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Banned Books
DozentIn: Prof. Dr. Harald Husemann , Erika Grosse Beilage
Veranstaltungstyp: Seminar
Ort: 41/101: Do. 10:00 - 12:00 (8x), 22/104: Do. 10:00 - 12:00 (6x)
Zeiten: Do. 10:00 - 12:00 (wöchentlich), Ort: 41/101, 22/104
Beschreibung: Winter Term 2023/24
Banned Books: Trigger Warnings
Exeter University (GB) issued a trigger warning about Mark Twain´s (1835 – 1910) novel Huckleberry Finn (1884). Reported by Guardian, 25.08.2022, p. 6.
This is one of hundreds of novels which are/were deemed to be too toxic and dangerous the mental health of its readers.
In a school district near Salt Lake City with 72.000 pupils between kindergarten and 12th grade The Holy Bible has been banned because it contains unacceptable scenes and actions. FAZ, 05.06.2023, p. 12.
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The American Library Association condemns censorship and works to defend each person's right to read under the First Amendment and ensure free access to information. Every year, ALA's Office for Intellectual Freedom (OIF) compiles a list of the Top 10 Most Challenged Books in order to inform the public about censorship in libraries and schools. The lists are based on information from reports filed by library professionals and community members and from news stories published throughout the United States.
Because many book challenges are not reported to the ALA or covered by the press, the Top Most Challenged Books lists and 2022 data compiled by ALA represent only a snapshot of book challenges. A challenge to a book may be resolved in favor of retaining the book in the collection, or it can result in a book being restricted or withdrawn from the library.
ALA documented 1,269 demands to censor library books and resources in 2022, the highest number of attempted book bans since ALA began compiling data about censorship in libraries more than 20 years ago. The unparalleled number of reported book challenges in 2022 nearly doubles the 729 book challenges reported in 2021. Of the record 2,571 unique titles targeted for censorship, the most challenged and reasons cited for censoring the books are listed below.
Looking for the most challenged books from previous years? Check out the Top 10 Most Challenged Books Archive for lists and data going back to 2001.
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If you want to be offended, scandalized, and traumatized by reading such censured texts, enrol for this seminar to read and discuss:
Nat Hentoff. The Day They Came to Arrest the Book, (1983),
R. Bradbury. Fahrenheit 451, (1953),
D. H. Lawrence. Lady Chatterley´s Lover, (1928,1960)
V. Nabakov. Lolita. (1955).
We will read these novels and consider why they were criticised/banned at the time they were published.
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NB: 1. You join this seminar voluntarily, knowing that the texts contain words and scenes, which may be/are disturbing. That precludes complaints about what you have to "suffer" in the course of the seminar.
2. Liberty
The motto of the seminar will be as expressed by a BBC documentary film maker: “The precepts of sensitivity have come into conflict with the words of George Orwell inscribed into the walls of New Broadcasting House. ‘If liberty means anything at all, it means the right to tell people what they do not want to hear’. The Times.24.08.2023 p. 17.
