Farenheit 451

[Kalessin]

Whilst browsing here, I noticed a couple of entries in recent threads that rather jumped out of the screen at me ...

(from Cudae)" ... Tolkien, CS Lewis, TH White, Ray Bradbury, Marion Zimmer Bradley, etc. were all banned from school grounds. The funds for both the art program and drama club were cut back severely. The Writers' Clubs (for Sci-Fi and Fantasy only) were destroyed as they promoted "anti-scientific, witch-craft like, and anti-religious" ideas."

Which seemed to magically juxtapose with this ...

(from Eruwen) ... Can you actually believe this would happen? My school just banned us from bringing LOTR books to school. Much less read them. A guy in my class was caught reading The Two Towers today, and our principle said not to bring it back because it was of "Demonology".

And later in the same thread ...

(from Eruwen ... I finally have some results from this huge thing that has been happening at my school. My principle, stupid as he is, thought the book my friend was reading was HARRY POTTER!!!! Lol!!!!!! It turns out he has nothing against J.R.R. Tolkien at all. Lol. So everything is fine. We can read our books now, and we dont have to worry about anything.

Now there was plenty of feedback to these particular posts, so I don't propose to comment on the individual cases. I hope this will be more of a collective reflection in which the works of Tolkien play a major part. At any rate, the two things that really struck me were -

1. Firstly, the fact that Ray Bradbury was banned - along with Tolkien, Marion Zimmer Bradley and other authors - given that these others are (arguably) clearly within a particular genre of writing ... it appears as though it is the genre to which a universal moral and critical judgement is being applied (or mis-applied). But Ray Bradbury is an author whose work spans many genres, including the "short story", which is distinguishable not by its content or themes, but by its length.

Would 'ironic' be the correct term to describe the situation in which the author of the book Farenheit 451 is banned?

2. Secondly, Eruwen's light-hearted parting. I'm going to fill in the blanks - "We can read our books now, and we dont have to worry about anything ... because it's only Harry Potter that's banned and not Tolkien".

Eruwen didn't write the italicised section and I am not ascribing the inference to him (or her?), as his (or her, sorry) contributions clearly indicate an open mind and a valuing of literature in general.

But the inference came to me nonetheless as a not unreasonable extrapolation of a view that might be shared by some - not least the Principal at Eruwen's school.

So what am I saying, and where does Tolkien fit in?

Well, Tolkien is generally acknowledged - on these boards, amongst many critics, and certainly in sales - as the leading author of 'fantasy'(almost regardless of your definition of the genre). Most here would probably extend his status to the upper echelons of literature in general. And I would suggest some essence of his works (particularly LotR) have deeply permeated more than one generation. Perhaps it's apocryphal, but I'm sure I heard or read something along the lines that only the Bible had sold more copies in the 20th century ... whether precisely true or not, the point I am making is that Tolkien is (or has been) a deeply embedded element of popular and literary culture. And the multi-million dollar success of the previous and imminent films are both evidence and continuation of that supposition.

At the same time, education professionals (such as Principals) are generally themselves reasonably well-educated, and specifically literate. I find it hard to see that many of them would be ignorant of Tolkien, from either an academic standpoint or a personal one as readers.

So the decision to ban Tolkien (where that has been taken) from schools is presumably based on some form of knowledge or analysis, not blind ignorance. I hope that I have illustrated the implausibility of 'ignorance' (or un-awareness) with the summary of Tolkien's cultural stature. And I hope that the qualifications or qualities of, say, school Principals (on the basis of which they are empowered to make decisions) can be to some degree assumed.

My first question is then, is there ANY possible valid knowledge or analysis that makes the banning of Tolkien understandable or justifiable? Yes, I actually want to know.

I don't want to hear how brilliant he is, or how school sucks, or how people who don't like him are idiots. I also don't need to know that there is only one Truth, and where It must be found. What I don't know is the answer to my above question, hence this post [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img].

My second question is perhaps more complex. What does it mean when one author isn't banned (as in Eruwen's case) while others are? Harry Potter is incredibly popular, and in the UK at least is often regarded with some affection as a great cultural achievement that has re-affirmed the value and the power of books for children. So the difference - the cause of banning - must be very precise in relation to content. I am aware of the 'witchcraft' and 'moral relativism' argument against the books, but I am very interested by the way in which different countries sharing a common language (ie American [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img]) and some level of cultural hegemony, have such a polarised reaction. Of course there is some religious objection to HP here in the UK, and we are no strangers to censorship of all kinds, but there is a difference ... or a different threshold, if you prefer. The banning of a best-selling children's book that is arguably little more than a whimsical fairy-tale with modern sensibilities would represent a major and ongoing talking point (witness the reaction to the fatwa on Salman Rushdie for The Satanic Verses). Now if you factor Ray Bradbury into that - I am still getting my head round that one - at what stage of a particular process are we?

This IS a controversial area, but I am happy to focus on Tolkien, on the objections to one of the leading authors of our time that leads to an informed decision to ban the book. A debate on censorship in general would take too long, given my advanced age [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img], although I have a nice quote by Benjamin Franklin lying around should the opportunity arise.

My second core question is really just the inevitable follow-up - why Tolkien might not be banned when these other authors are.

I can't finding these things interesting and feeling that they are important. Certainly here at BW, where the work of Tolkien - and by implication, literature itself - is cherished, and considered a deeply profound part of our personal, spritual, cultural and social experience. Apologies for inordinate length, as usual [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img].

Peace.

Kalessin

[ November 28, 2002: Message edited by: Kalessin ]