The World Of Literature : Its Inherent Subjectivity

Once upon a time, in a world not far from here, there are students who are forced to miss their annual train ride to Hogwarts, lock the wardrobe to the magical land of Narnia, and walk through the English countryside themselves instead of upon the back of Black Beauty. Why are these students deprived of those occurrences? They live in America, the land of the free- except when it comes to the books they can read. In fact, many schools across America exercise the practice of banning books. Since 1982, libraries, parents, and schools have attempted to ban 11,300 novels, according to the American Library Association. The essentially innoxious books are challenged for an assortment of reasons, including use of malapropos language, graphic or explicit

Have you ever wanted The Hunger Games trilogy, but you couldn’t as a result of your state challenging or banning the book? Everyone in the world can read this book due to the fact that it was not banned it was only challenged. This challenge did affect some states though I have the opportunity to be able to read this book because I can read it at the school or public library anytime I want.The book was challenged for various reasons stated later in this essay. The writer can affect the reader's actions by the writer writing their thoughts on paper that is published and put into libraries which in turn leads to people who have information that can hurtful to our government.

On the other hand, some people argue that book censorship is a violation of their constitutional right to freedom of speech, and the right to self expression. One article puts its effects this way, “Permitting restraints on literature sets the stage for attacks on all expression that is artistically or politically controversial or that portray unpleasant realities of life.” This,

First, the author argues, “When engaging in critical literacy, readers question reality and entertain multiple perspectives about particular topics, attitudes, and behaviors” (Graff). Challenged and banned books are beneficial to readers. These banned books help students evaluate more difficult pieces of literature, which could be used in the future. Jennifer Graff states, “...Book censorship helps us think critically about the power of the written word as well as the relationships between individuals, texts, and contexts, to paraphrase Lawrence Sipe (1999)” (Graff). Banned and challenged books allow readers to see the truth--from the past, future, or present--written by the author. Readers can apply these ideas to real-life situations successfully. In the article, On Reading and Sharing Banned Books, the topic of “...heightened sensitivity about what and how we say things,” and needing, “ongoing conversations about how literature can be part of our lives without undue stress and controversy” is exposed (Graff). Books are written for many reasons, to inform persuade, entertain, and relax; however, with books censorship, finding relaxing or entertaining books is extremely difficult. Without censorship, readers could easily discuss these now controversial topics without worry. The purpose of the book, good moral, and potentially

Since 1982, there have been 11,300 books challenged in the United States. As the number of challenged books continues to rise, society’s exposure to diversity in literature decreases. According to the American Library Association, 51% of the top ten challenged books between 2005 and 2014 featured “diverse content.” Diverse content is defined as works featuring either non-white, LGBT+, or disabled primary characters, or discussions of issues in relation to race, religion, LGBT+ matters, mental illness and/or disabilities, among many other defining characteristics. Censoring such books has the potential to fundamentally stunt the personal growth of society, though many may feel certain information and topics must be censored for the safety of

From the very beginnings of literature, the act of banning books has long been a heated controversy. While almost everyone can say that there are definitely books that they do not want their children reading, the line between what is acceptable and what is not is much harder to define, especially in today’s world. In “How Banning Books Marginalizes Children” (2016), Paul Ringel argues that the current policy of banning books has had a negative impact on children because it has conveyed a message that rebuffs diversity and has contradicted the fact that the power to ban books should be used to “curate children’s choices with the goals of inspiring rather than obscuring new ideas.”

Reading is one of our greatest and most forgotten freedoms. Censorship leads to slavery. It is our duty as American citizens to use our first amendment. Limiting the variety of what we can read can but a stop to our creativity, research, and technological advances. It is our responsibility to make available different views, popular or unpopular.

Connelly, Deborah S. "To Read Or Not To Read: Understanding Book Censorship." Community & Junior College Libraries 15.2 (2009): 83-90. ERIC. Web. 10 Nov. 2011.

Literary works are the foundation for education and are crucial for multiple reasons, some of which include that literature obtains a large variety of information that is at times not accessible to students by computers and teachers alone. Another advantage is adults and children alike improve their understanding and knowledge of certain topics whilst improving their intelligence of the language itself. Banning literary pieces of work is unjustifiable and proves to students that if something is not agreeable within a book, shielding its contents is the next honorary thing to do in order to prevent disruption. High schools should not ban books due to their excessive profanity, violence, sexual content and unagreeable topics because this restriction prevents young readers from developing a better understanding of the society they live in, and could counter act a new change and lessons to be learned.

Have you ever gotten upset when something is actually enjoyable and you get it taken away? It is obvious that people are getting enjoyable books taken away and are getting impacted by decisions of people who think some of these books are inappropriate. Every year new books are banned and every year people get more upset thanks to the fact of these decisions. Theres many cases where decisions impact others especially in literature. Many people take the decision to challenge good books to benefit themselves and the people around that are most close to them but don't realize that other people who would like to read these books are hugely affected because these people would actually enjoy these type of “inappropriate” books.

Book censorship is when specific materials are removed from public access, which causes American schools to face challenges and curriculum modifications. To understand why book censorship exists in America, the land of free, I will be conducting a research that will expand my knowledge on why books are challenged in society, the process of censoring books, and the educational impact of book censoring. I will also be exploring court cases, groups that challenge school materials, and ways to avoid censorship in schools. The resources that will guide my research consist of political cartoons and writers that have witnessed book or material banning. With the help of the authors’ and illustrator’s experiences, I will understand the purpose of censoring

In spite of well-meaning adults’ screams to the contrary, books by popular authors should not be banned in order to protect children from them. This is just as true now as it was when Judy Blume penned her op-ed piece in 1999. When she wrote that article, the subject was one of the Harry Potter books by J. K. Rowling, but she described the same phenomenon being associated with books by Madeleine L’Engle and Mark Twain: adults, trying to protect children from assorted evils, use loud, passionate arguments to try to dissuade libraries, schools and bookstores from providing the books to kids. I agree with Blume’s premise that to allow children to be exposed to books of all kinds is simply a good thing, because of the worlds it opens in a child’s

To experience emotions when reading a book is important. It challenges us to expand our worldview beyond that which is familiar to us.  Therefore, it is the belief among many that the concept of censorship, feasible banning of books, as well as the possible atrocious act of book burning is a concept best forgotten if not completely eradicated.

First, librarians should provide materials which fulfill patrons’ book requests because censorship limits citizens’ freedom to read. Reading a book informs people; it takes readers on journeys to a place far from reality. Since reading books provides numerous benefits to the reader, freedom to read is critically important. As the American Library Association (ALA) stated, “The freedom to read is essential to our democracy” (Intellectual Freedom, 2010, p. 203). Reading is essential to democracy because it allows people to further form their beliefs and ideas or to research differing viewpoints. Reading is also

Literature is an imitation of societal values and is thus a reflection of the human experience of a time period. Written works emphasize the elements of culture, by means of characters, particular events, setting and theme, specific to the time period in which it was composed. Furthermore, literature mirrors the troubles or hardships of society and projects the core values that define said society. Thus, as culture has changed over time, literature has remained a critical facet in representing time periods of the past. Essentially, the culture of a time period is manifested through writing in the projection of society’s values, symbolism of the center of community and literature itself.