What should children be reading?

February 23, 2007 at 4:28 pm (Eng 311)

An article in the New York Times discussed a children’s book that is being banned from elementary school libraries nation wide.  The book is titled The Higher Power of Lucky and has recently won a Newberry award.

So if it is prestigious enough to win awards then why is it being banned?  The book is about an orphan named Lucky as she discovers the world.  At one point she is listening through a hole in a wall as someone tells their friend that a snake bit their dog on the scrotum.  And there it is—the reason the book is banned: it contains the word “scrotum.” It honestly feels a bit odd just typing the word into my blog.  It is not used often and the sexual connotations that go along with the word make it feel—oh, I don’t know—wrong I guess. But why does it feel wrong to write it?  It is just another part of the body—right?

So, I was torn on this issue. The author, Susan Patron, claims this book is for 9-12 year old kids.  Now, by age twelve I knew what a scrotum was but at nine I think that I would have had to ask about it.  Putting myself in the position of the teacher it is a rather awkward thing to try to explain it to a nine year old girl.  Maybe some children can handle it, but I do not think that all nine year olds are ready to have talks about things that are sexual in nature. Dana Nilsson, a teacher and librarian, claims

“This book included what I call a Howard Stern-type shock treatment just to see how far they could push the envelope, but they didn’t have the children in mind.”

I understand that the word may be shocking for students to hear and read, but does that justify banning the book? I think that banning a novel because of one word takes the book out of context.  The article in the New York Times did not explain anything else about the book so I do not know what themes or ideas it teaches children but I get the feeling that the book as a whole is not provocative.  To me, it seems a bit silly to ban a book based on the word “scrotum.” Pat Scales comment that

“The people who are reacting to that word are not reading the book as a whole,” she said. “That’s what censors do — they pick out words and don’t look at the total merit of the book.”

made me think about this issue.  I wish that the article would have talked about the entire book so that I would get a better idea about what The Higher Power of Lucky is presenting to children.I also think that the book may present an opportunity to explain things about the human body to children who are curious.  They are exposed daily to commercials showing women’s breasts, so why shouldn’t they know about the scrotum?  Students can handle a lot more than we give them credit for.

I found a blog written by Benjamin Barber that disagreed with the censorship of the book.  He agrees with my point that students are being educated about sexual things through television and video games.  So, why can’t we let them be educated about the human body in literature within a safe environment?  His blog is humorous in a very sarcastic way, so be careful when you read it because he is really straightforward about his views.  So much so that I do not want to post what he writes, but I encourage all of you to check out his blog! 

How far should we as teachers, librarians, and parents in the censoring of the material that children are exposed to?  I feel that if we allow our children to watch t.v. and play video games they should be allowed to read a book with the word “scrotum.”  Although, it still feels weird to type it.

Julie Bosman. “With One Word, Children’s Book Sets Off Uproar.”The New York Times. February 18, 2007.

Benjamin Barber. “Keeping America Scrotum-Free.” February 19, 2007.