The Banning Of Books In High Schools

Censors typically feel as though the subject material of controversial books in the high school English curriculum is too much for teenagers to handle (Shen, 2002).

Many significant novels have unfortunately been challenged/ banned at a certain point in time. Most of these literary classics face this because some contain sexual references, religious intolerance, and inappropriate language. In some cases, books are being pulled off shelves because people believe that they were “tangibles of instruction” or the reason being was as a precaution towards a possible public attack which took effect in Tucson for the Mexican American Studies (source:8). Another case is the Mozert v. Hawkins County Board of Education; Christian sewed the board because they believed that the required textbooks hurt their beliefs (Source:8).

Within college classes, the teachers and students have the ability to talk more about controversial topics that are not allowed within the high school classes. Parents understand that when their children go to college, they will be exposed to more topics that they have yet to hear about. Parents do not expect the same from a high school classroom. Lake Braddock English departments officials sent a letter to Murphy stating that “society must address troubles the world faces” (The Washington Post - Shapiro). The letter also mentioned that, “ reading and studying books that expose us, imaginatively and safely, to that trouble steels our souls to pull us through our own hard times and leads us to a greater empathy for the plight of our fellow human beings” (The Washington Post - Shapiro).

School boards, principals, and teachers have a responsibility for protecting the minds of their students by covering grade and age appropriate material in the classroom. However, does this given responsibility cover the act of banning books from their classrooms? As an advocate for each student, does the teacher not have a duty to introduce the students to a these words issues in order to help the student cope with the different problems in the world? How does a school decide which books should be banned and how much say does the teacher have what should be left up to the teacher? Some say that banning books from the classroom, we prevent them from learning about different controversial topics in a safe and secure environment. In this paper I reflect on my research question: Why do schools ban books in the classroom?

People read books about dystopians all the time, you know those books that have everything possible go wrong. Books like The Hunger games, or Fahrenheit 451, Ect. Some people look at them as just stories, just fictional books. Those books are all about censorship and having the government controlling and watching your every move. What most people don't realize is that there is censorship happening right now, every time you send a text or make a phone call, the government can see/hear it. There is censorship on books at schools and ratings on movies. There is censorship happening all around you and most of us don't even notice it. That's because they are minor, but, over time things can progressively get worse. Someday those

Fahrenheit 451 has been banned or challenged throughout its existence, and students and parents alike met each act of censorship with strong retaliation because they know the themes and lessons the novel (independence, activism, and freedom of speech) will influence the reader more than the brief mentions of substance abuse, profanity, and anti-religious content. This novel, in its purest form, should be available to students all across the nation.

“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 children are the real losers because they are the ones that are not able to read the classic works of literature which are the backbone of classroom discussions all across the United States.

Book banning is an issue that is seen as archaic in today’s society. Between New Zealand’s right to the freedom of the media, and a generally liberal government, the idea of banning a book due to its content is unheard of. So, it is understandable that there was a massive uproar when conservative lobby group Family First managed to get the first book banned in New Zealand in 22 years in an attempt to “promote a culture that values the family” . In relation to this, recent statistics performed by the American Library Association show that the vast majority of those who challenge books are parents . We can infer from these statistics that this is most likely to “protect” their children from the harsh realities of the world today. As many of

Censoring challenged books in high schools falsified constitutional freedom and robs young adults of potentially enriching literature. Some believe they can deceive today's youth. Controlling what students read in their learning environment is not up to parents, it is up to the individuals in charge of the school district. Another key point is people who ban books with content that tell the truth about the real world are only blinding people of the truth. Lastly, books, to the readers, can be an escape to the diverse experiences of life and social-emotional growth.

Oscar Wilde, an Irish novelist, wrote,“The books that the world calls immoral are books that show the world its own shame.” I believe that local libraries and schools should have the right to ban or regulate disliked books. Three reasons why they should have that right are, to prevent young children from checking out inappropriate contented books, to keep kids in a comfortable and safe feeling environment at school, and some books have lots of violence One reason why libraries should have the right to regulate or ban disliked books is to prevent young children from checking out inappropriate books. Many books in the library are not considered appropriate for children due to the kind of language used and the violent, offensive, or unsuitable content.

Although the concept of book banning seems unethical when regarding to the topic of children’s education, some might argue that “this issue is not remotely about one's religious or political beliefs or one's stance on constitutional rights.” (Masterson). It is up to the parents to decide whether something is deemed appropriate for their children. The instructors’ lessons and topics might have different ideals than the parents and it might influence the students to think differently than what their own parents taught them. “Gone are the days when parents could trust schools and libraries to uphold their values” (Manning). Parents are no longer on the same page with the

A month had passed and my book had already won three awards, it seemed as though everyone was talking about my work and that I had blown up almost instantly overnight. Even with all the success and how it was almost universally loved by all, my book had managed to become a central topic by school boards across the world. Talk of censoring my work in schools soon had become common. A novel that I believed to be a masterpiece was soon to never be seen in an academic scene even again.

A famous author once wrote, “The books that the world calls immoral are books that show the world its own shame.” Some may argue that the books, “Call of the Wild” and “Invisible Man”, are too vivid and too much for teenagers to grasp or handle. The books should not be banned from school districts because it shows how history repeats itself, how people and animals were and still treated like objects, and they acknowledge real life problems.

My first reason is, Changing books can can effect the past and the future. History can vary if books are changed. When people want to change the past they have the future to keep in mind. For example a whole generation may grow up not knowing these things and when they see it in an old book they will not know that inappropriate words today weren't inappropriate in the past. The past can have a huge effect on the future.

Does it feel like an elementary child, has been exposed to too much turmoil? Well, in today’s society, elementary children are reading books that reveal unbefitting aspects. An organization called Banned Books Week, is trying to take a stand on this situation, by banning these books. These books have impacted the students negatively, to where they’re making bad decisions. Children are naturally curious about things. If they hear or read something, they’re more likely to try it. Putting themselves into harm's way. Children are exposed to graphic elements, profanity, violence, negativity, and witchcraft. Books should be banned. By banning these books, it can help save the mindsets of growing children.