Essay, Research Paper: Censorship

Why There Should be Censorship
Censorship is the examination of material for objectionable
matter. It is used to keep material from influencing people the wrong
way. A book has always been able to affect people, either positively
or negatively. And censorship of books makes sure that way is
positive. That is why the censorship of books should exist in public
schools.
One reason that censorship should exist is that it would make
sure books don't distort reality. It isn't uncommon to hear that a child
killed himself imitating his favorite cartoon character. Although this
usually happens because of television shows or movies. It could also
happen because of a book. Another example of books distorting
reality is drugs. Sometimes books can show people partying and
having a good time while getting high on drugs. But usually books
don't show the troubles people face with an addiction. The same is
with alcohol. It is rare to see a book that shows the depression
alcoholics go through while trying to quit. With these ideas in their
heads, children and teenagers could think that they are invincible,
when in reality they are only human
A second reason that certain books should be censored is that
people may find a book offensive. Most current books have a lot of
cursing, and some people may not like that. Students probably
wouldn't mind the language, but there parents would go crazy if they
saw some of the language in current books. One example of a book
that has a lot of bad language is Howard Stern's "Private Parts" There
are many examples of bad language in it, but none that can be said in
an essay to be handed in. Another way that people would be
offended would be racially. Without censorship, students could read
books that others would find offensive, like one written by a slave
owner talking about how white's are better than blacks. Finally some
religious groups may not like the content of some books. Jewish
people would become very angry if someone was reading a book that
praised Hitler. Without the censorship of books, many groups of
people would be offended by the books read in school.
Books are like movies where the cast & scenery is in one's
imagination. And since books are so much like movies, they should
be censored like movies. Children can't go to a theater to see a XXX
movie, because they are not mature enough to handle the scenes. So
children shouldn't read books that have mature content because they
aren't ready for it. As children grow up they can handle more mature
books, just like movies. Not censoring books would be like just letting
a child watch any movie he or she wants, whether they're ready for it
or not.
In summary, censorship is a necessity to keep our children safe.
Without it, children would get the wrong message about things like
drugs and alcohol. Also without censorship, many parents as well as
ethnic groups would be offended by the content of some of the
reading in school. And finally, like a movie, it takes time for a child to
be ready for the mature content of some books. Without censorship, it
would be much harder for children to grow up properly.