Banning Books Argument Essay

   There is no such thing as a perfect world, so why should we hide these imperfections from kids? Perfect by Ellen Hopkins portrays some of the imperfections in life such as drug addiction, which is why adults such as parents have challenged both the book and the author many times. Although it is understandable that some parents may disapprove of their child reading this book because of the controversial issues portrayed in the book, that does not justify banning the book entirely. This book should not be banned from school libraries because it shows that the world has many issues people should be aware of such as suicide, drug addiction and anorexia.
   
    Ellen Hopkins and her work have been challenged and banned multiple times. Ellen Hopkins herself has even been banned from a school festival at Creekwood Middle School because of content in her works such as “...crystal-meth addiction, teen prostitution, suicide and incest.” (Bildner 1). These topics are viewed to be unsuitable to teens and many think teens should be shielded from these issues. Even Hopkins’ critics “...apparently saw little value in young people reading about such edgy and unpleasant topics.” The issues Hopkins writes about is controversial because the topics are not only disturbing by itself, but Hopkins portrays them vividly and bluntly. She portrays these issues such as self-harm and drug addiction without holding back, which is a turnoff to many. For example, in Perfect there is a character, Sean, who gets so addicted to drugs and gets so jealous of his ex-girlfriend that he went insane. The disturbing aspect of this part of the book was his thoughts because he starts talking to “The Guy Behind My Eyes”. “‘No way. Don’t be ridiculous.’ [Guy Behind My Eyes]: You never know. Deputy Rossiter: Who in the hell are you talking to back there? ‘No one. Sorry. Just processing.’ GBME: Maybe Aunt Mo is a lezbo too. Maybe she’d like them. ‘Aunt Mo is so not a lezbo.’ GBME: You never know. Deputy Rossiter: Did you know crazy people talk to themselves? ‘I am not crazy.’ GBME: You never know” (Hopkins 514). The disturbing content in this book means that this book is not meant for everyone. However, this in no way justifies banning the book for everyone.
   
    Banning this book and any book is wrong because everyone has different limits and these books can also make us more aware of certain topics. Everyone’s limits are different which means that something one person can handle another person cannot. Just because one group of people can’t handle something doesn’t justify banning it all together because there are people out there who are okay with content like this. Everyone should know their limit and nobody is forcing them to read these books. Teens are also more responsible than kids in elementary school and should be allowed some say in what they read. If teens feel that they are able to read about these issues without it doing any harm, then they should be allowed to. These books can also teach us about these issues. The world isn’t perfect and it will most certainly never be. However, we can make the world better by acknowledging these issues and figuring out ways to solve the problem. It is impossible to solve a problem without knowing about it. For example, Perfect contains issues such as anorexia, homophobia, and drug addiction. This book not only raises awareness about these issues but also may motivate teens to figure out solutions and help people they know who are dealing with issues like these. By banning books like this, we are “...diminishing a young person’s ability to go off into the world and interface with people from all walks of life” (qtd. in Bruni 2). By letting books containing this type of material to stay in school libraries, we are raising awareness of these issues and teaching teens that these issues really exist. Reading this book helps to inform teens of such issues and be openminded to certain topics such as GLBTQ.
   
    Although these books seem like one gruesome description after another, these books can actually teach readers life lessons. In Perfect, all of the characters narrating the book long to be accepted by parents, friends, or the people around them. Despite all the hardships that these characters go through, the characters had gone through a transformation throughout the book, just like any other book. Each character either learned how to accept themselves and found someone who accepted them, or learned how to deal with the pressure and the hate. These books are not just about drug abuse, alcohol abuse, self-harm, or suicide. These books are about how these characters learned to cope with the conflicts they faced just like any other book that is considered “appropriate” for teens. This book teaches that not everyone is going to like you, and sometimes you can’t be accepted by the one you wanted to be accepted by. However, there will always be someone out there who will accept you for who you are, someone who won’t make you change. It also teaches that in order for you to see how loved you are, you have to love yourself first and accept yourself. If you don’t love yourself, then others won’t be able to love you either. You shouldn’t beat yourself down because one person doesn’t like you and you shouldn’t change for them. Kendra, a main character in the book, became anorexic because she believed nobody would like her unless she stayed skinny. And even though she was skinny, she still saw herself as fat because she failed to recognize how much other people cared about her. Instead, she let the mirror dictate how she needed to look. “But that stinking mirror doesn’t lie. Every time I walk by it shouts out, Hey. Chub. When are you going to lose those fifteen pounds of ugly-ass flab? Do you want to stay size four forever?” She believed that she needed to be skinny in order for everyone to like her. “If I can...make myself as thin as I need to be, the rest of my life will turn right again. Maybe, if I can make Daddy proud enough, he’ll come see me cheer or watch me vie for Miss Teen Nevada. Maybe, if I can make Mom really look at me, she’ll have something to think about besides Patrick...And maybe, when Conner gets out, he’ll decide I’m the one he wants, after all.” It was only when she finally learned to live with herself that she was able to see that things weren’t as bad as she had thought they were. In reality, her dad actually was paying attention to all her pageants. She didn’t have to change in order for people to love her. These types of books are not what many people think they are and these books teach valuable life lessons as well.
   
    It is true that the content in books like these is not for everyone. It is understandable that adults will want to protect their child from content like this. However, it is not fair to take away everyone’s right because a parent thinks it is inappropriate for their child. Maybe it is inappropriate for their child, however that does not necessarily mean that the same goes for the twenty other kids who use the same library. It is okay to prohibit your child from reading certain texts, but it is unfair to ban the book entirely for everyone else as well. We must also keep in mind that although “...parents exist to rear children...” it is unrealistic to believe that they will remain children for the rest of their lives (Gurdon 5). They too must one day become adults and may have to deal with these issues. That is why it is important to teach them or at least make sure they are aware of these issues now so that they will be able to better handle an issue if faced with an issue such as anorexia or alcohol abuse. Instead of banning the book, parents can restrict their child and only their child from reading the certain book. Parents can also teach their child to put down a book if they feel it is too graphic or inappropriate for them instead of reading on, because nobody is forcing them to read the book. These alternate solutions will allow parents to still have some say without restricting those who can handle material like this from reading the book.
   
    Although the issues portrayed in this book are far from pleasant, it is important to be aware of these issues. It is impossible to solve these problems if we choose to ignore them. If a student perceives a book to be too graphic, the student should put the book down. One student’s inability to do this does not represent everyone else’s ability. And although parents have very right to restrict their child from reading a book, they have no right to restrict other children from reading a book. By allowing teens to read the book, they will become more aware of issues such as anorexia and drug abuse as well as learn valuable life lessons. Although a perfect world does not exist, it is still possible to make the world a better place. The first step to solving any problem is to acknowledge it is one. By banning these books we are preventing these problems from being solved; banning books do more harm than good.

Works Cited

Bildner/Austin, Phil. “Texas: If You Can’t Ban Books, Ban Authors.” Time. Sept. 2010: 29. Print.

Bruni, Frank. “The Wilds of Education.” New York TImes. 28 Sep. 2014: SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 25 Nov. 2014.

Gurdon, C. Meghan. “Darkness too Visible.” Wall Street Journal. 4 June 2011. Web. 25 Nov. 2014.

Hopkins, Ellen. Perfect. New York: Margaret K. McElderry Books, 2011. Print.