"The Great Gatsby." "The Catcher in the Rye." "Where the Wild Things Are." "To Kill a Mockingbird." These books have been institutionalized as American classics.
These titles top required reading lists and are regularly referenced in modern literature. But if the bans on these books had stuck, many of us never would have read them.
This week is National Banned Books Week, and this is a time when we are reminded of the threat of censorship and the potential loss of the First Amendment right to freedom of speech and ideas.
Bookstores and libraries celebrate the freedom to read by displaying the books that could have been lost to bans. This week's reminder causes us to question why these books were banned and what the implications of these bans may be for us as students.
How can we learn if we are unexposed to the diversity of ideas and opinions that exist?
Provocative content and the acknowledgement of historically marginalized groups and ideologies sparks public pushback. Homosexuality, explicit language, violence, mental illness, race and religion are controversial and often divisive topics in contested books. However, hiding these ideas does not make them go away.
Reading spurs knowledge and awareness. One would be hard-pressed to disagree that education is the foundation of a healthy, functioning democracy. By silencing the freedom of expression and opinion we are only doing a disservice to ourselves as a nation.
In other words, if new ideas are never considered, progress cannot be made. We acknowledge this potential for progress is likely the reason for much of the pushback and the urge for bans.
But, perhaps, the lack of acknowlegment and awareness is more dangerous than the existence of these provocative ideas themselves. These texts do not exist to promote or glamorize these ideas, but rather to shed light on them.
For example, just because a DePauw student takes a Buddhism class does not necessarily mean that the student will become a Buddhist. Learning can essentially be defined by the exposure to and discussion of an unfamiliar idea. Especially in an academic environment, like that of DePauw, such challenging discussion should not be ignored but rather explored.
The banned books do not demand that we change, they demand that we listen.