Thin Gruel

The "Newspeak" in 1984 is not too far from the censorship that we currently have of our language and vocabulary in children's books and textbooks. In 1984, the government tries to censor not only words, but also people's thoughts and memories. To a lesser degree, that is also what is happening with our textbooks. Censors from both the political right and left pressure the publishers of textbooks to include certain things and exclude others. Textbook companies can't afford not to listen because too much controversy dooms books to financial failure and extinction. From the political right, fundamentalist Christians only want wholesome, traditional families to be portrayed. They want to ban anything that refers to disobedience, lying, family discord, witchcraft, or other values not in accordance with their religion. On the other side, leftists want to spread feminism, and they are highly active against any racism, ageism, and sexism. Protecting freedom of religion, promoting good morals, and presenting equality in textbooks is important, but both groups take it too far. Children should be exposed to all different religions; they don't have to give up their religious beliefs because they hear other beliefs. Textbook companies shouldn't try to fill quotas for how many males, females, racial groups, and ages are included in their books. They should present children with interesting stories with literary merit that will educate them. Books such as The Great Gatsby and Catcher in the Rye should not be banned from school libraries, and textbooks should not be so highly censored. If we allow these things to be censored, before we know it, our world will be like the one in 1984.