Top-Rated Free Essay
Preview

Should the Harry Potter series be censored?

Good Essays
771 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Should the Harry Potter series be censored?
Should the Harry Potter series be censored? Should the Harry Potter series be banned from schools and libraries? I don’t think there is anybody in modern countries who hasn’t at least heard of Harry Potter and his adventures at Hogwarts School for witches and wizardry. The Harry Potter series is a widely popular children’s book. The series has sold about 450 million copies worldwide and has been translated to 67 languages, and the most recent four books have set record as the fastest-selling books in history. “If you had mentioned Harry Potter 13 years ago, people would have thought it was someone’s accountant” says Steve Kloves (Harry Potter’s screenwriter). “Now you can go to Zimbabwe and everyone knows who that is. It’s almost like Jo Rowling invented a color.” Even though this series has millions of fans around the world, there some people who think that these books do not fit children. Ever since becoming popular, the series has become a center of controversy. The challenges on this series are made by parents who think these books promote magic, witchcraft and satanism. As for me, I share the view that the Harry Potter books should not be banned from schools or libraries. Now that technology is advancing in a rapid way, people are instantly getting into the electronic entertainment world. To begin with, children nowadays often ask for electronics for their present than books. Children are more interested in what video games to play rather than what books to read. Harry Potter books sharply contrast by drawing children away from the internet, video games and television. Children are becoming interested in reading novels. These novels interest children in reading other than the Harry Potter series. Harry Potter is such an action-packed story that it disposed children to willingly tackle words, sentences and paragraphs that are above their readability level. When a child reads, he/she gets practice at interpreting, learns to read with less effort and develops a vocabulary of words and reading habit. If children are interested in these books, taking them away from them might affect their love of reading books. Harry Potter is a good role model for children in certain ways. I think the biggest thing a person can learn from Harry Potter is the importance of friendship. This series teaches children how important it is to have good friends that support you in anything you do. The series shows how valuable friendship is- not just the sunny side but the rocky roads filled with fights and arguments that will inevitably come when you grow up alongside people. Harry Potter educates children that being loyal to your friends is very important even when turning your back on one another would be the easy choice. Despite all the hard breaks he has in his life, Harry still manages to persist over his enemies. Learning to face fears, standing up for what you believe in and understanding that people with different backgrounds can work together and become friends. These all teach children a good lesson which they can practice throughout their life. Some say that Harry Potter should be banned from school classrooms and libraries because they have this belief that Harry Potter teaches witchcraft, sorcery and satanism. As Blume stated “Evil can be found lurking everywhere these days.” Banning these books from schools won’t solve anything. What many of this people have seemed to have forgotten is there is no bound for a child’s imagination. The reason why children love these books and characters is because many already have belief in magical things. It has nothing to do with evil or satanism, simply the innocence of a child’s imagination. In fact, taking these books away from children and prohibiting a love of reading is causing more harm than anything they find in the pages. To conclude, I believe the idea of censoring these books is wrong. Instead, I think that it’s better for parents and teachers to take advantages of the good fortunes offered by this series to increase children’s interest in reading and writing. However, if one’s parents don’t want their kid to read these books, they can ask the school libraries not to give away the books unless the child has his/her parent’s permission. According to the first amendment, there is a freedom of press. A book cannot be banned just because a few people don’t agree t pot. Finally, I think Harry Potter is a wonderful story and if children like it it’s not fair to take it away from them.

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    The article, 4 Ways to Raise Kids Who Love to Read by Derek James, is intended to persuade parents into understanding the importance of inspiring their child’s love to read at an early age and also provides strategies for encourage children to read. The first is to have them “be an investigator” by looking up questions they have using books rather than google. The second strategy is to “create a reading nook”. This gives the kids a safe and comfortable environment in which to read. The third piece of advice is to “act it out” by participating with your kids in acting out the characters and the plot of the story.…

    • 244 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    The community should not be able to ban books. They could be educational to students, and they would be missing out on that education. For example, Of Mice and Men helped our class learn a lot of the literary elements, and good ways to right books.…

    • 348 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    For me personally, books should not be banned because it is basically censoring someone else's art. Writers or authors have the right to publish whatever they want. They are just books. People should not get all worked up over a piece of literature. Especially schools. Schools across the country in different time periods banned the novel for the reasons being that it is too vulgar, sexual, and violent for kids to read. (“Banned Book: The Catcher in the Rye”)…

    • 599 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Ask anyone on the street if he or she has heard of Harry Potter and you will almost certainly get an affirmative answer. In some cases, you may even get a passionate, in-depth reply, followed by a myriad of questions concerning your own opinions. While this type of popularity and fascination in literature seems encouraging, some believe that the mania behind certain novels and series hides a less than stellar trend. Ron Charles, senior editor of Book World, argues that the United States is experiencing a steep decline in the integrity of reading in his article “Harry Potter and the Death of Reading”, published in the Washington Post in July 2007.…

    • 940 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    I believe that every person should have the option to read whatever they want. Many schools claim they ban books because they do not want students to act out or feel uncomfortable. Schools are afraid that their students are going to achieve the violent crimes that are mentioned in the books. In the article "Banned Books" the article states," The First Amendment of the Constitution guarantees our right to free speech...includes the right…

    • 391 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Many of these classic stories have been banned because of sexual references, racial slurs, religious intolerance, or supposed witchcraft promotion. Although some may consider these books controversial or inappropriate, many English classes have required their students to read these books (About banned). It should be believed that even controversial books could ultimately boost, not deter, our educational wealth. Book banning should be opposed for three main reasons: education should be open to everyone, citizens should have access to the press, and, lastly, parents should monitor what their own children read and not what other children can obtain. For these reasons, I conclude that the government should play no role in what books any age group can obtain.…

