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.