Why Lord of the Flies had people buzzing for the wrong reason.

Lord of the Flies written by Sir William Golding is rich in themes and other material that is studied in many schools and other academic institutions. But some of these themes have caused parents and other groups to want the books removed.

The reasoning behind schools challenging and some even banning the book from library shelves all together have been different for each school. The American Library Association has listed the some of these reasons including that some schools think the book is "demoralizing inasmuch as it implies that man is little more than an animal." Some schools banned or removed the book due to it's violence and course language. Other places have banned the book due to the use of the word nigger and other derogatory terms towards African Americans, God, Women and the disabled.

On the other hand other organisations and reviewers have praised the author and his books including receiving the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1983, In response to some of the reasons the book has been banned, Jen the author of the blog Devourer of Books says, 'Lord of the flies is violent... but, in my opinion this is not handled in a gratuitous way... This is a novel about the dangers of what we can become if we completely ignore the rules of society and civilization.  Whether you agree with Golding’s assessments of human nature or not, it is sure a good conversation starter.  We read this freshman year in high school and I would not consider it too violent and graphic for us, primarily because it isn’t just trash, it is literature, and we discussed it as literature, working through some of the difficult issues in the book with our teacher and as a class'.

In conclusion like with other books on the list I have discussed Lord of the Flies is another book that really is no worse than other books out there, while it may be more violent and dark than some other books on the list really if parents don't want their children reading it then its up to them they shouldn't dictate what other children can and cannot read.

REFERENCES

Devourer of Books 2008, Banned books week spotlight - Lord of the flies, Devourer of Books, viewed  31 March 2011.
http://www.devourerofbooks.com/2008/10/banned-books-week-spotlight-lord-of-the-flies/

American Library Association 2011, Banned and/or challenged books from the Radcliff Publishing Course, top 100 novels of the 20th century, American Library Association, viewed 13th April 2011
http://www.ala.org/ala/issuesadvocacy/banned/frequentlychallenged/challengedclassics/reasonsbanned/index.cfm

Forget finding Waldo/Wally another item in 1 of the books is the reason its on the list.

Now most of us older people know who Waldo or Wally is depending on the country you live in, but what some of you probably don't know is that the original Where's Wally printed in 1987 had something that caused parents to demand the book be removed from library shelves. Below is the scene the something in question is hidden in, now you may need to zoom in on the something to find it but can you find what it could possibly be.

Image courtesy of Findwally

cant find it, here it is blown up for all to see.

Image courtesy of the Daily Banning 

Unfortunately I was not able to find the original enlarged picture enlarged enough to be able to see, The scene was changed in the 1997 special edition and the woman was covered up. Now as Quindlen (1993) states The Cat in the Hat is nude except for the gloves, the tie and, yep, the hat. Winnie the Pooh does not wear pants. Just a warning. She then goes on to say Unfortunately someone took it seriously. After an outraged mom complained, the principal at the Long Island school agreed to take the book off the shelf, thereby succumbing to an impulse that is at the heart of most book-banning in this country. And that is the temptation to treat kids like morons, to sell little people short. Don't do it. Finally to drive her point home she adds The brain is a muscle, at least figuratively, and to develop it you have to work it. If kids don't run up against ideas that are disquieting, or challenging, or different from what they've always believed, or different from what their parents believe, how will they ever grow as human beings? and Ideas are only lethal if you suppress and don't discuss them. Ignorance is not bliss, it's stupid. Banning books shows you don't trust your kids to think and you don't trust yourself to be able to talk with them. Knowledge is power. The breast is on page four of "Where's Waldo?" Your kids can handle it. It's the adults who have the problem. 

Yet there are some that have not even noticed the woman on the beach and have just enjoyed the book. As Karkabi (1991) pointed out The Waldo craze was noticed by Christine McNew, children's librarian at the Spring Branch Memorial branch of the Harris County Library, when she was hired 1 1/2 years ago. After numerous children came asking for Waldo books, she bought a few. Now the library has five copies of each of the four books and none stays on the shelves for longer than an hour before being checked out again. That's 4 copies of the book that ended up being 1 of the most challenged books yet was still being lent out.    

