Today in society many books have been censored due to inappropriate topics and content not mature enough for some teenagers. The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a well-known book for being challenged and banned every year since 2003. The book is constantly being fought on and off on whether to keep it in libraries and school curriculum or not. The Perks of Being a Wallflower should not be censored because the book teaches important lessons on how to deal with the situations related in the book and gives a very motivational message.
The Perks of Being a Wallflower should be allowed in libraries and schools because it is a coming-of-age book and it teaches about issues many teenagers suffer with daily. The Perks of Being a Wallflower deals with situations about
…show more content…
abuse, depression, and sexuality. The problems mentioned in the book are things millennials have to deal with every day. Inside classrooms, teachers do not address these everyday problems enough or even mention them. The author of The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Stephen Chbosky said, “The classroom legitimizes these issues and by taking it out of the classroom we demote these things to ‘dirty little secrets’ and they’re not dirty little secrets; these are things young people face every day.” The book teaches about coming of age and about trying new things and experiencing life. It is better to deal with the problems mentioned in the book earlier than to wait until something happens. Reading this book in class can help students understand how to deal with the topics in the book. Adults may not be able to relate to the subjects talked about in the book, but many teenagers can. Many teenagers love how the situations are spoken about but not overdramatized, says Louise Burke, executive vice president and the publisher of Gallery Books. Parents of today’s millennials were born in a whole different generation, so maybe most do not know what teenagers have to struggle with. As more teenagers fight against the peer pressure of doing drugs and insecurities, The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a way for them to understand their situation or another’s. The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a great source and an aid for people who are struggling with the situations mentioned in the book.
Chbosky said, “I wrote this book as a blueprint for healing. I wrote this book to end the silence . . . It’s for people who have been through terrible things and need hope and support. The idea of taking two pages out of context and creating an atmosphere as perverse is offensive to me — deeply offensive.” Chbosky intends that people use his book a source of hope and light if they have been through tough situations or are going through something. The author said himself that he wrote the book based off a true story and that his book is supposed to spread a positive message. Numerous amount of people said that The Perks of Being a Wallflower has saved their lives. The Perks of Being a Wallflower teaches people that they are not alone in life and that people are not so different from them. Anything in the world, including a book, can save a person’s life. If a person can see a light shining at the end of the tunnel they are going to feel better because there is hope. A person may suffer the same situations as some others; that is why it is important that people care for
others. Many parents and libraries are against The Perks of Being a Wallflower because of the inappropriate subjects mentioned. Parents say it is not mature enough for their young adults. Parents and others dislike this book because of alcohol and drugs, date rape, sex, suicide, and more. Parents believe that these subjects are not suitable to be presented in a classroom environment. The topics in the book may be provoking to some teenagers, but they are all real-life issues that need to be spoken about. They should not be hidden away. Many people only read the bad parts of the book and make a big deal out of it. They do not see the true message of the book, “Being different is ok.” The subjects in the book are not new to teenagers. One can simply not judge a book just because of what one sees, hears, or fears about it. The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a great book that should not be censored because it teaches many lessons that teenagers need. The book is constantly debated on whether it should be allowed in schools or not. The main character of The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Charlie, talks about how he has finally started to participate in life and he leaves the readers with “we are infinite.” The ending of the book gives the readers a sense of hope that even if they were dealing with tough situations that they can still change and use hope to start living life again. Parents and libraries need to consider that The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a mature and coming-of-age book that teenagers enjoy and learn from. Teenagers must continue to go against the ban and show their love for a classic book that talks about the everyday problems of a teenager.
For younger readers this book carries very strong language but it has a strong message. One of those is that it shows what students will do for drugs. While researching the book you discover that in South Carolina, Berkley County school district, was one of the first to pull the book from schools and libraries. This occurred after a mom protested the book when her 8th grade daughter had to read little experts from the book to her classmates. The students mother did not want her to be reading a book with so much profanity and references to sex. One of the most controversial lines that comes from the book is when Alice writes in her journal “Another day, another blow-job”. She doe...
Imagine a book about a couple of good friends hanging out over the summer but with a twist to it, doesn't sound like that bad of a book. But the book Swim the Fly, has still been banned many different times, for many different reasons, but it teaches good lessons to teens, it also talks about different topics teens can relate to. Swim The Fly should be read by teens in school because it teaches the reader to take chances, the value and importance of friendship, and to never give up.
In Knox County, Tennessee the tenth grade English class challenged the book in 2012. Parents of the tenth grade class wanted the book removed from the reading list. People think the book is pornographic, and fifteen year olds should not be able to read the book. “We ran with it to the TV room, closed the blinds, locked the door, and watched the movie...It opened with a women standing on a bridge with her legs spread while a guy knelt in front of her, giving her oral sex” (Green 87). The board of educat...
The novel, The Catcher In the Rye, should not be banned from inclusion in the literature courses taught at the high school level. Banning this novel contradicts an individual's inalienable rights as an United States citizen. It limits freedom of speech and as well as other forms of expression. Although controversial, profanity is not a reason to limit an individual's rights. America is founded on principles that are not fueled by exceptions. Profanity is not an exception to freedom of speech. The Catcher in the Rye should not be excluded from curriculums at the high school level.
The Perks of a Wallflower, written by Stephen Chbosky, is a captivating novel that follows the transformation of a boy referred to as Charlie throughout his freshman year of high school. During the course of the book Charlie, his sister, and friends fall in and out of relationships. Each one of them is seeking the love and attention of another person, even without directly expressing their emotions. Love is a recurring theme in this book, even though it is shown in different ways.
