Topics and themes that are appropriate for books
Everyday, people question what elements of a book are questionable for people read. It is important that we take into consideration that in the current generation we live in, certain topics whether they are controversial or not are going to be included in books whether we want them to or not. We as readers have the responsibility of reading these types of material and to give appropriate responses to them, whether or not we agree with those elements. In this post, I have gathered a few opinions from different individuals about what themes are deemed appropriate to them. These are based off of their own beliefs.
Illustration Created By Jane Mount
Political Corectness
From Smitty: “I feel like an active fear of upsetting people can limit an author's range, and it can make for a dull read. This is not to say that books should be racist or bigoted, but if there is an innocence in a story, a genuinely good intention from the writer, then that should be taken into account. But if a story tiptoes around people's feelings, or demonizes people who don't agree with the author's ideology, then yes, I take issue with that. It is important to choose our words carefully as to not offend certain groups of individuals. But even then, no matter if you try to stick to your own views of things or the way society wants to portray the truth of certain topics, there is always going to be two sides of audiences: those who agree and don’t agree. You can never fully win. But it can be beneficial to listen to what others have to say, as opposed to arguing with who is really correct, as it gives both sides a chance to be respected and listened to.”
Multicultural Justice/Rascism
From Ray: “Social Justice can be a complicated topic to read about, let alone discuss it, as nowadays it is centered around racism and discrimination. Nowadays, people are wanting to shelter the younger generation from having access to such reading material, as they try to paint over the truth of how many people of color were treated harshly back then and even now. I don’t necessarily agree with hiding this, as it is important to tell them the truth about how things were and currently are so that hopefully they understand how to treat someone else that may not share the same culture, heritage, or skin tone. It also helps brings awareness to fight for making everyone be viewed as an equal. Getting to read such material also gives people who are not of color a glimpse into the struggles people of color have had to face over the years and how it has affected history significantly. It gives the readers a way to be able to respectfully discuss these topics rather then to hide them. Even now, there are multiple books that discuss themes of racism that are now being banned and challenged because people are afraid to reveal “the nasty truth” as much as they possibly can.”
Death
From Pearl: “When most people hear about the themes of Death being incorporated into books, many people think of books that follow gothic, horror, and mystery books. That is not always the case though, as over the last few years, we have seen multiple books outside of those genres include death of family members, friends, acquaintances, and lovers. Anyone could agree with me that Death is not always and easy topic to include in books. Its a very sensitive topic and it is important that authors do not try to glorify it and include it in every single of their books just so that the plot is much more interesting. We can see this in a lot of young adult books, which can raise certain questions about what sort of content these young readers are looking into. However, Death, when written correctly, can be used as a symbol for good things coming to an end and as a way for characters to reflect on their lives. Yes, it is very strange that in order for someone to truly cherish their lives, someone close to them has to have an untimely death, but to see the character(s) growth and progress is very interesting when they come to realization that life is too short to continue to make bad mistakes and to take opportunities that come your way, for you never know when your time is up.”
LGBTQ+
From Flor: “We currently live in a society where LGBTQ+ is starting to be more accepted, to where we are not having to hide are identities anymore and can feel accepted by our fellow neighbors. We currently see multiple shows and movies start to include more queer characters, whether main or side, and it does make my heart personally happy to finally get to see more representation after years of ridicule, harassment, and violent attacks on people who are queer. However, what doesn’t make me happy is knowing that multiple books are being challenged and criticized soley because the main characters identify as queer. Yes, there are people who don’t share the same beliefs as we do, but to try to take away literature revolving around those themes seems like a crime. There is no judgement to pass on what everyones belief is and what they would like their children to be exposed to, however I don’t agree with taking away our representation in literature. We may not truly be accepted into other peoples eyes, and that is completely fine, but to try and strip us from being represented more just does not seem fair. There are many young queer teenagers and young adults who would love to read books that have characters they feel as if they can relate to who could even be just like them, and it isn’t fair to them to not be able to read them. If people could read our stories and get to know how we feel, then they would understand that we just want the same things that every human wants: to be love, to be understood, and to be able to feel at home somewhere.”
Revenge
From Mack: “Now I know that everyone is going to think this as a bit controversial, just because we have always been told to be the bigger person and to handle certain situations correctly and graciously. However, this is not the case in certain scenarios, and when I mean that, I mainly am referring to revenge books that are part of the Fiction section. I mainly am a big fan of revenge stories where the main character decideS to get back at their enemies who have treated them wrongfully in the past. Seeing the character development from these characters who were mistreated and misguided as they navigate how they wish to execute their plan hits hard when people have to realize that they cannot act cruel to others without thinking that there will be no potential consequences for their actions. It shows the importance of just how much one needs to carefully examine how they treat others, for it may end up biting them in the but later.”
