The current edition of The Students.docx
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The current edition of The Students.docx
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ThecurrenteditionofTheStudents
ThecurrenteditionofTheStudents'RighttoReadisanadaptationandupdatingoftheoriginalCouncilstatement,including"Citizen'sRequestforReconsiderationofaWork,"preparedbytheCommitteeontheRighttoReadoftheNationalCouncilofTeachersofEnglishandrevisedbyKenDonelson.
TheRighttoReadandtheTeacherofEnglish
Formanyyears,Americanschoolshavebeenpressuredtorestrictordenystudentsaccesstobooksorperiodicalsdeemedobjectionablebysomeindividualorgrouponmoral,political,religious,ethnic,racial,orphilosophicalgrounds.Thesepressureshavemountedinrecentyears,andEnglishteachershavenoreasontobelievetheywilldiminish.Thefightagainstcensorshipisacontinuingseriesofskirmishes,notapitchedbattleleadingtoafinalvictoryovercensorship.
Wecansafelymaketwostatementsaboutcensorship:
first,anyworkispotentiallyopentoattackbysomeone,somewhere,sometime,forsomereason;second,censorshipisoftenarbitraryandirrational.Forexample,classicstraditionallyusedinEnglishclassroomshavebeenaccusedofcontainingobscene,heretical,orsubversiveelements.WhatEnglishteachercouldanticipatejudgmentssuchasthefollowing--judgmentscharacteristicofthosemadebymanywould-becensors:
∙Plato'sRepublic:
"Thisbookisun-Christian."
∙GeorgeEliot'sSilasMarner;"Youcan'tprovewhatthatdirtyoldmanisdoingwiththatchildbetweenchapters."
∙JulesVerne'sAroundtheWorldinEightyDays:
"VeryunfavorabletoMormons."
∙NathanielHawthorne'sTheScarletLetter:
"Afilthybook."
∙Shakespeare'sMacbeth:
"Tooviolentforchildrentoday."
∙FyodorDostoevsky'sCrimeandPunishment:
"Servesasapoormodelforyoungpeople."
∙HermanMelville'sMobyDick:
"Containshomosexuality."
Modernworks,evenmorethantheclassics,arecriticizedas"filthy,""un-American,""overlyrealistic,"and"anti-war."Somebookshavebeenattackedmerelyforbeing"controversial,"suggestingthatforsomepeoplethepurposeofeducationisnottheinvestigationofideasbutrathertheindoctrinationofcertainsetbeliefsandstandards.Thefollowingstatementsrepresentcomplaintstypicalofthosemadeagainstmodernworksofliterature:
∙J.D.Salinger'sTheCatcherintheRye:
"Adreadful,drearyrecitalofsickness,sordidness,andsadism."(Withoutmuchquestion,Salinger'sbookhasbeenforsometimethemostwidelycensoredbookintheUnitedStates.)
∙KurtVonnegut'sSlaughterhouse-Five:
"Itsrepetitiousobscenityandimmoralitymerelydegradeanddefile,teachingnothing."
∙HarperLee'sToKillaMockingbird:
"Thewordrapeisusedseveraltimes.Childrenshouldnotseethisinanyliteraturebook."
Somegroupsandindividualshavealsoraisedobjectionstoliteraturewrittenspecificallyforyoungpeople.AslongasnovelsintendedforyoungpeoplestayedattheintellectualandemotionallevelofADateforMarcyorATouchdownforThunderbirdHigh,censorscouldforegocriticism.Butmanycontemporarynovelsforadolescentsfocusontherealworldofyoungpeople--drugs,premaritalsex,alcoholism,divorce,highschoolgangs,schooldropouts,racism,violence,andsensuality.Englishteacherswillingtodefendtheclassicsandmodernliteraturemustbepreparedtogiveequallyspiriteddefensetoseriousandworthwhileadolescentnovels.
Literatureaboutethnicorracialminoritiesremains"controversial"or"objectionable"tomanyadults.Aslongasgroupssuchas AfricanAmericans,PacificIslanders,AmericanIndians,AsianAmericans,andLatinos*"kepttheirproperplace"--awardedthembyanAnglosociety--censorsrarelyraisedtheirvoices.Butattackshaveincreasedinfrequencyasminoritygroupshaverefusedtoobservetheirassigned"place."Thoughnominally,thecriticismsofracialorethnicliteraturehaveusuallybeendirectedat"badlanguage,""suggestivesituations,""questionableliterarymerit,"or"ungrammaticalEnglish"(usuallyobliquecomplaintsaboutthedifferentdialectorcultureofagroup),theunderlyingmotiveforsomeattackshasunquestionablybeenracial.Typicalofcensors'criticismsofethnicworksarethefollowingcomments:
∙RalphEllison'sInvisibleMan:
"Thebookisbiasedontheblackquestion."
∙AnneFrank'sDiaryofaYoungGirl:
"Obsceneandblasphemous."
∙EldridgeCleaver'sSoulonIce:
"Totallyobjectionableandwithoutanyliteraryvalue."
Booksarenotaloneinbeingsubjecttocensorship.Magazinesornewspapersused,recommended,orreferredtoinEnglishclasseshaveincreasinglydrawnthecensor'sfire.Fewlibrarieswouldregardtheirperiodicalcollectionasworthwhileorrepresentativewithoutsomeorallofthefollowingpublications,butallofthemhavebeenthetargetofcensorsonoccasion:
∙NationalGeographic:
"Nudityandsensationalism,especiallyinstoriesonbarbaricforeignpeople."
