Censorship or protection? Where do we draw the line when it comes to banned books? Some say that certain topics should not be covered in books aimed towards younger demographics, while others feel that younger people should explore these topics and feel comfortable talking about them openly. As a huge book nerd myself, I felt the need to look into some of the banned books and tell you how I felt about them and see why some of them may be important to read.
The Witch of Blackbird Pond
“The Witch of Blackbird Pond” is a historical fiction novel written by Elizabeth George Speare in 1958. The story takes place in 1687 when a young woman named Kit Tyler is moving from the island of Barbados to the colony of Connecticut after her grandfather’s death. She arrives and is initially appalled by life in the colonies. Soon, she begins to make a friend with an elderly woman named Hannah Tupper. Unfortunately, the town believes she is a witch because she lives on the outskirts of town and is Quaker while the rest of the town are Puritans. The town members are very wary of going anywhere near her house. Kit tries desperately to try and prove that she is useful and worthy of staying in the colony.
Despite its interesting story, the novel is banned because it discusses topics of witchcraft and violence. However, in my opinion, the book does not actually promote the idea of witchcraft and instead tries to prove that the characters that have been accused are not actually witches. The book is also considered violent because of its included topic of witch trials. Though the book shows no depiction of any person being executed due to being accused of witchcraft, the discussion of the topic of the trials in general is considered violent.
However, just because it’s banned doesn’t mean it’s not an important book. The novel has a lot of themes that are fundamental for people to explore. It talks about prejudice, social injustice, sexism, racism and responsibility. Many like turning a blind eye to how flawed our justice system is. It’s improved a lot but there’s always room for improvement and the witch trials are a great example of this. The idea of justice can vary from person to person but everyone needs to follow the same rules and be punished in the same way. Upholding justice can ensure that everyone’s human rights are carried out. Kit starts out as a young immature girl who is considered “spoiled” but goes through a lot of development throughout the novel and learns to be responsible for herself and caring for others. When Kit owns up to her mistakes many people believe her when she needs the most help. In a scenario where she didn’t admit to her mistakes, things probably wouldn’t have ended well for her.
Fahrenheit 451
Another more popular banned book is Fahrenheit 451 written by Ray Bradbury in 1953. It’s set in a dystopian world sometime after 2022 where all books have been banned and firefighters, now called firemen, are required to burn any book that is found. The book takes inspiration from book burnings that took place during WWII in Germany. The main character Guy Montag is a fireman in his city. He’s not exactly happy with his job but he does it anyway to support him and his wife financially. One day, his whole world is turned upside down when he meets his new neighbor, Clarisse McClellan. Montag must then choose to listen to his gut or obey the laws of the overpowering government.
Fahrenheit 451 is banned because the book is thought to be violent, a criticism of the government and discusses the topic of censorship. The book has many depictions of the characters watching gruesome killing scenes on their TVs, but it doesn’t go into great detail about this. There are also a couple of scenes where drivers were being reckless while driving and almost ran over pedestrians. The government in the book is supposed to be depicted as a looming threat that punishes anyone if they misstep. The firemen are a direct depiction of the government and are a symbol of destruction throughout the book.
The novel discusses themes of censorship but Bradbury takes it to an extreme level by portraying the characters as fearful bystanders to the government’s laws. Censorship is now an even bigger topic than ever and many more books have been deemed not appropriate for younger readers. However, I completely disagree with this. Yes, some topics may be harder for younger audiences to understand but reading is what gives people knowledge about the world. Authors share their thoughts and opinions through the things they write about and just because someone disagrees with the themes the book discusses does not mean others shouldn’t be able to read it. Fahrenheit 451 is a raw demonstration of life without books and what it does to people.
I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter
“I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter” is a novel by Erika L. Sánchez published in 2017. The novel follows 15-year-old Julia Reyes, the daughter of two Mexican immigrants living in modern-day Chicago. The book starts out with Julia attending her sister’s funeral. Julia’s parents have high expectations for her and expect her to follow in her sister’s footsteps to be the perfect daughter. However, Julia struggles with her identity and what she wants to do in the world. There are a few trigger warnings for this book it has themes of depression, violence, sexual harassment themes and racism. I’d say this book is for 15+ since it does deal with heavier topics.
The novel is banned due to its darker themes. The central theme of the book is mental health and grief. The main characters struggle severely with their mental health throughout the entire novel. Julia’s family is overcome with grief and the entire family is depressed for some time. The novel also discusses sexual themes when talking about some of the characters. For example, Julia does get harassed on the street a few times and the topic of sex is also brought up throughout the book.
However despite its difficult themes, “I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter” is an important story to tell. The book’s central themes surrounding family expectations, mental health, grief and first-generation immigrant families are extremely relatable to many people. I personally felt connected to the novel because as a Latina who has an immigrant mother, it felt really nice to see someone else’s story told. I especially believe books like this should not be banned because they tell stories and make people feel seen through the author’s work.
Reading these books really opened my eyes to some new topics that I hadn’t explored before. Books have the power to tell stories and it’s important for people to be able to read them. Banning books has become a big issue in the U.S. and it shouldn’t be taken lightly. Censorship should be talked about more because many books that are banned have important topics in them and should be shared with the world. Banning books suppresses knowledge and silences important voices. As a society, we should instead encourage free expression in writing, not censorship.
