Have you ever read a banned or challenged* book? Chances are that if you had a public school education, you’ve already read plenty of them. The Grapes of Wrath? Banned for its religious and labor union references. Brave New World? Banned for references to drug use and sex without benefit of marriage. The Catcher in the Rye? You name it. One of my favorite novels, Lolita, has been on a banned or challenged list pretty much every year since its publication.
Fortunately, people who love books and value access to information are fighting back. First launched in 1982 and held during the last week in September, Banned Book Week celebrates and supports the freedom to read. It seeks to bring together everyone in the book community to preserve the freedom to share ideas, even those out of the mainstream.
When I think about banned books and censorship, images of the book-burnings from Fahrenheit 451 spring to mind. I see hordes of outraged parents, demanding that literature be ousted from school libraries and English department curricula because—oh, no—young adults might be scarred for life from reading controversial material at the very time when their brains are thirsty for new ideas and ready to form their own opinions. I see harshly worded letters to public libraries demanding the removal of 50 Shades of Grey from their shelves. (Okay, it’s not my favorite, but I wouldn’t dream of preventing anyone from reading it.)
The inclusion of Captain Underpants, however, threw me for a loop. Yes. Topping the list of banned and challenged books for 2012 is a children’s series by Dav Pilkey about a couple of fourth-graders who write the adventures of a comic book superhero based on their hateful school principal. And this is not Pilkey’s first go-round. He was also given the dubious honor of making the list in 2002, 2004, and 2005.
According to the American Library Association, Pilkey’s series was banned in some schools for “offensive language, insensitivity and being unsuited to age group, as well as encouraging children to disobey authority.”
It seems so silly to me. Of all the things in this complicated world that adults wish to protect children from, a bit of authority challenging and a few booger jokes should be the least of their problems. Pilkey, drawing from personal experience, is a champion for kids who struggle in school because they don’t fit into the preferred disciplinary mold. In a statement issued by Pilkey to the Huffington Post after the list was released in April, he said, “I don’t see these books as encouraging disrespect for authority. Perhaps they demonstrate the value of questioning authority. Some of the authority figures in the books are villains. They are bullies and they do vicious things.”
As part of his statement, Pilkey said that his characters are based in part on teachers and principals he had in elementary school, some of whom were “villains” who got away with it because they were authority figures.
“None of the children in my school, including me, thought to question them,” he said. “So, I do feel there is real value in showing kids that not all authority figures are good or kind or honorable.”
Banning and challenging books does not stop with schools, however. It touches nearly every publically funded institution. In a recent case in Connecticut, author Wally Lamb, who works extensively with establishing literacy programs in correctional facilities, had one of his novels, She’s Come Undone, banned from a prison library. Fortunately his fans came to his aid and got the challenge dropped.
I can’t speak for everyone, but the reading of banned books did not corrupt my mind or person, and I consider myself much richer for the experience of reading them. Many of these works are brilliant, sparkling examples of literature that examines the plight of mankind in its evils and its glories. They capture moments in time, some we would rather forget. Like the Salem witch trials. Nazi Germany. American slavery. Japanese internment camps. The subjugation of women. The civil rights movement. Homophobia. These stories use language appropriate to the situation and the times; they portray characters that are either victims to their (our) failings or villains in their (our) taking advantage of those failings. Maybe that’s why so many individuals and organizations over the last century have sought to ban these books—because literature is a mirror of a civilization, and it shows the utter humanness of us. And maybe some would choose to hide that from the next generation, either in a misguided attempt to shelter them or in a dastardly attempt to control them.
Banned Book Week 2013 will be held from September 22 to 28. Check the website for any special events being held in your area. If there aren’t any, start one! Record and post a video of you and your friends reading from or discussing a banned book.
Or just read one and appreciate the fact that you can.
*A challenge is an attempt to remove or restrict materials, based upon the objections of a person or group. A banning is the removal of those materials. Challenges do not simply involve a person expressing a point of view; rather, they are an attempt to remove material from the curriculum or library, thereby restricting the access of others. As such, they are a threat to freedom of speech and choice. (Definition supplied by the American Library Association.)
Thanks for the great reminder, Laurie. 🙂
You’re welcome, Lynne.
A timely reminder that we’re never really far away from the “thought police” and the “firemen.”
Not far at all…a bunch of copies of the Lord of the Rings were actually burned in New Mexico in 2001. A church group thought the book was satanic and promoted witchcraft.
Isn’t it weird how we seem to cycle back to this periodically? Seems like every other generation or so has to re-learn the same lesson. Reminds me of the movie Pleasantville, in a lot of ways more poignant and meaningful than Fahrenheit 451. Great post, Laurie.
Thank you, Melissa. Every time I hear about another instance of would-be censorship, I have to glance at the calendar to see what year it is. I don’t know why we humans have to keep relearning these things. The lessons don’t stick, or those who would control what we read think we have forgotten.
The Judas Syndrome was banned once from a local bookstore for profanity, drug use and suicide issues: all of which were integral to the plot and the theme of the apocalypse. http://www.amazon.com/Judas-Syndrome-Book-one/dp/0981316808/ref=sr_1_5?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1378221573&sr=1-5
Enjoyed reading your post! Yes, fear takes a million forms — and one of them is to prevent a mind from expanding by regulating what goes into it. I’m glad I live in an age and a place when I can read what I want. Something to be truly grateful for!
Thank you, Mira. I am grateful, too.
Thanks for your article Laurie. I’m four books into ten books listed as banned. The interesting thing is I have trouble getting them as they are on a waiting list at the library. I guess that says volumes!
Thank you, Dick! As long as we keep reading them, they stay alive!
Thank you for the reminder! I’d better see what’s available from the library, or start ordering if I want to have a book in time…
I love Captain Underpants. And with teachers such as Stacey Dean Rambold getting away with abusing students, I say anyone who advocates questioning authority is a hero in my book.
As some of the best selling books of the 20th century were banned books, it gives us something to aim for.
Excellent article, Laurie.
One reviewer objected to the sex scenes in my Assignment Prague, and my only thought was – Whee! Maybe this will sell more books! I suspect the same thing happens with banned books. Seriously, thanks for the post. I’ll get out my worn copy of Lolita.
I used to teach in a very conservative school district, and have dealt with parental objections to all sorts of state-approved novels. My favorite was the parent who did not want her son exposed to the themes of Romeo and Juliet. Then a new teacher in the middle school wanted to read from Sherman Alexie’s YA novel, and after many attempts, a reason was eventually found to fire him. I also had parents who photocopied a book of short stories I was using in my creative writing class and then proceed to highlight each objectionable word. The list goes on and on. It’s not wonder why I don’t want to teach anymore.