∙ScholasticMagazine:
"Doctrinesopposingthebeliefsofthemajority,socialisticprograms;promotesracialunrestandcontainsverydetailedgeographyofforeigncountries,especiallythoseinhabitedbydarkpeople."
∙NationalObserver:
"Right-wingtrashwithbadlyreportednews."
∙NewYorkTimes:
"ThatthingshouldbeoutlawedafterprintingthePentagonpapersandhelpingourcountry'senemies."
Theimmediateresultsofdemandstocensorbooksorperiodicalsvary.Attimes,schoolboardsandadministratorshavesupportedanddefendedtheirteachers,theiruseofmaterialsunderfire,andthestudent'srightofaccesstothematerials.Atothertimes,however,specialcommitteeshavebeenformedtocullout"objectionableworks"or"moderntrash"or"controversialliterature."Someteachershavebeensummarilyreprimandedforassigningcertainworks,eventomaturestudents.Othershavebeenabletoretaintheirpositionsonlyafterinitiatingcourtaction.
Notassensational,butperhapsmoreimportant,arethelongrangeresults.SchoolshaveremovedfromlibrariesandclassroomsandEnglishteachershaveavoidedusingorrecommendingworkswhichmightmakemembersofthecommunityangry.Manystudentsareconsequently"educated"inaschoolatmospherehostiletofreeinquiry.Andmanyteacherslearntoemphasizetheirownsafetyratherthantheirstudents'needs.
Theproblemofcensorshipdoesnotderivesolelyfromthesmallanti-intellectual,ultra-moral,orultra-patrioticgroupswhichwillalwaysfunctioninasocietythatguaranteesfreedomofspeechandfreedomofthepress.Thepresentconcernisratherwiththefrequencyandforceofattacksbyothers,oftenpeopleofgoodwillandthebestintentions,somefromwithintheteachingprofession.TheNationalCouncilofTeachersofEnglish,theNationalEducationAssociation,theAmericanFederationofTeachers,andtheAmericanLibraryAssociation,aswellasthepublishingindustryandwritersthemselvesagree:
pressuresforcensorshiparegreatthroughoutoursociety.
Thematerialthatfollowsisdividedintotwosections.Thefirston"TheRighttoRead"isaddressedtoparentsandthecommunityatlarge.Theothersection,"AProgramofAction,"listsCouncilrecommendationsforestablishingprofessionalcommitteesineveryschooltosetupproceduresforbookselection,toworkforcommunitysupport,andtoreviewcomplaintsagainstanybookorperiodical.
TheRighttoRead
AnopenlettertothecitizensofourcountryfromtheNationalCouncilofTeachersofEnglish:
Wheresuspicionfillstheairandholdsscholarsinlineforfearoftheirjobs,therecanbenoexerciseofthefreeintellect....Aproblemcannolongerbepursuedwithimpunitytoitsedges.Fearstalkstheclassroom.Theteacherisnolongerastimulanttoadventurousthinking;shebecomesinsteadapipelineforsafeandsoundinformation.Adeadeningdogmatakestheplaceoffreeinquiry.Instructiontendstobecomesterile;pursuitofknowledgeisdiscouraged;discussionoftenleavesoffwhereitshouldbegin.
JusticeWilliamO.Douglas,UnitedStatesSupremeCourt:
Adlerv.BoardofEducation,1951.
Therighttoread,likeallrightsguaranteedorimpliedwithinourconstitutionaltradition,canbeusedwiselyorfoolishly.Inmanyways,educationisanefforttoimprovethequalityofchoicesopentoallstudents.Buttodenythefreedomofchoiceinfearthatitmaybeunwiselyusedistodestroythefreedomitself.Forthisreason,werespecttherightofindividualstobeselectiveintheirownreading.Butforthesamereason,weopposeeffortsofindividualsorgroupstolimitthefreedomofchoiceofothersortoimposetheirownstandardsortastesuponthecommunityatlarge.
Therightofanyindividualnotjusttoreadbuttoreadwhateverheorshewantstoreadisbasictoademocraticsociety.Thisrightisbasedonanassumptionthattheeducatedpossessjudgmentandunderstandingandcanbetrustedwiththedeterminationoftheirownactions.Ineffect,thereaderisfreedfromthebondsofchance.Thereaderisnotlimitedbybirth,geographiclocation,ortime,sincereadingallowsmeetingpeople,debatingphilosophies,andexperiencingeventsfarbeyondthenarrowconfinesofanindividual'sownexistence.
Inselectingbooksforreadingbyyoungpeople,Englishteachersconsiderthecontributionwhicheachworkmaymaketotheeducationofthereader,itsaestheticvalue,itshonesty,itsreadabilityforaparticulargroupofstudents,anditsappealtoadolescents.Englishteachers,however,mayusedifferentworksfordifferentpurposes.Thecriteriaforchoosingaworktobereadbyanentireclassaresomewhatdifferentfromthecriteriaforchoosingworkstobereadbysmallgroups.
Forexample,ateachermightselectJohnKnowles'ASeparatePeaceforreadingbyanentireclass,partlybeca
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