Banned Books Essay Draft

Classics today, banned tomorrow? Parents are pushing for the ban of Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card, although it teaches important lessons and all violence in the book is necessary to the plot. I think that parents should not ban this book, and others like it, because although it may be controversial, it is also a valued piece of literature.

            Parents claim that books written for teens, including Ender’s Game, are too controversial for their children. For example, the article Darkness Too Visible by Meghan Cox Gurdon, describes a parent in a bookstore, worried about the controversial topics she found on the shelves for teens. The parent claimed that the material on the shelves was inappropriate for her 13 year-old daughter, calling it “all vampires and suicide, self-mutilation, this dark, dark stuff.” The parent was unable to find a single book that she deemed appropriate for her child. She left the bookstore empty-handed. This shows that some parents today are cautious about purchasing books that may contain violence, suicide, or other dark topics.

            However, the violence found in Ender’s Game, and many other books for that matter, is needed for the plot. For example, on page 7 of Ender’s Game is a scene that such parents may find too dark. “Ender walked over to Stilson’s supine body and kicked him again, viciously, in the ribs. Stilson groaned and rolled away. Ender walked around and kicked him again, in the crotch. Stilson could not make a sound, he only doubled up and tears streamed out of his eyes.” This quote sets the scene for Ender’s enrollment in the Battle School, which is a central part of the story. It also reveals the calculating and cruel side of Ender, so that he doesn’t appear to be an innocent boy. This illustrates that the violence in Ender’s Game is crucial to the plot and for the development of characters in the book.

            The book also poses an important philosophical question about war and whether violence and retaliation can be justified for the sake of self-preservation. In the book, the government of Earth decides to attack an alien army that had attacked them in the past. After the battle is over, it is revealed that the attack may not have been necessary, because it was unclear whether the aliens were planning to strike again. However, the government decided that the risk of not taking action was too great, and chose a fight they thought they could win rather than risk defeat for peace. The concept addressed by this book is a deep inquiry into the nature of war, which children should be encouraged to think about and discuss.

            To conclude, despite the fact that parents may find certain books such as Ender’s Game disturbing, Ender’s Game poses a good question that may be hard to learn in everyday life, and the violence in the novel is completely key to the plot.  Books like this should NOT be banned, because they provide important lessons and ideas that are expressed in a creative way. If parents look beyond the violence and dark material in books, and try to understand the author’s purpose, perhaps they would see the value of books like Ender’s Game.