Final Literary Analysis: Responding to Censorship in Public School Libraries

Censorship involves the violation of a publication, work, or literary text that is politically, artistically, or ethically undesirable. Censorship generally occurs to deal with contentious issues in public schools’ libraries. This becomes an issue due to the fact that it denies students permission to read and learn different literature without restriction. In their article “Harry Potter and the Public School Library,” Todd A. DeMitchell and John J. Carney expressed how censorship has been an issue for public school libraries, including restricted intellectual freedom and the removal of learning experiences: Final Literary Analysis: Responding to Censorship in Public School Libraries.

Censorship in public school libraries makes students more victims since it jeopardizes their rights to information and basic legal rights that allow free expression and endangers their ability to think critically. In “Harry Potter and the Public School Library,” DeMitchell and Carney argue that censorship limits students’ rights to access diverse narratives and critical engagement with social issues, which creates problems such as restricted intellectual freedom and diminished educational opportunities for students.

The Impact of Censorship on Student Rights

Public school censorship hampers students with certain difficult issues first by violating their rights to access information. The American Library Association categorizes the liberty to read as an inalienable right to the people in a democratic society. If the schools are not permitted to receive some books, the students are barred from getting different views and opinions of their own choice. For instance, if a school library removes a book like Save Me a Seat, which teaches topics such as bullying, ethnicity, and friendship, learners do not get an opportunity to learn about various issues related to interpersonal relationships.

Additionally, censorship contradicts the educational process objectives as it brings conformity into schools that do not correspond to the variety of students’ needs and backgrounds. As mentioned in DeMitchell and Carney’s article, the diversity of students, having developed from different themes and stories, will strengthen their understanding of peers (162). Whenever libraries edit which books the public has access to, they start a process that, in the end, makes only certain kinds of thoughts legitimate and cripples free thinking. The two authors insist that censorship “narrows the domain of thoughts and information to which children have access and thus their capacity to reason about reality” (Hintz and Tribunella 212).

Legal Perspectives on Censorship

Legal cases have illustrated the complexities surrounding censorship in public schools. In Board of Education v. Pico v. School Dist., 1982, the Supreme Court held that it would be unlawful for the school board to remove books from the school library because it found ideas expressed in those books unconstitutional. This important case also stressed the rights of students to have equal opportunity to receive materials of their choice.

Similarly, in Counts v. Cedarville School District (2005), the court held the view that banning a book also degrades the students’ First Amendment rights. Such cases demonstrate that students’ right to access information is protected by law and correspondingly substantiate the role of libraries in the maintenance of student rights.

Counterarguments and Flawed Justifications

Supporters of censorship mainly argue that this practice targets students and protects their community standards; however, these reasons disregard the value of critical analysis of intricate issues. They argue that if literature can be restricted based on concerns about the effects of a specific type of material, then criteria are likely to be broadened to limit access to reading material. Nonetheless, DeMitchell and Carney argue that such strategies are detrimental, as they deny students effective engagement with potentially sensitive themes in a secure environment (163).

For example, Save Me a Seat by Weeks and Varadarajan touches on bullying and cultural diversity, and when students are introduced to these concepts, they exercise the freedom to share (Weeks and Varadarajan 88). Therefore, schools deprive students of critical lessons of empathy and resilience when they prohibit reading such literature.

Contemporary Issues in Censorship

The relevance of these issues persists in contemporary debates about censorship in schools. Recent challenges concern books like Angie Thomas’s The Hate U Give and Maia Kobabe’s Gender Queer. Loyal opponents of these works are likely to raise pertinent issues commonly in areas of controversy, such as obscenity of content or themes touching on race and sexual matters.

However, these arguments can be looked at as not logical since they do not take into account the fact that students have to learn from materials they do not understand easily. Besides, learning different storylines helps students learn how to interact in society, feel ready to face the real world, and become socially responsible.

Intellectual Freedom and Critical Thinking

When analyzing the concept of censorship, one must understand the effects that censorship has on students’ freedom of thought and reasoning. Banning subject matter not only prevents its introduction to as many ideas as possible but also causes students’ essential skills of critical thinking to deteriorate. Students living in protected bubbles fail to appreciate values that are essential to creating informed voters or citizens.

As DeMitchell and Carney note, literature is a mirror that enables students to face and solve civilization’s challenges (DeMitchell and Carney 164). For example, when reading Save Me the Seat by Weeks and Varadarajan, students can learn about cultural differences and the effects of bullying, which helps them understand their community.

