Burn the books!

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Although I really try to avoid this type of discussion these days, I thought it might be interesting to share this find with you:

http://library.dixie.edu/new/bannedlist.html

What is interesting about this list is that several of these books were in my school canon, from elementary school to graduation. To break it down, in class I read the following books on this index:

Dracula
Faust
Les Miserables
Of Mice And Men
Superfudge (As a matter of fact, I didn't even remember this one until I read the title)
The Complete Grimm's Fairy Tales

Furthermore, the following books received intense discussion in my classes:

The Confessions of Jean-Jacque Rousseau
Frankenstein
The Bible
The Inferno
James And The Giant Peach
The Qur'an
The Odyssey
The Origin of the Species (Wasn't it "On The Origin Of Species"?)
The Prince
The State and Revolution
Ulysses

Outside school, I was in one way or the other confronted with the following (either by reading them or by familiarising myself with them in some other way):

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
The Adventures of Oliver Twist Charles Dickens
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
Canterbury Tales
Fahrenheit 451
Gone with the Wind
Hamlet
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (Wasn't it "The Philosopher's Stone"?)
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
I, Claudius
Just So Stories
King Lear
Lord of the Flies
The Merchant of Venice
Moby Dick
The Naked Ape
Robinson Crusoe
The Rolling Stone Illustrated History of Rock & Roll
Song of Solomon (HELLO? This is a book of the Bible? -oh wait, that's banned too...)
The Stand
Tarzan of the Apes
The Tragedy of King Richard II
Twelfth Night
Uncle Tom's Cabin

Needless to mention: My class performed "Lysistrata" on stage.


Upon reading this, all I can say is: W-T-F?
 
Are they all banned in Utah, or that is only the source of information, because most of the books have no place from where were they banned from written under them?

If all of this is true, :blink: a conspiracy intented to progressively limit and severely deprive humanity of knowledge springs to mind. :(

They've banned Lord of the flies. Considering that Maiden recorded the song while H was absent, maybe the holy priest-warrior order led by high priest of H will be merciful after all.

Nice of you bringing this to our attention, Per.
 
They d
Urizen said:
Are they all banned in Utah, or that is only the source of information, because most of the books have no place from where were they banned from written under them?
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Look again, some say it was in kentucky, others in "most U.S states" etc.... others were in Europe.
 
Wow. My mother made me read many of the books on that list when I was little. (Coincidence? I think not. I don't know for sure, but it's something she'd do. I'll hav eto ask her next time we talk.)
Regardless, when I have kids I'm going to read those books to them as soon as they're old enough to know what I'm saying. You can never start too young!
Keep in mind, everyone, that these were banned in schools, not for sale to the public (so far... :S )

On the same note, here's a list of the most "dangerous" books written since 1800, according to a panel of 15 Neo-Conservative 'scholars' and policy leaders:
1. The Communist Manifesto
Authors: Karl Marx and Freidrich Engels

2. Mein Kampf
Author: Adolf Hitler

3. Quotations from Chairman Mao
Author: Mao Zedong

4. The Kinsey Report
Author: Alfred Kinsey

5. Democracy and Education
Author: John Dewey

6. Das Kapital
Author: Karl Marx

7. The Feminine Mystique
Author: Betty Friedan

8. The Course of Positive Philosophy
Author: Auguste Comte

9. Beyond Good and Evil
Author: Freidrich Nietzsche

10. General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money
Author: John Maynard Keynes

A few which almost made the top 10:
The Population Bomb
by Paul Ehrlich

On Liberty
by John Stuart Mill

The Origin of Species
by Charles Darwin

Madness and Civilization
by Michel Foucault

Unsafe at Any Speed
by Ralph Nader

Prison Notebooks
by Antonio Gramsci

Silent Spring
by Rachel Carson

Introduction to Psychoanalysis
by Sigmund Freud

I've read most of the books on these lists, thank god. I strongly encourage any free-thinking people to do the same. Remember, if people are trying to ban something it usually means one of three things, each progressively more frightening:
1. They haven't read it but assume it's evil (It just shows people's ignorance and laziness)
2. They have read it and not understood it (If shows people's stupidity)
3. They've read and understood it, disagree with it, but somehow choose censorship over writing a rebuttal of the book in question (There's nothing more dangerous then a self-rightous person with a little bit of brains)

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By the way, did anyone notice that Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury is on that list?
Somewhat ironic, no?
 
