The Necessity Of Censorship In Schools

We all read on a daily basis. To be able to interpret text is a necessity in today’s society. Without this ability, we cannot communicate to one another without speaking, which is a troublesome complication when one is miles away from the receiver of the message. Schools are the first to teach us how to read and understand the alphabet, and later, great works of literature. Literature is often used in schools to educate students in how our native language functions. Shakespeare’s works are a popular choice to add to a high schooler's reading list for the school year as they encourage students to work harder in order to fully comprehend the events taking place than a more entertaining story such as Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. Many of the classics can be found in school libraries, a place chock full of challenging writing ready to be studied. However, some of these classics may no longer have a permanent residence in our classrooms. Schools have been limiting our literature choices …show more content…
According to Webster’s Dictionary, censoring is “to examine in order to suppress or delete anything considered objectionable.” Many great works of literature have been subjected to the consideration of being censored, some of which include John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men and Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. Though intended to keep reading choices age-appropriate, censorship can detract from a child’s knowledge of the world. The classics often hold life lessons essential for a child to learn, but the child may never learn of the message until they travel to a public library outside of school regulations. Teachers are also affected by censorship, as they can no longer utilize a censored book in their class plans to progress their student’s education. With the loss of favorable books banned from their objectionable views, teachers must revise their lesson plans by using less advantageous works of