Books Banning Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Books Banning - Research Paper Example Books act as central means of imparting knowledge and communicating diverse thoughts, ideas, and viewpoints. As such, they act as useful instruments for writers and other literarians to express themselves through articulated works crafted skillfully. Because books present a powerful way of communicating new, and sometimes radical, ideas, they are sometimes viewed as a threat. Those who view books as a threat are willing to restrict the transmission of the book’s message through censorship or banning of books. However, the phenomenon is not a new one and apparently the history goes back to the Greek days of the philosopher, Plato, who suggested that certain tales must not be told to children due to their content (Lusted, 13). Banning books has its implications on many of its stakeholders including students, parents, teachers, and the government. In many ways, banning books involves the conflicting interests of its various stakeholders thereby motivating the action. Books are banned due to various reasons. DiMarco mentions how one of his colleagues jokingly said that his book should be banned because it contains explicit content such as â€Å"sex, violence, and adult language†, something which would definitely not be seen as suitable for young students to read (368). While many books are banned due to its objectionable content, it should be noted that such actions inhibit greater learning by restricting the transmission of knowledge. In most cases, book banning limits a student’s comprehension of applicable knowledge as it exposes one to only accepted ways of knowledge dissemination. By doing so, students are only introduced to one side of the picture rather than giving them a thorough exposure to the wider picture thereby limiting their view. Book banning has been practiced since a long time and thus, students have been limited to only specific dimensions of knowledge. It is important to understand that any kind of censorship inh ibits