For anyone who would like to learn about more about other interesting things to find throughout the Where's Wally series Adrian Beiting has a list of other interesting things they have found. 

REFERENCES

Karkabi, B 1991, 'CAN YOU FIND WALDO/Fun lies in the finding of a well-traveled character' Houston Chronical, Section Houston, STAR Edition, Page 1, 2

Quindlen, A c.1993, 'Public and private; The breast ban' The New York Times, Opinion.

Beiting, A 2010, 9 strange things found while searching for Waldo, viewed 22 October 2010
http://www.toplessrobot.com/2010/01/10_strange_things_found_while_searching_for_waldo.php

Why the Goosebumps series gives parents "goosebumps" for the wrong reasons

Image Courtesy of Vromans Book Store

The Goosebumps series is enjoyed by many children and young adults alike including me. Through some  research as to why the Goosebumps books were challenged I discovered some very interesting things.

At first it seems that the main reason that the Goosebumps series was and is still challenged today is because of its content being inappropriate, but according to some they believe the goosebumps books are inappropriate for children for other much different reasons. Diana West is quoted in the Kirsten (1997) article saying the aim of such "shock fiction" is to induce a repeated "fight or flight" reaction, a strangely pleasurable sensation in which "stress-induced panic takes over the autonomic nervous system." The result is "reading as glandular activity" -- "a crude tool of physical stimulation, wholly devoid of mental, emotional or spiritual engagement. She then goes on to state that in her view "Goosebumps debase the act of reading, and more important the reader himself".

Some people who feel the book has no need to be challenged or removed from school libraries don't see the problems with the book, they see a book they can enjoy and read anytime they want. Bestcovery.com even regards the goosebumps series as the 4th best children's book series for grades 1-5. and in most reviews by people who have read the book they have all been fairly positive and the scary scenes and themes that some people seem to have a problem with does not seem to effect the reviewers.

An article in NEA Today about the two sides of the debate on weather or not the Goosebumps series is inappropriate for children brings up some very interesting points. Suzanne Wargo who believes that kids should be allowed to read the Goosebumps series states that any child who is reading is an improvement over one who is not. Kids love to read about scary ideas and scary situations. These books reach them where they are. Are they great literature? Certainly not. But. given the last-paced electronic age today's kids are growing up in. Goosebumps keeps young people reading--and that's worth a lot Wargo (1997). She then goes on to say telling kids they can't read something will only increase the attraction. My mother wouldn't let me watch The Three Stooges because she thought it too violent. I grew up with many a young boy my age pretending to poke and slap in imitation of the Stooges' brand of comedy. It only made me more eager to sneak around the rule and find out for myself. Wargo (1997)

However Alberta Graham who believes that the Goosebumps series is inappropriate for kids not because of the themes of the books but because of the way Stine the author writes. She believes that his books have "little educational value" and also she is "opposed to any series of books that creates a single-genre rut that children have trouble breaking out of" Graham (1997)

R.L. Stine the author of the series has commented on his books being on the ALA list of 100 most challenged books and he has said "I'm proud and humble. I think it’s more a sign of success"

In the end like with the Harry Potter series it all comes down to choice. Parents can choose weather or not to let their children read the books, Unlike the Harry potter series though there seems to be more to it than just being inappropriate for that age level some believe that the books are inappropriate on the grounds that it provides no educational or good value. But kids don't just read for value or educational purposes they read to be entertained and sometimes to take their mind off real world problems.




REFERENCES

Kersten, K 1997, Goosebumps is shock fiction, Center of the American Experiment, viewed 10 September 2010,
http://www.americanexperiment.org/publications/1997/19970129kersten.php

Jones, J 2010. Goosebumps, BESTCOVERY, viewed 10 September 2010,
http://www.bestcovery.com/goosebumps

Wargo, S, Graham, A 1997, 'Should kids read Goosebumps?', NEA Today, vol 16, issue 3, Education Research Complete, EBSCOhost, viewed 10 September 2010

CNN.com 1999, R.L Stine A chat with the best-selling children's author, CNN.com, viewed 10 September 2010,
http://edition.cnn.com/COMMUNITY/transcripts/stine.html

RESEARCH PROCESS, FINDINGS AND OTHER DISCOVERIES SO FAR.