However, this book absolutely should not be banned. The Perks Of Being A Wallflower has depth. It isn’t like the cheesy high school movies you’d see on disney channel, it’s more real. It shows what actual high school is like and addresses real problems that students face. Many of the justifications for the banning were parents saying they didn’t want their kid exposed to the obscenities, but realistically speaking, their kid probably already has been. They will find out from friends or the internet either way, so why not let them read about it and learn? Suicide was also mentioned several times throughout the novel, and was another reason for its discomfort among parents. This is another thing very prominent in high school, and it often goes unspoken of; and as time goes on, middle schoolers will experience this too. The Perks Of Being A Wallflower should not be banned because it is realistic and touching, not to mention an
Is it possible to talk about the good of this issue? In my opinion I find it as a way of teaching children who are soon to be teens what growing up means. It clearly explains that Lucky, the character in the book, is preparing herself to be a grown up. I personally find this as a good idea to slowly teach pre-teens of the body as they get older. So why ban the book? Ms. Patron clearly states that the book is aimed for children from nine to twelve years old. From my understanding these are about the last two years of elementary school and the start of your first year in middle school. There’s nothing bad about writing a book about growing up that is aimed at a young audience who can learn from it. One way I can relate this is with a health class in high school. The teachers in a health class will talk about and show pictures of sexually transmitted diseases. Does that mean that other teachers can go and complain about it? Well yes they can but they cannot start a petition to ban the class from schools. I understand that i...
While societal attitudes attitudes may change over time, the challenges associated with the transition from childhood to adulthood remain constant. The ideas of individuality, alienation and loss of innocence fortify the theme of coming of age across the texts The Catcher in the Rye and The Perks of Being a Wallflower. The Catcher in the Rye, a bildungsroman novel written by J.D. Salinger in 1951, focuses on teenager Holden Caulfield’s transition from childhood to adulthood in 1950’s America, whereas the film The Perks of Being a Wallflower directed by Stephen Chbosky in 2012 follows teenager Charlie experiencing a similar transition in 1990’s America. Despite their varying contexts, these ideas are presented in both texts through the use the
In one scene, Mr. Anderson is asked by Charlie why people stay with others who are wrong for them, speaking of Sam and her boyfriend, and he responds with his famous quote, “We accept the love we think we deserve.” That statement is very powerful and makes a lot of sense in the world of psychology. It is shown that many of the characters in the film accepted the love they thought they deserved whether it be Sam with her boyfriend, Patrick with Brad, or even Charlie with Mary Elizabeth. However, with the ability of change, they all stood up for themselves and one another and started to embrace pure love and friendship and accepted nothing that defies that. The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a very emotional and influential movie that could easily be used for a psychological analysis. (Halfon, Malkovich, Smith & Chbosky,
did not belong in the schools.? (1) How can people take a book that a child enjoys based
The role of identity plays an important role in all adolescence which can help shape their future. In psychology, identity is the conception, qualities, beliefs, and expressions that make a person or group. The movie, “The Perks of Being a Wallflower”, illustrates how teens struggle with identity. Charlie is an anti-social freshman who is befriended by a group of high school seniors, who introduces him to the world of drugs, love, sexulatity, friendship, and lies. His friends play a huge role in his development. Throughout the movie, Charlie was able to build upon his character and develop friendships that gave him a new perspective that life needs, to live life rather than watching it.
Is it shocking to know that many pieces of classic literature are banned from classrooms even public school classrooms and libraries? The books Animal Farm by George Orwell and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain each have a recorded history of banishment due to (respectively) "political theories" and “racist aspects”. (Karolides, Bald, and Sova, 15, 336). I read Animal Farm as a school assignment many years ago. I learned so much about due respect and equality among humans that I cannot imagine a school forbidding it in student curriculum. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn provides illustration of a friendship during a period in history to a child given the ...
The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a coming of age film that chronicles the life of a boy named Charlie. Charlie is 15 years old and has just begun his first year of high school. He will give a detailed account of the joys and pains of his freshman year in high school. He begins by writing letters to an unknown stranger, but then, you realize that stranger is you. Through these Charlie tells his story from his perspective. He will experience many highs and lows related to the adolescence phase. The highlights of the paper will focus on the biological/physical, psychological, social, spiritual, cultural issues, as well as his strengths and challenges.
The perks of being a wallflowers is about Charlie, a 15 year old freshman student that is about to start his high school year. He lives with his parents and older sister. Charlie has as an older brother too, but he lives away because he is attending college. As the movie starts goes, it is implied that when Charlie was a kid he was molested by his aunt, who later dies in a car accident on Christmas Eve, (which is also Charlie’s birthday). His family seems to have a strong bond, they each follow a role, and they support each other. During some scenes in the movie, Charlie seems to be having internalizing problems. As the movie progressed, it is revealed that Charlie had a friend that committed suicide, and this event made Charlie to feel sorrowful. When he enters high school, Charlie appears to be very concern of what others may think about him, as well as
Do people really need to be in a group or live a normal life? “The Boy Who Lost His Face” is written by Louis Sachar. The Boy Who Lost His Face is about a boy who stole an elderly woman’s cane, and it was banned, but I do not believe that it should be banned. The book is young children literature.