Every single year, books across the nation have been banned for myriad reasons: explicit content, language, and violence have all been leading contributors in a variety of books being banned from educational facilities. Though rational to ban specific genres of books, or inappropriate literature to teach in a high-school setting, the excessive banning of books has reached an all-time high in 2023, with over 874 books being banned in a classroom setting alone, according to Tolin. 

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These banned books can range “from ‘profanity’ and plotlines ‘centered around negative activity’ to ‘X-rated’ content and ‘Satanic’ themes,” Lakritz reports. but mostly because of the area of the country the book has been banned in. In this article, the following books will be discussed as to why they were banned from schools: To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee; Of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck; and The Hate U Give, by Angie Thomas.

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When looking at To Kill a Mockingbird, there has been controversy surrounding the language used throughout the novel. The plot follows a young girl, Scout, and her brother, Jem, as they navigate life in southern Alabama during the 1930s. Allegedly, this book has been challenged and removed from curricula due to its prominent use of racial slurs, as well as adult themes, Lakrtiz from insider.com reports. However, it should be noted that this book portrayed an accurate representation of life in Southern America during the peak of segregation, and therefore, would have had to use slurs and discriminatory words in order for the book to be realistic. Without the use of strong language, the overall theme of the novel would not have been as powerful, and the book would almost appear fantastical because of how peaceful the South would have been.

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Of Mice and Men was repeatedly banned in school settings because of its use of profanity. This specific novel portrays two young men, George and Lennie, who are trying to find a job during the Great Depression. Unfortunately, because of Lennie’s mental disabilities, the duo has had to move constantly in order to avoid police arrest (insider.com). In a similar manner to To Kill a Mockingbird, Of Mice and Men needs the language and profanity used in the novel to correctly and accurately contribute to the plot. Again, the more obscene language used and topics discussed, the more realistic the book is when the narrative is being unfurled from a perspective pertaining to  young men.

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The Hate U Give has been banned extensively in school settings because of its use of inappropriate language and for allegedly promoting distrust of police force (insider.com). The plot of this book is told by a young black girl, named Starr, who witnesses the fatal shooting of her friend by an armed police officer. In order to generate the largest impact on the reader,  again, the books reviewed here have to be as close to reality as possible. Unfortunately, in today’s day and age, racism and police brutality are abundant in today’s day and age. Every detail illustrated in this story is absolutely essential to the plot and the struggles Starr is facing.

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Overall, the main reason these books seem to be banned is because of how realistic they are to a specific time period, as well as the controversy it could spark in different areas of the country. Though reasonable to ban books that are fictional or fantastical with extensive language, it is not beneficial to ban realistic books just because of one small factor that prominently contributes to the plot of the novel and the purpose they innately serve. In summation, simply do not include it in the curriculum if there would be controversy in a classroom setting. The extensive banning of literature removes a reader’s natural right to read the produced novels, as well as censoring the author’s right of  free speech. Banning literature only has detrimental effects on the audience, contradicting directly what the imposition in place was hoping to do.

 

Works Cited

Lakritz, T. (2023, April 26). 14 books that have been banned in schools. Insider. https://www.insider.com/banned-books-schools-2018-11#the-harry-potter-series-by-jk-rowling-has-been-banned-several-times-2 

Tolin, L. (2023, May 1). The 10 most banned books of the 2021-2022 school year. PEN America. https://pen.org/banned-books-list-2022/