Censorship
by Guest Blogger and Saturday Scribes attendee, Aliyah Byron
If there is one thing that ticks me off more than people telling me what I can and can’t do, it’s people telling me what I can and can’t learn. Censoring books is one of the most common and overlooked ways of limiting these avenues of knowledge. Reading books does more than entertain us as I’m sure everyone has experienced. It opens doors to new mindsets, new places, and new people.
Non-fiction works are rather self-explanatory in that manner. A revolutionary idea explained, a rebel’s life laid-out, a new cultures cooking recipes revealed. You read it, you experience it through the eyes of another, and the idea for change is present.
Fiction is a lot less direct. It plants subtle seeds in one’s mind that over time and through discussion and rumination can allow ideas to blossom into changes in worldview. Famous examples of banned books include Harry Potter by J.K Rowling for witchcraft, To Kill a Mocking Bird by Harper Lee for racial inequality and sexual activity, and my childhood favorite Captain Underpants by Dav Pilkey for fart jokes. That last one isn’t exactly true. The tragic attempted banning of Captain Underpants has more to do with parents fearing it will drive kids to not listen to them, but I know an argument could be made for fart jokes.
If only we had the time to make it.
Being the diligent Psychology Scholar I am, I want to focus on what censorship means. We know it is a product of fear. A fear of knowledge. A fear of changing point of views. A fear of towns burning, anarchy, the end of humanity.
A bit dramatic? A leap too far in logic?
Books are banned when the themes and values don’t align with what a society deems appropriate or necessary for a seamless function.
In
Captain Underpants, we see two students, George and Harold, who are notorious for making school fun through pranks and wacky inventions. It is through one prank that they turn their principal, who is the villain of the school because of course he is, into the protagonist of their comic books: a large man with superpowers who literally only wears underpants and a cape.
The transformation from mean spirited, unhappy Principal Krupp to goofy, lovable Captain Underpants is under the control of two fourth graders.
So how could these amazing novels lead to the collapse of society and the end of humanity as we know it?
Allow me to don my Censorship is Awesome/Books are Scary hat.
If a child reads this book, they may start to think that they, too, could start to pull pranks in school and not respect their teachers and principal. This may evolve into not respecting any adult. It may spiral into not respecting laws, rules, or law enforcement. These children will then start to do crime and hurt people. Get enough of these children and you have a town full of criminals.
That’s a lot of pressure to put on a silly comic book about a guy in underwear.
Hater hat off.
Let’s turn back to the examples we mentioned before.
Witchcraft, as demonstrated in Harry Potter, has a long history across the globe with linking people to scary things like Satan or general evils forces that could cause ill will for the entire town. The thought here is, the less evil doers and bad juju bringers out town has, the safer and better our town is.
Racial Inequality in To Kill a Mocking Bird helps highlight that our society has huge problems with racism at all levels including the judicial system. People who don’t believe that, or quite like that system, don’t want their children thinking different than them and trying to change it.
So you see the pattern here?
Censorship is the fear that maybe a person starts to think “I can do things differently.” Censorship is the fear that a group of people will act out and taint the way we do things. Censorship is the fear of change.
–Aliyah Byron