Banned Books Begone!

 All Quiet on the Western Front, Animal Farm, The Da Vinci Code, The Grapes of Wrath, and Uncle Tom's Cabin. 

What do all of these books have in common besides being highly acclaimed? They were all banned. Sure, they all deal with touchy subjects such as race, religion, and politics; but isn't that what makes them great? Should Huckleberry Finn be added to this list?

 Lets take All Quiet on the Western Front, for instance. I was required to read that book in the eighth grade. It was to much of my surprise when I found out that it had been banned. I was stunned: "There must be other books that dehumanize war" I thought. After some research, it didn't surprise me that it was Nazi Germany who banned it.

Next, lets find out why Animal Farm was banned. It deals with the fall of Socialism in communist Russia. Its not to hard to figure out why the USSR banned it. 

The Da Vinci Code. Even in the United States, a land that was based on the ideal of freedom of speech, is this work scrutinized. I can remember turning on CNN a few years ago and watching Christian Priests denounce Dan Brown. However, the actual banning of the book took place in Lebanon, where the Christian leaders deemed it offensive to their religion.

Why was The Grapes of Wrath banned and burned in California? It "made the residents of this region look bad" (same link as above).

As for Uncle Tom's Cabin, lets just say that the future Confederate States of America didn't like the idea of a Pro-Abolition story narrated by a slave.

Now I will ask you one more question: What do all of these explanations for the banning of books have in common? They all challenge the popular belief of their time. Or, at least, the authority's belief. Huckleberry Finn definitely challenges the authority of it's time. The book should be mentioned in the same breath as All Quiet on the Western front or Uncle Tom's Cabin, but it shouldn't be banned. None of these books should have been. I believe in freedom of speech and the ability to challenge popular belief. Should a radio personality be taken off the air because of a negative comment about the Rutgers Basketball team? Should "French Fries" be called "Freedom Fries" because of political disagreements? Of course not! While censorship may be needed for decency (like a certain Super Bowl Half Time scandal) it is not needed for hiding opinions. After all, a wise man named Mark Twain once wrote: "Nature knows no indecencies; man invents them".