Ms. Keenan's 10th Grade English: Should HUCKLEBERRY FINN be censored?

Thursday, January 6, 2011

Read the following articles and write a 1-2 page response, answering the following question:

Should the novel, Huckleberry Finn be censored?

Here are some points to consider to help get you started:

Censorship in schools
Author's intention
Affect on theme(s)
Affect on students
(And of course, anything else that comes to mind as you construct your response!)

ARTICLES to be read:
From Publishers Weekly: http://tinyurl.com/33voldg

From the New York Times: http://learning.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/01/06/should-the-racial-epithets-be-removed-from-huck-finn/

From the BBC: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-12126700

From the Philladelphia Daily News: http://www.philly.com/philly/entertainment/112976129.html

From USA Today: http://www.usatoday.com/life/books/2011-01-06-twain06_ST_N.htm

VIDEOS from class:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/40934174#40934174

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/40934174#40932675

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/40934174#40917922

AUDIO from class:
http://www.npr.org/2011/01/05/132681463/publisher-edits-twain-classics-to-remove-slurs

http://www.npr.org/2011/01/05/132685293/Sanitized-Edition-Of-Huckleberry-Finn-Causes-Uproar

1 comment:

Tracita Linda (Tracey)January 8, 2011 at 2:06 PM
I didn't read Huckleberry Finn until college and I could see why it might be banned for kids in HS, etc because they may be more immature to the content/ language and the reason why they its used.

I still believe that the book is a classic and the fact that it's controversial makes it that much more exciting. What's a book without controversy? We had many heated discussions surrounding this book, and I think it should stay!