So far I have found great success using EBSCOhost and Google, EBSCOhost gave me some great results since I am looking for articles on books which articles about them may be out of date and unavailable through regular channels. from there I attempted to find news clips or other videos about the challenging of the 2 series I have covered so far. To find the clips I mainly used youtube with some great success. I found that there was alot more information on why the Harry Potter series was challenged than why the Goosebumps series was challenged. 

Why Harry Potter cast a bad spell over some parents.

Image courtesy of Godric's Hollow

Most of us know about the Harry Potter books by now, whether you're a child reading the book for the millionth time or an adult reading it to their kids. But there are some parents and religious groups that think that Harry Potter is bad for their children, they think that exposing their children to the witchcraft and wizardry portrayed in the books will corrupt their children's minds.

It's not just the Harry Potter series that has caused problems among religious groups and individuals. Other book have also been challenged because they too contain the theme of witchcraft and the occult, some popular titles include The Chronicles of Narnia and Bridge to Teribithia. Although some people see The Chronicles of Narnia as a better book for younger children even though both books deal with similar themes yet Chronicles of Narnia does not openly use witchcraft, but instead according to some the magic and powers people have in Narnia comes from Aslan the lion who they believe represents Jesus Christ.

In some areas of the world book burnings have been undertaken recently by churches and other religious groups, the Harry Potter books have been the main fuel for many of those book burning. In some areas and places that were unable to get a permit to burn the books they have just simply destroyed the books by other means including just ripping them up.

Below is a video from YouTube of an example of a church group who are unhappy with the Harry Potter books and why they want the Harry Potter books banned/removed, and why they think that it is innapropriate for their children to read.
    

Here is a video of an example where people have taken their protest one step further and burnt some of the Harry Potter books.



In the end it all comes down to choice, We can allow ourselves and our children or other members of our family to read books and items with occult and supernatural themes and learn about the difference between fact and fiction. Or like others attempt and in some cases succeed in getting books such as this series removed from library shelves.



REFERENCES

Deem, R 2007, Harry Potter: Is it something that christian children should read and/or see, God and Science, viewed 27 August 2010,
http://www.godandscience.org/doctrine/harrypotter.html

Katrienepien 2008, Harry Potter is the devil, YouTube, viewed 27 August 2010,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RSwZJ55g80Q

horugvenosec 2007, Burning of 'Harry Potter' books in Russia, YouTube, viewed 27 August 2010,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4CqZh_UknEA

Kennedy, E c2010, tThey're burning books again: Harry Potter book burning and other cases of book burning, About.com, viewed 27 August 2010,
http://childrensbooks.about.com/cs/censorship/a/burningbooks.html

Research Brief

TOPIC

Challenged books from 1990-2010

OUTLINE

I plan to select four books from the ALA 100 most frequently challenged books and do some research into why they where/are being challenged and what people think about it. The books I have chosen from the list are the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling, Lord of the flies by William Golding, Where’s Waldo by Martin Handford and the Goosebumps series by R.L. Stine.

WEEKLY PLAN AND DEADLINES

Week 5: I will start blog and research into the 4 books I have chosen the first blog post will be an overview of what I intend to cover with some brief information about each of the books.

Week 6: I will have finished at least the first 2 of my blog posts which will be my introduction and the first book I have chosen from the list which will be about the Harry Potter series and why it was and is still challenged.

Week 7: I will have finished the first 3 blog posts with the 3rd blog post being about the Goosebumps series and why it was challenged.

Week 9: I will have finished another 2 blog posts, about Where’s Waldo? and Lord of the flies respectively and why they where challenged.

Week 10: I will have finished my conclusion in my final blog post and will have started my report

Week 12: I will present my findings and continue with my report.