, and strong, with vivid blue eyes.”(Larson 26). The author's use of imagery in "The Devil in the White City" enhances students' learning by vividly painting Holmes and Burnham with their blue eyes. This helps students better understand the characters and their physical appearances, allowing them to visualize them more clearly as they read. It also demonstrates how descriptive imagery can bring characters to life, which is a valuable lesson for student
From first impression, Burnham found that Chicago had a murky factorial image lined with a “fantastic stink that lingered in the vicinity of Union Stock yards” (41). The dreadful surface that Chicago was maintaining allowed Burnham to be determined to collaborate and recreate its image. His efforts would also make a reputational comeback for America’s poor representation in the Exposition Universelle (15). One major feature that transformed public opinion of the state was to illuminate the entire fair with clean white buildings that outlined the goodness of the area (252). Eye-catching whiteness contradicted the presumed dirtiness of the town. Making a contradiction from what was assumed of the city would allow the fair to generate a much bigger transformation. The lights also gave the fair a unique, whimsical edge. “The lamps that laced every building and walkway produced the most elaborate demonstration of electric illumination ever attempted”, incorporating new technology in a grand-scale way merely to keep the theme of brightness ongoing throughout each day and night (254). Most importantly, it displayed the town’s potential to become a thriving and respected city. The theme of whiteness interlaced with the neoclassical outline in The World Fair’s de...
A good author writes with a specific purpose. Many of them are very opinionated and controversial, calling out certain groups of people, or presenting readers with seemingly outlandish ideas. George Orwell says that he writes “to push the world in a certain direction, to alter other people’s idea of the kind of society that they should strive after.” His purpose is to persuade his readers to better themselves as well as society based on what he deems the correct approach. Erik Larson wrote “The Devil in the White City” to shine light on the infamous Gilded Age of America and the stark contrast, yet inevitable relatedness, of pride and evil. The book follows the story or architect Daniel Burnham as he works on the World’s Columbian Exposition,
Did you ever think that books that have sex, obscene language, and immoral subjects can make a good book? The Catcher in the Rye has been on the banned reading list for exactly those reasons. The book was mainly put on disapproval from between 1966 and 1975 in almost every school district in the United States. The book was said to be so bad that in 1960 a teacher in Tulsa, Oklahoma, was fired for assigning the book to an eleventh-grade English class. Despite some opposition to the novel, however, J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye should be on a reading list for the freshman students because it gives a crystal clear image on how the world is in violence, sex, and obscenity and the book also teaches the motifs of lying and deception.
These school boards and parents can claim that banning this classic will protect their children from these subjects and these thoughts, and that by doing so, they can create the world to be a perfect place with love and harmony. The religious can claim all the righteousness they want, that God made the civilized man and that without religion, we wouldn’t be where we are today. However, the true nature of these subjects isn’t in that they exist, but the fact that we simply just don’t want to think or admit that they exist within ourselves. We need to use this book as a textbook to life, or a sort of guiding hand that tells us we need to realize that without our civilizations and without our rules, the world would be a much ruthless place than it is today.
This novel should be banned from the high school curriculum. This novel is too inappropriate for high school students. The novel may be too much for them to handle because of all the profanity and discrimination. This novel may be more suited for a college class were the students are much more mature and could handle all of the actions that take place in the
The Catcher in the Rye Should Not be Banned. & nbsp; & nbsp; & nbsp; Since its publication in 1951, The Catcher In the Rye, written by J.D. Salinger has served as a conflagration for debate and extreme controversy. Although the novel has been the target of scornful criticism, it has also been the topic of wide discussion. The novel portrays the life of sixteen year old, Holden Caufield. Currently in psychiatric care, Holden recalls what happened to him last Christmas.
The book was retained as an optional reading in the Arrowhead High School curriculum in Merton, Wyoming. In 2006, the novel was banned to all minors or any other students by the Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction. In 2007 the book was retained on the Northwest Suburban HS District 214 reading list in Arlington Heights, Illinois along with eight other challenged titles. A newly elected school board member raised the controversy based on excerpts from the books she'd found on the Internet. In 2008 it was challenged on the Commack High School summer reading list in New York because of its two-page rape scene.