Further, censorship creates a system where writing and publishing authors with differing views are prohibited, which ultimately shuns free speech and learning as students may not feel free to voice their opinions and questions about matters of concern. This environment is anti-discursive and anti-educational, the two primary bases of a full and fulfilled education. Discourse and discussion enable the students to learn the necessary skills for discussion and making the right decisions in case of a problem.

In conclusion, censorship in public school libraries poses several hurdles to student rights, intellectual freedom, and tolerant critical thinking. This is according to DeMitchell and Carney, who, in the article “Harry Potter and the Public School Library,” note that censorship restricts young readers from the positive aspects of free and thought-provoking thinking and negatively transforms education into a mere comfort rather than risk-driven engagement.

In addition, legal discourses that apply censorship and literary freedom in the prevailing as well as prior cases show that the fight against censorship emancipates students and fosters learning with open doors. In this regard, teachers and librarians for public schools should begin speaking out in support of the representation of various literature in the actual libraries in school so that every learner can have a chance to transform their lives through reading.

Works Cited

Demitchell, Todd A., and John J. Carney. “Harry Potter and the Public School Library.” Phi Delta Kappan, vol. 87, no. 2, Oct. 2005, pp. 159–165. https://doi.org/10.1177/003172170508700212.

Hintz, Carrie, and Eric L. Tribunella. Reading Children’s Literature: A Critical Introduction. 2nd ed., Broadview Press, 2019.

Weeks, Sarah, and Gita Varadarajan. Save Me a Seat. Scholastic Press, 2016.

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The article (linked above), “Harry Potter and the Public School Library,” by Todd A. DeMitchell and John J.Carney, explores two common reasons for censoring books: characters’ defiance of authority and the inclusion of controversial themes, such as occultism.

For this 3–4 page essay (not including the Works Cited list) you will explore the negative effects of censorship in public school libraries, focusing on the arguments presented in “Harry Potter and the Public School Library” by Todd A. DeMitchell and John J. Carney. You will also use examples from the books you read this semester to analyze how censorship impacts public school libraries and students. Your essay will analyze the problems caused by censorship, not your personal opinions on the issue.

To begin your essay, define censorship and explain why it is an issue in schools. Provide background information on the points of argument you plan to use as the reasons to believe your main claim. Conclude your introduction with a thesis statement that clearly presents the argument about the negative effects of censorship in public school libraries. Your thesis should be based on evidence from the article and the course textbook, which will serve as central sources for your analysis.

Here is a thesis frame you can use: In “Harry Potter and the Public School Library,” DeMitchell and Carney
argue that censorship…………. by…………., which creates problems such as…………. and……….. for public school libraries and students.

In the first blank name what censorship limits or restricts.

In the second blank explain how the censorship is carried out or explained.

In the third and fourth blanks identify two of the problems discussed in the article and/or in the textbook.

In the body of your essay, analyze the key issues related to censorship. Start by explaining the main points from the article, focusing on how censorship impacts students’ rights and access to books. Then, draw on the course textbook to explore why censorship occurs and its effects on learning and intellectual freedom. Support your argument with examples from legal cases, such as Board of Education v. Pico and Counts v. Cedarville School

District, to show how courts have handled these debates.

Next, respond to opposing views by addressing common arguments in favor of censorship, such as concerns about content or values. Use evidence from the article and textbook to explain why these reasons might be flawed or problematic.

In addition, connect your analysis to current issues. Explain why censorship remains a concern today, referencing modern debates about banned books or curriculum restrictions. Use the course textbook to show how these present–day issues are similar to or different from historical examples of censorship.

Your essay must include quotes or ideas from both the article and the course textbook. While you may include additional credible sources, these two are required. Properly cite all sources in MLA format, including a Works Cited page.

To better support your argument, include one or two books you read this semester that could face similar censorship issues, and include how these books deal with controversial themes. Use your examples to show how censorship limits students’ opportunities to engage with diverse ideas or important social issues.

Explain the problems with censorship by focusing on limits to intellectual freedom and critical thinking or undermining students‘ educational experiences. Connect these problems to the examples from the article and the books you read. Avoid discussing personal opinions; instead, focus on the evidence from the article and the textbook.

Make sure your writing reflects your own original analysis. Avoid relying too much on summaries, and ensure that your analysis and argumentation are unique. Plagiarism or the use of Al tools to complete your essay will result in a zero.
• Length: 3–4 pages (not including the Works Cited list), double-spaced, in MLA format.
• Sources: You must use “Harry Potter and the Public School Library” and the course textbook.

Final Literary Analysis: Responding to Censorship in Public School Libraries