The Refined Reader (21) Banned Books

The Refined Reader aims to take a look at the journey to where we are as readers today.  It's part history, part commentary - providing a brief, conversational summary of various aspects of our bookish past and comparing it to how it has affected us in modern times.  I love history, but I am no historian, and while I plan to do my research, if there are any errors, please let me know!  This is as much a learning venture for me as I hope it is for my blog visitors!

The movement to read and support banned books is a great one (headed by ALA) and for this post I was curious to know the origins of this pretty ridiculous practice.  What were the first books ever banned, and how and why it was thought necessary.

Looking at the list of government banned books on Wikipedia - it appears that early banned books included many essays and political texts like the Rights of Man by Thomas Paine, written in 1791 and Mirror of the Polish Crown, published in 1618.  I suppose it's understandable (not right though) that governments feel the need to suppress politically controversial works.  Religion is another reason why books are banned.  The first book banned in America was in 1650 with a text criticizing the Puritan religion by William Pynchon.  Pynchon was accused of heresy and had to move back to England to escape religious persecution (irony!).

Books have also been banned for reasons based on morality - and for the most part, novels fall into that category.  Some early books banned years later on the basis of morality or inappropriate content include Candide by Voltaire, The Canterbury Tales by Chaucer, and Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll.  I thought it was funny that the latter book was banned in Hunan, China because it features anthropomorphized animals which can give children the idea of thinking of humans and animals on the same level.  There's another frequently banned novel that I hadn't heard of before - Fanny Hill by John Cleland, published in 1749, which according to the plot synopsis features explicit descriptions of sex.  It's astonishing to me that this book was even published in 18th century England!

Obviously I think banning books as a practice is unnecessary or misguided at best, and manipulative and controlling at worst.  It is a step in the right direction that so many countries are a part of a globally connected world where ideas are not so easily suppressed, and individual thought and expression has a way of getting around.  And thankfully we do have movements that encourage people to broaden their horizons by reading books that are thought to be too controversial for the average person or child.

Reading up on the topic just now, it's difficult to really pinpoint the origins of this practice.  It's so different for every culture and government.  And there are many, many books that have been banned over the years - some very surprising choices too - but the practice does seem to have died down a bit recently, as some governments realize that there should be more limits to censorship.  Unfortunately it is still an issue today.

Does knowing that a book was banned make you more interested in reading that book?

Sources:
Wikipedia
ALA
Washington Coalition