During the week of October 5-11, Waynesburg University joins the American Library Association’s celebration of Banned Books Week, propelling a national discussion about censorship. This year, the ALA’s theme is “Censorship is so 1984: Read for Your Rights,” invoking the banned novel “1984.”
“1984” is a dystopian novel by George Orwell that explores authority, power, mass surveillance, manipulation, and truth. It has been censored for being pro-communist and sexually explicit in the United States, but, ironically, was first banned in the Soviet Union in 1949 for its anti-totalitarian message and is still banned in North Korea.
Dystopian novels like “1984” and other genres such as fantasy, science fiction, and several coming-of-age stories often serve as safe places to explore some controversial topics or process traumatic experiences for writers, so it is not surprising that these books end up being challenged by concerned parents or authorities even in the United States.
We are celebrating Banned Books Week for several reasons: By the very fact that we can gather and talk about censorship freely here, we celebrate that as a nation 1.) We have the freedom to voice our opinion; 2.) We are a nation of people who still recognize the importance of reading books; 3.) Individuals and groups of people in our nation are thinking critically about the ties between what we value and what we read.
Please join Waynesburg University for our Banned Books Week Celebration at 5:30 pm in Eberly Library’s Skylight room. We will listen to excerpts read from a range of banned books, award our Banned Books Week speech contest winner, and talk about censorship and academic life. We hope to see you there!