    • 1208 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    When kids are young, their happiness is often fueled by their imagination, which is why Harry Potter should be a required reading choice for everybody to read while they’re a child. Harry Potter is a beautifully written story with a fantasy world that can really help a child develop an imagination and for kids with a hard home life this book can grant them an escape. For every kid including the ones who struggle and ones who are well off, when reading this book they get to pretend they’re someone else which can be a really good thing for lots of kids. If everyone was given access to this book I think many kids would be happier, because it’s a book that kids will like and hopefully help them create a love for reading. Reading can then become…

    • 183 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    It’s ignorant to even challenge a book because of its content. In the article, Schools and Censorship: Banned Books it states that, “Every day someone tries to control or otherwise restrict oral expressions, broadcast messages, or written words.” Trying to control what others read is foolish! In fact, Everyone should have the right to read what they want. Especially teenagers, which are entering adulthood and should know to make the right decisions. Moreover, in the article it also states that “our basic right — the freedom to express ourselves as we see fit — is guaranteed by the First Amendment to the United States' Constitution, ensuring the freedom to express one's opinion even if that opinion might be considered unpopular or unorthodox.” It’s like our right is being violated. Many children are being pulled away from books because they contain certain things that their parents think are not appropriate for their age, but it’s not like they should hide those things from…

    • 936 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Banning Books In Schools

    • 953 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Throughout the years, books from classics to young adult novels have been banned.. Books are an essential part of education. They have always been there to teach children, but all over the country, books are being prohibited. Certain books are not only banned in schools but they are also banned in libraries, and bookstores, limiting public access to specific pieces of literature. These books are banned for because they include profanity, or sometimes having different opinions than the majority of the population. However, Books should not be banned in schools because banning certain books prevents freedom of speech, keeps readers away from reality, and limits learning tools.…

    • 953 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    There are articles written over censorship and banned books. One of the articles listed that religion has been the most frequently cited reason for banning a book. Literary works are still challenged, censored and banned for many different reasons. Books as varied as Judy Blume's Forever, Fifty Shades of Grey, by E. L. James, and The Holy Bible have been challenged by parents and school boards who judge the author's writings. Books are often challenged for the language they contain, sexual content, violence, and religion. However, since we have our basic right; the freedom to express ourselves as we see fit, it is guaranteed by the First Amendment of the United States’ Constitution. Which ensures the freedom to express one’s opinion even if that opinion might be unpopular, or unorthodox. But…

    • 657 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Banning Books In Schools

    • 462 Words
    • 2 Pages

    e second reason schools should not ban books is that kids should know about the real world.This is important because you don’t want your child to be oblivious to the world around them. University Wire says“By removing or banning books from schools, you are depriving the students from having these experiences and learning from them. You stop protecting them from the world and start damaging their growth and ability to live in it properly. Banning hurts more than it helps, and when it happens, no one wins." (University Wire) This quote validates that kids should know about the world they live in.Clearly, kids should know about the world around them.The last reason that schools should not ban books is kids sometimes need a book to open up their…

    • 462 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Many people think that books should be banned and others disagree. Certain books are banned for a reason, because they include profanity, violence, and other stuff that can be inappropriate for certain age groups. Although, parents these days are overprotective…

    • 314 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Before getting into detail about the books itself it is important to look at book censorship as a whole. Book censorship is considered a controversial topic a lot of times because it is part of the First Amendment and is considered as intellectual freedom. Intellectual freedom has had schools taken to court because students and parents believed by the school board not allowing certain types of books it was violating their First Amendment rights. Many times the courts do favor to the students because the school boards are responsible for the education provided at the schools but can not allow books to be banned because they do not agree with the ideas or opinions portrayed. Reasons for books to be put into question are profanity, violence,…

    • 240 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Better Essays

    “Do not turn to mediums or necromancers; do not seek them out, and so make yourselves unclean by them: I am the Lord your God. (Leviticus 19)”, “You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder! (James 2)”. (34) These are verses that Christians have used in their fight against Rowling and her “satanic” novels that promote death and evil witchcraft. Rowling herself being a Christian says “I go to church myself,” she declared. “I don’t take any responsibility for the lunatic fringes of my own religion” (Alder). These attacks are against a book and one of your points is that the popularity of such a book may destroy young minds. Has this not happened previously in history and turned into quit an astonishing result? The Bible itself still to this day is criticized because as old as it is there has to be certain things that have been changed or tampered with. The most published and owned book in the world may not be completely legitimate and is/was banned in multiple countries, for a lot of the same reasons I may add. These are some of the questions parents should be asking themselves before they go on a rant about a book that has not only improved the likeness of books in young children but also promoted proud and honest…

    • 1607 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Today, one of the strongest competitors of reading is the Internet. With its plethora of easily accessible information, the Internet easily outshines reading as a more exciting and fun way of relaxation. Online gaming, especially, has taken root in [the lives of] most teens today as the top hobby of all. Fewer teenagers are spending more time on reading than on online gaming. In fact, online gaming is fast becoming an addiction among school children. It has been reported that there has been an unprecedented rise in the number of cases of online-gaming addiction among teens in Singapore. Furthermore, book loan statistics from the libraries of Singapore show a decrease in the number of books borrowed per person over the past few years. This has prompted the National Library Board to launch a series of reading programmes and measures to “up” the statistics as well as interest among Singaporeans, for example, increasing the maximum number of books borrowable from eight to twelve [Ed.: from 4 to 8?], as well as launching “Read! Singapore 2006”, a reading-centred campaign. If reading as a hobby has not been facing some significant decline in popularity, would it be necessary to embark on such programmes to encourage others to read more? Hence reading risks being outdated in our increasingly modernised society.…

    • 874 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays

Related Topics