Toni Morrison is quoted as describing the banning of a book as “a purist yet elementary kind of censorship designed to appease adults rather than educate children.” I later came across an article that expanded on her thoughts on book banning and censorship:
The thought that leads me to contemplate with dread the erasure of other voices, of unwritten novels, poems whispered or swallowed for fear of being overheard by the wrong people, outlawed languages flourishing underground, essayists’ questions challenging authority never being posed, unstaged plays, cancelled films — that thought is a nightmare. As though a whole universe is being described in invisible ink. Certain kinds of trauma visited on peoples are so deep, so cruel, that unlike money, unlike vengeance, even unlike justice, or rights, or the goodwill of others, only writers can translate such trauma and turn sorrow into meaning, sharpening the moral imagination.
Reading her thoughts on book banning and censorship leaves out fundamental aspects that many take into account when deciding what books are “banned” (“banned” in quotation marks because no one is “banning” you from reading the book…it is just taken off the shelves of schools). What is this fundamental consideration when considering books for students? the parents and the consideration of social and emotional well-being of the child (and I would like to add SPIRITUAL)!
I must be the only person on this planet who did not know that Toni Morrison’s books included very sexually graphic scenes. I am not talking about the innuendos of sex. I am talking about explicit details. And I am not talking about just sex; I am talking about incest, the graphic details of a father raping his daughter. I am sorry if this offends the “literary lovers” out there, but there comes a time when no functioning adult would want to read that and not be emotionally disturbed afterwards let alone being fully ok for a teacher to teach this book in schools. How can anyone not have issues with these scenes? And you know what is really scary? Reading thoughts of people who want to justify teaching her books in schools (especially The Bluest Eye). Take this quote for example: (article)
Although the book has extremely explicit sex scenes describing incest, rape, and pedophilia, it is a key thought-provoking literary work that students should have the opportunity to properly analyze and digest. Rather than say that the novel is inappropriate, it’s more accurate to say that it’s not appropriate for the younger generation. That being said, the actual demographic of students reading this book, right around age 16 and 17, are no strangers to the public world of sex. In reality, many of them are beginning to have their own sexual experience right around ages 16-18.
Undoubtedly, these students should have the opportunity to understand the countless poetic books discussing sex in a real-life and visceral way, especially in a historic context for their understanding of bygone perspectives. To deny them intellectual and challenging literature because the traditional community is too uncomfortable with taboo subjects like pedophilia and incest only deprives that student of understanding the deeper emotional and psychological complexities behind the taboo.
I am sorry but as a parent, I do not want someone else to determine what is appropriate for my child to read. I don’t think it is the school’s responsibility to introduce those topics to anyone’s child. This writer clearly thinks kids not experiencing these novels are being deprived of “emotional and psychological” aspects of these issues. Well, what about the actual kids who experienced sexually abuse and trauma? Are you saying great literary works trump THEIR emotional and psychological well-being? Any book with rape (or pedophilia or bestiality) should not be in schools. There are other great books that can be read to challenge the mind. I honestly think it is a sad, scary world when adults would choose “literary works” over the well-being of a child/minor.
Since I have my media specialist certification, I am helping my school’s librarian read a stack of books that she needs to review. That is the only reason I picked up this book (that and I have always wanted to read her books). I also picked up Beloved by Toni Morrison. After reading The Bluest Eye, I took the other one back and told her I couldn’t read it, not after reading reviews of Beloved and humans having sex with animals (cows?) and more rape. I just can’t. I WANT to read books with difficult, emotional themes. I want to read great literary pieces. I do believe that the stories and themes of her books are great. However, I refuse to read a “great piece of literary work” that is so sexually graphic that it disturbs me afterwards. No. Just no.
If you have never read her books and what I mentioned doesn’t both you, then I think you will like her books. I love her writing styles and how she builds the story. I liked reading and trying to understand the difficult themes. However, I can’t be a fan of her books when these graphic details are in her books. I am ok not putting that image in my mind because once there, it is there. And that is ok with me.
If you are interested in my recent blog about this book and school censorship (overlaps with this post), click here. In the mean time, Happy Reading.
I like this guy’s blog post: link
