Book Banning
Why do people censor books? They are usually censored out of fear that is mistaken for moral outrage.* Parents and authorities want to feel in control of our lives and use book banning to satisfy their control. They use the ethic of: if they don’t know something, it will never be a problem. The most censored books are the ones that make us think, and question our own values.
One of the youth populations’ favorite books, Harry Potter, is also popular amongst Christian censors. They feel that the “good” characters ethics to lie, steal, cheat and other various wrongs influences us to make the same choices to achieve a higher good. While this can’t be disproved, there is something to be said about lying to keep the welfare of another. Censors also say its author, Rowling, tries very hard to make the villains as heinous as possible to undermine, the “good” characters bad choices.
Along with Harry Potter, “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” is a very controversial book. It is mostly criticized for its predominant use of the “N” word. The book usually offends African American parents and students. Compromises are usually made to balance parental and community concerns, need for academic freedom, and educational and constitutional problems that arise. Who isn’t all for academic freedom and the choice of reading classic?
At our school only a few books have ever been banned. The banning was used to protect the lives of the students attending our school, and in one extreme case, a student from harming themselves. The student had been going to the counselors about depression, and later requested a book about suicide. For the safety of the student our librarian refused to allow the book in the school. Our school is very lenient in the case of book censorship, and often brings in controversial material to open its readers to the world.