ERIC Number: EJ1207870
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2018
Pages: 6
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1541-0935
EISSN: N/A
Navigating the Muddy Waters between Censorship and Literature
James, David L.
Community College Enterprise, v24 n2 p49-54 Fall 2018
A recent article in "The Weekly Standard," "Kenyon College Cancels Play About Immigration; Starts 'Whiteness Group,'" describes a current call for censorship. Wendy MacLeod's play, "The Good Samaritan," is about an immigrant family in the U.S. surviving "without pay and living in dire conditions," according to the author. Based on a true story, MacLeod wanted to shine a light on this family and, apparently, used humor and satire in the process. The play was scheduled to be produced at Kenyon College but was met with protest by some students, faculty and administrators who called for its censure. Most people could take any novel, play, film, cartoon, essay, song, poem or story and find characters to object to, actions to condemn, ideas to despise, language to censor and portrayals to vilify as hurtful to a group, gender or country. One reason for the Kenyon College protest was because the play was written about a Guatemalan family, illegals, by a natural born U.S. citizen, a white woman. This line of logic, if followed to its ridiculous conclusion in literature, would posit that a writer can only create characters of his own gender, ethnicity, social and educational status within the framework of the environment in which he grew up. This view is completely debilitating for the majority of creative artists, who use their imaginations to enter into people and territories, eras and situations, histories and worlds that are totally alien to their personal day-to-day lives. In an open society, built upon the ideals of freedom, people must allow conflicting and diverse views to exist. If writers, artists, philosophers, or journalists are fearful of creating work because they might be attacked or censored, the result can only stifle creativity, originality, and truth-telling.
Descriptors: Censorship, Literature, Theater Arts, Drama, Controversial Issues (Course Content), World Views, Freedom of Speech, Authors, Literary Criticism, Literature Appreciation, Activism, Conflict, Psychological Patterns, Universities, College Role, Role of Education, Creativity
Schoolcraft College. Community College Enterprise, 19600 Haggerty Road, Livonia, MI 48152. Fax: 734-462-4679; e-mail: cce@schoolcraft.edu; Web site: http://www.schoolcraft.edu/ccE
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Opinion Papers
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A