Won’t Somebody Please Save the Children

Has the world ended yet? No? Because people were grandstanding in order to further politicize the country and get people on their side because that’s the only thing they really care about?

Yeah, that’s what I thought.

Anyway! Today, because I feel like it, I’d like to talk about censorship. Yes, again. But I’m not going to go on about it for four days this time. I just want to say that I think the children can handle 20 BOY SUMMER and SLAUGHTERHOUSE-FIVE. Oh but they’re keeping SPEAK (to the disappointment of one man…).

First, they’re talking about banning S5 because of the “crude language” (yes, that’s take directly from the article)? I have to ask, have any of these people ever been teenagers? Are they honestly saying they didn’t let loose a blue streak the second the adults were out of the room? Because I did. My friends did. Granted, it wasn’t nonstop cursing, but we never hesitated to use one. Sometimes we through one in there when there was no reason for it. Because we could.

They’re also upset about the violent content. Okay, maybe I get that. But it’s not like it’s there for the hell of it. We’re not assigning kids violent pornography to read; it’s actually part of the story, part of the meaning, part of the point.

Then, they’re critical of 20BS because “included questionable language, drunkenness, lying to parents and a lack of remorse.” No way! Get out! Teenagers never feel that way/do that stuff! And even if they did, we can’t have characters who are actually like them. That would be wrong.

You can bet I’m swearing right now. Come on! Parents: isn’t all that typical teenager behavior thing many teenagers do? Can you really tell a story like 20BS and not have “irresponsible behavior”?  

Books are powerful, there’s no question about that. But they act like these books are demoralizing kids and I would give them more credit than that.

I know I don’t have kids so I can’t speak for what it’s like to teach and influence them, but parents, don’t they take more from their environment? From you?

Sunday Is Fast Becoming “Rant Day”

And maybe that’s not such a bad thing. I know this blog is supposed to be about writing and language, but my opinions tend to jump out. Besides, I’d like to encourage arguing—as in debate, not fighting. I’ve written about how important effective, rational arguments are for a reason. If you’re going to say something, you should make sure there aren’t more holes in your rationale than in a sieve.

School. All of us have opinions on it, either as students, former students, or parents. There isn’t a lot of arguing about what a school should do for a student (i.e. teach them how to function as adults), so why do there seem to be so many problems with school systems? We have struggles with unions, debates over class sizes, and knock-down drag-out fights about budget. Why?

In a nutshell, it’s because reality encroaches on the idealistic version of school in our minds. We’d like small class sizes, fairly compensated and extremely competent teachers, and enough money for both of these. But the fact of the matter is that schools get a lot funding based on property taxes (at least where I live) and the wealthier communities will have more money to attract more/better educators, not to mention fund a variety of classes.

Property taxes aren’t their only source of funds, but they are enough to make a huge difference. And that is only one part of the harsh reality of education! There’s the turning away from creative classes, the focus on passing state tests, the ill-preparedness most graduates face when they apply for their first credit card.

Any others? Sadly, I don’t think it’s too difficult to come up with them.

I know this was a long post, so I hope you just scrolled to the bottom to get this important message. Contest. Go now.

Ding Dong, the Witch is Dead!

Which old witch? Cursive.

I believe I've already lamented over my hatred for the foul style of writing that is supposed to look good but come on, really doesn't. Cursive made my handwriting worse. That's a fact. Instead of the shaky, but readable print I had in third grade (a sample can be found here), it is now a mix of cursive and print that makes a doctor's notes look like the printed word.

And I was yelled at for my handwriting so...much. Time and again I was told that if it couldn't be read, it didn't count. But somehow cursive is supposed to be neat?

No. Just no. From third to fifth grade, I was taught cursive and I still can't write it or read it (at least, not universally; most of the time, I can make it out). However, it has infected my handwriting, morphing n, m, o, q, and z into cursive-like beings, and making sure all my letters are connected in some way so you can't tell if that word is "sinister" or "similar."

I envy people with nice, neat cursive loops. It is pretty, I'll give it that. But I can't replicate it and it has never helped me understand handwriting or communication like that article claims. It says that kids need to be "fluent and automatic" in their writing, as most classwork is by hand. Yeah, that's true. But why must it be in cursive? I don't understand how that particular writing style is easier than print. I was a shaky writer in elementary school, but cursive didn't help me become fluid. Constantly writing--in my own style--did. So no, I'm afraid I don't think it should be taught anymore. Let kids develop their own style. It might just be easier to read.

Teachers? Parents? Your thoughts?

Speak now, or...

If you aren't all ready aware, a man in Missouri called Laurie Halse Anderson "soft pornography." And because of that, he feels it should be banned. This is a man who is disdainful of fourth grade sex education curriculum, which mentions reproduction. And don't get him started on eighth grade, which has the audacity to mention homosexuality and condoms. Laurie's book Speak is being taught in English class--the movie has even been shown!--and he is disgusted by what it shows: sex, including two scenes of rape (he doesn't come right out and say it's the victim's fault, but his contempt for a girl who believes sex his a part of the high school experience is apparent; basically, his words indicate that she brought it on herself for being a slut). Some of the specifics he claims to have read in Speak I certainly don't remember.

He's demanding this book and others be removed from curriculum, for things like daring to show sex, the use of condoms, and speaking negatively of god. If I had to guess, I would think this man wasn't a very good literature student, or else he would understand that harsh (gritty, if you will), sexualized or blasphemous scenes taken within the context of the novel are used to make a point. If you focus on that one particular part, yeah, you might think it bad because you can only use yourself and your beliefs as a frame of reference. But if you look at the novel as a whole...

Honestly, I don't like the idea of pulling books out of curriculum or off library shelves. It's one thing to keep a place age appropriate. It's quite another to remove it because it has scenes you don't like. People refused to let their children read Huckleberry Finn because of the gratuitous use of a certain word, ignoring the fact that 1: Mark Twain believed in racial equality; 2: a lot of people talked like that during the nineteenth century (they didn't have much consideration for those of African descent...and apparently, Twain couldn't have been making a point about that), and 3: the character of Jim is ill-treated to say the absolute least, yet he is the kindest, most caring adult in Huck Finn's life. He puts himself in danger of capture to keep him safe. So why are people looking at one word, no matter how many times it's repeated?

I think Speak should be taught to high school students. It's about finding courage and strength when it has been taken away from you. It's about how staying silent about something horrible happened is just as bad as the horror. I believe these lessons are important ones to learn. Anyone who reads Speak, or Huckleberry Finn, or Slaughterhouse-Five, might be drawn to what makes them controversial, but that won't be the only think they take away from them. In between what makes their parents uncomfortable (because they have not yet learned why they themselves should be uncomfortable), maybe they'll learn about courage or kindness or making their own fate.

And damn anyone for trying to take that away under the guise of "protection."