Ban This Book: Burned, Bowdlerized, Censored, and Silenced in America
LIT1-10-Mon3
Lois Ambash
This course will take place virtually on Zoom. Participation in this course requires a device (ideally a computer or tablet, rather than a cell phone) with a camera and microphone in good working order and basic familiarity with using Zoom and accessing email.
March 10 - May 19
(No Class April 14)
A hundred years ago, Boston was the center of American book censorship. The label "Banned in Boston" guaranteed huge sales in cities around the country. Publishers loved it. The phrase long ago morphed into humorous shorthand for censorship anywhere and everywhere, but it's no joke. And it's not a thing of the past.
Take Ban This Book, by Alan Gratz, the story of a fourth grader who discovers that her favorite book has been deemed inappropriate and removed from the school library, based on one parent's complaint. The story ends happily, but, in a stunning feat of irony, a Florida school board recently banned Ban This Book from its classrooms for "teaching rebellion [against] school-board authority."
Irony aside, this incident is not unique. Book bans and challenges are proliferating in libraries, schools, and colleges, aided by activist groups, politicians, churches, and wealthy donors. To understand this phenomenon, we'll look at the history and politics of literary censorship and the gatekeepers who enforce it. To explore the universe of books frequently targeted for banning and the debates surrounding them, we'll each read three examples, chosen from a list to be provided. We'll examine shorter texts, including fairy tales, poems, and picture books. We'll discuss political correctness, free speech on campus, and speech restrictions on teachers and doctors. We'll also view the film Inherit the Wind, based on the Scopes "monkey" trial, and Indecent, Paula Vogel's play about the play The God of Vengeance, shut down by censors on opening night.
Roughly the same amount of lecture and discussion.
Three novels or memoirs, chosen by each student from a list provided with the welcome letter. Total cost $30-$35; all readily available in public libraries
Optional: One additional Young Adult or children's book, chosen from a list provided with the welcome letter; all readily available in public libraries
Inherit the Wind: Film available free on Hoopla with Minuteman, Boston Public Library, and most other public library cards
Indecent: Video available free with trial of BroadwayHD, on its site or on its Amazon Prime Video channel
Additional materials provided by email
1 to 4 hours per week
Longer and shorter assignments will be alternated, to give people flexibility in planning their time.
Lois Ambash has been a reference librarian, a dean, a professor, and an educational consultant. She holds a bachelor’s degree in English, master’s degrees in public policy and library science, and an interdisciplinary PhD in American culture. Her most fulfilling professional endeavors have involved working with adult learners, whether college students, new speakers of English, or colleagues here at BOLLI.