If you read the rest of the site, you'll see that this is not a list of books banned by this particular university. Rather, it appears to be a list of books that have been banned somewhere in the US at some time.

I mean, think about it: why would the page Perun linked to list the library's call numbers for the books if reading them was banned there?

A quick count shows I've read about 2 dozen of these books in their entirety, and parts of about a dozen more.
 
Well, being a 'books-lover' as I am, I am really afraid of Fahrenheit 451 turning to be a reality someday. It is better to try to understand the book rather than burning it. Yes, probably, there are books which could initiate some evil actions, but who is evil then? The book or the person? I've read and seen lots of bloody books and movies (oh and do not forget those ugly computer games), but I don't feel like 'hey, come get some, I'll put a bullet through your head!'. But I believe these words are not needed on this forum as I think only open-minded people come here :-)
 
I can't help but laugh at this stupidity. I know it's terrible but that people are THAT stupid is hard to believe. Many of the books on the list Iron Duke provided, both the top 10 and the ones outside, were on the syllabus (is that the word for reading list?) when I studied Sociology and I wouldn't call any of them dangerous. They may be boring, ramblings of warped minds or, as Foucault and Marx, a stilistically good read but dangerous?
It's hard to believe that in a country like USA where the freedom of speech and all the civil liberties are touted at ever conceivable opportunity, these severe acts of censorship are allowed to take place.
I honestly don't know if I should laugh or cry :blink:
 
Belenor said:
Yes, probably, there are books which could initiate some evil actions, but who is evil then? The book or the person?
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In answer to that question: "There is no such thing as a moral or an immoral book. Books are well written, or badly written. That is all" -Oscar Wilde. 
 
I believe Heinrich Haine said that, where books are being burned, soon people will be burned also.

These books weren't burned though, I guess, but still.  :(

Burned-banned... hmm... these words are a little bit similar.
 
The following are books in the list which I have read:

Twelfth Night
Of Mice and Men
The Odyssey
The Merchant of Venice
James and the Giant Peach
The Divine Comedy: Inferno
All four Harry Potter books (or however many are banned)
Dracula

I would like to say, at this point in time, that I can see no logical reason why any of these books would be banned (least of all Inferno; it depicts Hell, yes, but from the point of view of a Christian on a spiritual journey...do these people even bother to read the introductions?).  My deeply thought out and pondered conclusion is this:

The world has gone insane.  If it wasn't already.
 
Raven said:
I would like to say, at this point in time, that I can see no logical reason why any of these books would be banned
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Logi has very little to do with it, my friend.

do these people even bother to read the introductions?
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Again, that falls under "logic" which we can both agree doesn't enter into their minds. I actually heard an interview from when some town decided to ban Harry Potter in schools. A whiney fundie Christian was recorded as saying "No, I haven't read the books or any reviews. But I know they're bad, they have magic in them."

My deeply thought out and pondered conclusion is this:

The world has gone insane.  If it wasn't already.
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Yep.
 
Out of all the books, the one that reallt sticks out to me is Lord of the Flies because of the reason why it was banned:
demoralizing inasmuch that it implies that man is little more than an animal.
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Well, aren't we?  :(
 
Well, at least the Bible was banned too. This is not some macho teen metal comment, but I think the Bible is potentialy more dangerous than most of the other books due to its potential for extremist interpretation. I guess this goes for all religious writings.

Well, generally, I'm opposed to censorship and banning of books and stuff. I think the kids should learn to relate critically to what they read, and with the proper care and upbringing, I think, they will be able to make their own rational decisions. I guess it depends just as much on the mind of the individual as it does on the content of the book.
 
But you are aware of the fact that the Bible is the very fundament of the moral and ethical values of the Christian world?
 
But you are aware of the fact that the Bible is the very fundament of the moral and ethical values of the Christian world?
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Yes, that hasn't gone by unnoticed. But what's your point?
 
Sadly, the Bible has very little to do with the Christians who would ban books.

If they truely read the Bible for what it is - a series of lessons taught by analogy - then we'd not be having half the problems we have int he world. Most importantly, if they did that, they probably would know that banning books makes Baby Jesus Cry.
 
Prodigal Son said:
Yes, that hasn't gone by unnoticed. But what's your point?
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My point is that this book is perhaps the most important one in the entire western world, and thus it should be read (with a critical mind) instead of being banned.
 
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