Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
The need for censorship
The impoertance of censorship
Censorship in america 1950- present
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Banned Books Think about the latest book you read. Was it scary? Funny? Dramatic? Now think about it in more depth. Did it seem offensive to you? Use bad language? Or talk about tough situations? You could be easily reading a book that many people in the world want banished. “Reading is the key to future success; it builds vocabulary, it enriches the imagination, and it opens new worlds.” (Book Banning 50) Books have been around for thousands of years, and they help us develop our writing skills as a nation. No book is safe from the judgemental people in our world today. Even the most innocent books still get challenged or banned for the silliest reasons. Reading is supposed to be entertaining, or a hobby for certain people. We shouldn’t have to “tip-toe” around certain books, because they are “not suitable for our society.” We should be able to read what we want, even if others don’t like it. However as Sarah Yung mentions in her article, “Local Ban on Books Stirs up Controversy on Censorship,” “Some people attempt to look on the bright side of book banning: claiming that, at the very least, banning awards those books attention from their intended deprived audiences.” (Yung 1) This is not what censors want, they think banning books is better …show more content…
However the book, “Banned Books” states, “Banning books usually has the opposite effect desired by censors; it makes the book more popular.” (Banned Books 76) Banning a book is only going to make people want to
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
The practice of the censorship of books in schools has been prevalent due to the explicit content of them. Parents have been complaining to schools about books that count as required reading because they disapprove with the points made in the book. If a book consists of offensive or sexually explicit material, then parents would challenge the schools about them in order to prevent their children from reading them. Censorship in general has been an intensely debated issue because it is considered an infringement to the First Amendment of the United States Constitution while others argue it is used to conceal inappropriate things (Aliprandini and Sprague). The banning of books in school curriculum has also been debated since parents see certain books as inappropriate while others argue that banning them hinders student learning. Against the censorship of books in schools, Fenice Boyd and Nancy Bailey, authors of Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy, believe that banning books creates a barrier between students and intellectual development (Boyd and Bailey, 655). Banning books from schools and removing them from the curriculum prevents students from exploring different ideas and developing creativity and critical thinking skills.
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...
Throughout history, books have majorly impacted the societies in which they were written. Many of the most significant classics in history were challenged or even banned by the people of its time. Great novels, such as The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, and The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, have been through their fair share of challenges over the years. People of the 1800s had very strict standards that are very different from ours today, and they did not appreciate it when those beliefs were tested. Three of the most common reasons for challenging books throughout the centuries are sexuality, profanity, and religious beliefs. The question that arises from this information is: what values did the society of the 1800s hold that made them feel these topics were offensive enough to ban books containing them?
School boards and teachers have a responsibility for protecting the minds of their students and covering age appropriate material. However, does this responsibility cover the extreme act of banning books from school classrooms? Does not the teacher have a duty to introduce to their students world issues in order to better the students ability to cope with problems in the world? How does a school decide which books should be banned from the classroom, and should it be left up to the teacher to decide what is decided in his/her classroom. By banning books from the classroom, we prevent our students from learning about controversial topics in a safe environment, and we also encroach upon the student’s freedom of reading what they want in school.
People should be allowed to read whatever they want to read, even if it is a touchy subject to someone else. Although some people mainly believe in the banning of books due to explicit content, it actually causes a negative effect on people and children. Not only does it take away the people’s first amendment rights, but it also shelters children from real life situations that might affect their future. Banning books is unconstitutional and shelters children.
Literature has long been an important part of human life. We express our feelings with ink and paper; we spill out our souls on dried wood pulp. Writing has been form of release and enjoyment since the beginning of written language. You can tell a story, make yourself a hero. You can live out all your fantasies. You can explore all of your thoughts, feelings, and emotions, and share them with the outside world. But just because you can write, don't think you are uninhibited!
Public schools are becoming more laid back about what they teach in each subject to make it less uncomfortable for individuals to talk about; for example, sex education is taught in schools more in depth and at an earlier age today than in the past to make it easier for people to talk about sex in a more mature manner. Banning books that contain sexual content, vulgarity, and violence give children and young adults a reason to snicker about these topics when discussed in class because we are taught that these topics are not appropriate to talk about publicly. There are many factors that play a major role in how an individual perceives certain topics in books. If taught at an earlier age that these topics are suitable for mature discussion, a child is less likely to find it funny or become offended. How a parent reacts to certain material is how a child is raised to react the same way (Kelly). Authors being banned from their right to Freedom of Speech because parents cannot accept what they say.
There has been censorship since the times of the early Catholic Church with it dictating what you could and could not do. The people of the United States have looked back upon what was being done, and have expressed that it was wrong for the church to such a thing. However, the leaders of today seem to be hypocritical in the subject. They say that it was bad once, but today it is okay. Censorship is most prominent in books today, and the most common to be thrown out are the ones that have obscene language and sexual references. There are many examples of this; however, the few that are best known are: The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut Jr., and The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain. The banning of books, such as these, blocks the meanings that these mature and experienced authors are putting forth to the world.
“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn the more places you’ll go.”-Dr. Seuss. What Dr. Seuss’s statement is telling us is that books have given us knowledge about ideas, life, and the world. One of the greatest inventions of mankind is a book. A book is a set of printed sheets that are put together fill with information that people read about. Books have been around with us since ages from generations to generations. It is all around the world with different cultures and languages, books have given people the joy of story, information, and knowledge. Everyone should have the right to read whatever book they are seem interested. Well, it is not the case; there are some people out there trying to challenge books from being ban. It is ridiculous that books are being taken away from readers. Today, books are still currently being challenged or banned. This type of doing is censorship. This is a problem that people need to look at and think about. Books are in school, library, in our homes yet they are too much for the people. Why are books so sensitive for readers to be challenged? There are two set of sides to this issue, one side are the people that wants to remove the books and challenged them to be ban, the other side are the one that oppose the banning of books, allowing to read whatever they want. Which side is right? This leads to the question as to why books are currently being challenged or banned. How does banning books relate to censorship and what are some solutions that can solve the problem of banning books?
People ban or challenge books because they don't want other to read them because of their content, even thought we see most of it in our everyday life. To stop book banning and to keep books on the shelves; if a book has inappropriate content and someone wants to buy it or get it from the library or store they have to get the parents consent. This will also keep parents informed on what their child is reading.
Banning Books “It’s not just the books under fire now that worry me. It is the books that will never be written, the books that will never be read. And all due to the fear of censorship. As always, young readers will be the real losers” (Blume 1999). Judy Blume can not explain the problem of book censorship any clearer.
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.
The subject of censorship is a very controversial one, especially the banning of books. Many people believe they must protect themselves and others from the "evils" of many classic books and works of art because they can be deemed "indecent" in one way or another. Many believe that this is absurd and censorship in its current form is a violation of our First Amendment right to free speech. Personally, I align myself with the latter, however I do feel there are occasions where censorship is justifiable.
The banning of books has now become a common policy in the US. Books are becoming banned for numerous reasons that some people might view as dumb or irrelevant. Many authors think that censorship is unfair and “Writers want to talk about creation, and censorship is anti-creation, negative energy, or uncreation…”(Rushdie 2017). When books become banned they are considered a violation to the first amendment by restricting what it is considered the authors freedom of speech. Censorship is also known for intruding art.