There are many reasons that violence is one of the reasons that the book has been banned. “He determined to strand me outside district 12 until he can apprehend to arrest me? Drag me to the square to be locked in a stockade or whipped or hanged?” (Collins 151). This isn’t really a strong bloody gory violence that would cause a student to get sick in class it’s a basic violence that you would see in any other book that involves killing and fighting. And by exposing this type of violence to children it will raise their maturity level and have the children comprehend that there is violence around them in the world and they’re going to have to learn to deal with it. 56% of the book is challenged by parents and only 13% by libraries. This tells the reader that parents have a more difficult time with the book so you ask yourself is it more of the parents why they see the book? Or is it their child’s way they see the book? both child and parents are going to see the book differently so children may like the violence in the book but the parents may say th...
Since its initial publication in the year of 1951, The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger, has been a target of controversy, debate, and discernment. This astounding novel is centered on a boy, Holden, who is writing his story within the confines of a psychiatric hospital. Through the recount, Holden encounters serious obstacles that are hard to deal with as a 17 year old. With prostitutes, teen sex, profanity, and other irrational behavior, one would understand the debated opinions of the novel. What is not understood, however, is how the story itself can be gained from. The Catcher in the Rye should not be censored because students can benefit from its deliberately emotive storyline, the capability of its narrator to be identified with, and its ability to uncover the reality of the modern age.
Teachers and parents are very protective of children. That is okay for the most part, but at some point the children are going to have to grow up. It is fine for some censorship in books for schools, but maybe just for the actual children. In high school, every student is referred to as a “young adult.” Let these kids be young adults by reading some adult language. J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye should be banned for elementary and middle school but allowed in high schools.
The book The Catcher in the Rye was published in the year 1951 and has been the subject of constant debates and controversies. The novel has not only been the target of criticism, but has also sparked discussions on its effectiveness for use in high schools. The novel is about a period of three days in the life of Holden Caulfield. The novel’s most criticised points are its issues such as profanity, irrational behavior, and teenage sex, but it still gives very important lessons to young readers because it teaches tolerance, discipline, religion, and rational behavior. More specifically it teaches that desirable behavior will make them and society better, and as such, I do not think it should be banned from high school curriculum. This paper analyzes the reasons why The Catcher in the Rye should not be banned from English classes that are taught in high schools.
In “The Catcher in the Rye”, there is plenty of controversy on the content that is in the book. There are curse words constantly throughout the book. Just that reason alone could be a reason why this book could be censored. If a book has enough controversy to be considered to be banned in schools, there is obviously content from the book that is considered dirty or a bad influence to people. That is a reason that this book is censored. People think it is dirty and could be a bad influence to children. Some people do not want their children going to school and reading books that have that kind of material in it. Some other reasons the book could cause controversy is that it has violence, sexual connotations, and the overall attitude that Holden expressed throughout the book. Those examples from the book are what makes a copious amount of people stay away from reading the book. The different types of character issues that Holden has in the book results in a bunch of people disliking his character, and therefore the book. I feel that all books that are ill-advised for immature people should be banned for high school students that are below the 11th grade, and in all grades below that.
Banning books from public schools and public libraries is wrong. It’s irrational to have a parent or school board member’s opinion determine what a school district should be reading. Books including and not limited to, The Scarlet Letter, The Great Gatsby, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Lord of the Flies, and Animal Farm all have one thing in common. They have all at one time or another been subject to banishment. These literary classics have been around for a long time and proved to be vital to the education of many, especially children and adolescents. These novels teach values and educate children about world affairs that can not come from an everyday experience. These controversial novels encompass the materials that ultimately boost our educational wealth. Banning books infringe
Scarseth, Thomas. "A Teachable Good Book: Of Mice and Men." Censored Books: Critical Viewpoints. Ed. Nicholas J. Karolides, John M. Kean, and Lee Burress Scarecrow Press, 1993. 388-394. Rpt. in Novels for Students. Ed. Diane Telgen. Vol. 1. Detroit: Gale, 1998. Literature Resource Center. Gale. Los Angeles Public Library. 4-16-2014.
This burden often falls on teachers. The purpose of this research paper is to discuss censorship in schools and to argue that the censorship of books in the high school English curriculum is limiting and takes away literature that is meaningful to students. How a Book is Censored Brinkley describes a few actions that can lead to the censoring of a book in a school or school system: An expression of concern is simply a question about the material with overtones of disapproval; an oral complaint is an oral challenge to the contents of a work; a written complaint is a formal written challenge to the school about the contents of a work; and a public attack is a public statement challenging the contents of a work that is made outside of the school, usually to the media to gain support for further action (1999). Brinkley also points out an important difference between selection and censorship: Selection is the act of carefully choosing works for an English course that will be age-appropriate, meaningful, and fulfill objectives, while censorship is the act of excluding works that some con... ...