In the literature world, the latest debate has been over whether or not some YA novels with darker themes are appropriate or/and should be banned. Many newspapers such as the Wall Street Journal have voiced multiple opinions through articles. Books such as Captain Underpants by Dave Pilkey, the Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie and Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher, all three of which I have read, have been banned in some schools. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Indian and Thirteen Reasons Why are both books that I have intensely loved and thought about long after I returned them to my school library, and that is because of one simple reason: they connected to my life.
When I pass by people in the hallways and hear bits and pieces of gossip-y conversation, I think of Hannah Baker in Thirteen Reasons Why and wonder how much of the gossip is true. When I see my dog when I go home and think of how much I love her, I think of the kind of pain Arnold in The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian must of have felt when his father killed his dog. These books make me a more sympathetic person and connected to so many other people's lives, so when I learned that they have been banned in many schools and public libraries, it angered me.
In the real world, much like in worlds we read about in the dystopian novels that have been banned, many people are struggling to censor art and filter what we read. To me, that is almost unjust. We should have the right to read about the topics we want, no matter how raw and dark they may be. Because the fact is, by not being allowed to read these types of topics we are put in a sort of bubble, where we are kept from recognizing the reality of these situations. Having connected the reality of these books to how much they open up my eyes about the realities of my own world, I believe that books with darker themes that affect teenagers should be permitted in middle school libraries, because they connect directly to our lives.
For example, in an article Sherman Alexie wrote for the Wall Street Journal about the banned book debate, he stated, "I spoke to sixty students who'd come from sixteen different districts and had survived depression, attempted suicide, gang warfare, sexual and physical abuse, absentee parents, poverty, racism and learning disabilities in order to graduate." All of these teens have clearly endured somethings that would be too horrible for many people to even imagine happening. Books that have teens going through many difficult things show these teens who have survived horrendous affairs that they are not alone, and that it is possible for a teen to make it through difficult times.
If parents are worried about their child's emotional reaction to these books with darker themes, they should censor their children, but not drag everyone down along with them and make the decision for their child's school, as if they were that entire school's parent. Because if one parent decides that a book with a girl who is bullied is not only inappropriate for their child, but for the whole school and bans it, that entire school will miss out on an opportunity to learn about the dangers of bullying and how to stop it. Because that one parent prevents everyone from reading a book, students remain ignorant to the bullying occurring in their lives and how to stop it.
YA novels keep us from becoming callous and unsympathetic, and help us to recognize the things that need to be fixed in this world. The more books are banned, the more students are missing countless opportunities to learn about the world around them, and how they are not alone in the struggles they are enduring.
No comments:
Post a Comment