Banned Books Argumentative Essay by Demitrius Hilerio Class 810

Demitrius Hilerio

Class 810

12/11/14

                               Should Young Adult Texts be Banned?

    Many texts; have controversial topics in them that many people may feel uncomfortable about. Some of these texts are very popular, but still are questioned because what content it contains. Sometimes texts are directed towards the teen audience, but have many mature topics that many parents and educational organizations feel aren’t fit for teens. For example like the text “Am I Blue?” by Bruce Coville. This text is about a boy name Vince that gets bullied because of his sexuality. Then his fairy godfather Melvin comes along to lead Vince through a journey of self confidence and acceptance. Many texts that have topics that are thought to be unsuitable for teens are sometimes banned. Even though the text “Am I Blue” contains controversial topics like homosexuality and strong language, people should still be able to read it because of what they can learn from texts that contain topics like. People should also be able to read these books because their rights as Americans.

    The text “Am I Blue” shouldn’t be banned because of what our country’s First Amendment of the Constitution is about. In the article “Banned Books” by Borgna Brunner the article suggests that “The First Amendment of the Constitution guarantees our right to free speech, which includes the right to read and write books that might be considered by some to be too violent, hateful, or offensive.” (“Banned Books” paragraph 5) The author’s basically explaining how our country’s Constitution is being contradicted by organizations and parents that do not understand this amendment goes for everybody not only adults. The people who are contradicting the country’s amendments do not understand that they are stopping important learning experiences and lessons from occurring in a teen’s mind. They aren’t allowing teens to read certain books that may have a big impact on their maturity. “ ‘According to the ALA President Carol Brey-Casiano, "Not every book is right for every person, but providing a wide range of reading choices is vital for learning, exploration, and imagination. The abilities to read, speak, think, and express ourselves freely are core American values.’ ”(“Banned Books” paragraph 6) This quote means that books that are banned usually have an important message behind them that allows a young reader to benefit from the text and learn and explore beyond what they already know. Which can allow the reader to learn more things about life than they already know like how decisions affect a person’s life.

     In addition the text “Am I Blue?” Shouldn’t be banned because in the text “Am I blue?” contains themes that may be questionable for some people (homosexuality, bullying, strong language, etc.) the parts in the text that contains this content allows the reader to understand how certain decisions can affect a person’s life. Books can help the reader think about the rights and wrongs in life. One example of this is in the article “Should teen books be banned?” by the Guardian a teenager author explains her opinion and suggests  “Teenagers may have developing minds, but books help to shape it. I think that its more important for teenagers to read these kinds of book, it gives them a wider viewpoint on life and what it can really be like.” (“Should teen books be banned?” paragraph 8) This means that texts like “Am I Blue?” can give young readers a different perspective on life. One example of this is the part in “Am I Blue?” when Melvin explains how people treated him because he is gay. For example, “It’s how I met my maker, so to speak. I was walking down the street one day last year, minding my own business, when three bruisers dragged me into an alley, shouting, ‘We’ll teach you, faggot!’ They never did explain exactly what it was they were going to teach me. Last thing I remember from life on earth was coming face to face with a tire iron. Next thing I knew, I was knocking at the Pearly Gates.” (“Am I Blue” page 3) This sentence shows how Melvin’s sexuality affected the way he was treated. This is valuable because this sentence displays somewhat of a realistic situation that allows young readers to understand how some of the topics in texts are real life issues that people actually deal with.

 On one hand, some may say that the text “Am I Blue?” contains clichés, stereotypes, and language that is just inappropriate and offensive and should not be allowed to be in a teenager’s possession. For example “Taking back the language is one way to jam the grinder. My friends and I called each other ‘faggot’ and ‘queer’ for the same reason so many black folks call each other ‘nigger’—to take the words away from the people who wants to use them to hurt us.” (“Am I Blue?” Page 5) some may take this sentence offensive and/or think the language in this one sentence is simply too explicit for some readers. On the other hand, the message behind what Melvin is trying to say is more important than the way he is wording it. In this sentence Melvin is trying to teach Vince a lesson about gaining strength from the bad things people call him. Melvin is also trying to teach Vince a lesson about self-confidence and acceptance within himself, which can be a lesson for the teenager reading it. These lessons can teach readers to feel different about their insecurities and personality just like Vince did by the end of the story. “ ‘And my third wish? I’ve decided to save it for when I really need it—maybe when I meet the girl of my dreams. Or Prince Charming. Whichever.’ ” (“Am I Blue?” Page 10) This part indicates how a person can come back from their confusion and sadness to become strong and confident, which is an important lesson teens can learn.

    The text “Am I Blue?” by Bruce Coville should not be banned because of all of the valuable lessons it offers. This text and texts similar to it shouldn’t be banned of our basic rights as Americans. This text should be able to be shred among the young readers community because of the valuable lessons it offers. Though the reader does include some language that is a bit vulgar it’s because the author used this technique create a stronger piece of writing and using these words and clichés as an advantage to prove the author’s point. Many readers are mature enough to benefit and truly get the message from this text, which is why it does deserve to stay in schools.

Work Cited

Bauer, Marion Dane., and Bruce Coville. Am I Blue?: Coming out from the Silence. New York: HarperCollins, 1994. Print.

Brunner, Borgna. ""Banned Books"" Infoplease. Infoplease, n.d. Web. 17 Dec. 2014.

Carr, Freya. "Should Teen Books Be Banned?" The Guardian. N.p., 27 Sept. 2013. Web. 17 Dec. 2014.