Argument Essay: Why “The Perks of Being a Wallflower” should be banned or not

           

It is pretty much common that parents want for the best for their children. Sometimes they might seem to be a little over protective, but it is for the benefit of their kids. With no surprise, some concerned parents expressed their opinions to ban from the school’s curriculum a book The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky. An interview with Dean Audet (father of four) from British Columbia portrays the book as absolutely not appropriate for middle school kids with 41 instances of sex obsessed contents such as molestation, rape, sexual contact between a boy and a dog, masturbation, physical abuse, and more. POBAW which was published in 1999, has also been filmed into a movie in 2012 with Emma Watson, mostly known from her role in the Harry Potter series. Some other people say that the book talks about problems so close and important for growing teenagers, who may not know that their problems are more common than they think. Shannon, “Story Snoop” blogger suggests that this book is much more than just a few graphic descriptions. She says that this book may actually help teenagers to navigate through difficult times of transition between middle and high school.

The main character of book “The Perks of Being a Wallflower” is a boy named Charlie. He is a freshman in a local Ohio high school. He is an introvert (like most kids these days) who often goes through periods of depression and anxiety. Last year his best friend committed suicide and this impacted him greatly. Some high school seniors found him in the school crowd and took him under their wings. This may seem good at first, but in book reality Charlie meets a lot of new people and witness scenes with cursing, sex, alcohol and drugs. His observations throughout the book are so interesting and honest that “Story Snoop: blogger says: “What makes this book a masterpiece (in my opinion!) is its accurate portrayal of adolescence through Charlie’s eyes.” (Story Snoop Blog - Best of Banned Books Week)  

            There is no discussion that some parts in this book are graphic and detailed scenes of sexual activities. The concerned father of four from BC says: "The amount of vulgarity and the amount of pornography was just overwhelming." (Huffington Post).  As self-described he has three minor daughters between ages six and twelve and a 10^th grader son. The concerned father listed 41 examples of pornographic detail. Some of his examples were: “molestation in graphic detail, a teenage boy having sex with a dog, and a boyfriend punching a girl in the face.” (Huffington Post)  In POBAW, sex isn’t the only thing that surprised the public. There are lots of instances of alcohol and drug use. For example, Charlie goes to his first party and accidently eats a weed brownie. The book goes into detail of what was going on through Charlie’s eyes and how he wanted a milkshake. Another example is that Charlie started to smoke cigarettes. “I’m now up to 10 cigarettes a day” (Perks of Being a Wallflower 103). That’s a lot for a day, plus teens can get the wrong idea and think that cigarettes aren’t that bad and not consider the health risks. These are just a few of allegations raised by those who want to ban this book from school’s curriculum or even from libraries.

            On the other side there are people that argue this opposition and say that this book not only should not be banned, but even make it more popular. Cited before Shannon from “Story Snoop” blog says: “Taking things out of context is a dangerous thing — you kind of miss the big picture. Pulling this book off the shelves eliminates the opportunity for young readers to learn from Charlie’s open-minded observations about other people’s struggles” (Story Snoop Blog - Best of Banned Books Week) She adds: “After all, don’t we want our teens to be reading books they can relate to?  Not only will they be more interested, they may also absorb valuable lessons that could help move their lives forward in a positive direction.” Her point of view comes from    a well and deep interpretation of the book. Concentrating on descriptions of bad behavior leads to poor judgment and jumping to negative conclusions too fast. The book presents those “sexual activities” not to entertain readers, but to present a weird reality of life of an American teenager.

            Should parents have rights to express their concerns about things their kids learn at school? Of course they should. Should they decide what’s good and bad for their kids? Maybe not all the time. The entire discussion started while this book was read and studied by 10 graders. Although there are a lot of new books becoming very popular among youths, most of them are about mysterious vampires (Twilight Saga) or wizarding schools (Harry Potter.) Not so much about real life problems of painfully growing teenagers. This book is not for kids from elementary school, but for people who want to better understand themselves or others.

STOP DEFORESTATION

Poem:

Trees cut by the chainsaw

We wish this isn’t the last straw

We cut the trees for wood

We sure know this ain’t good

From wood to paper

There won’t be any water vapor

Cutting up trees creates pollution in the air

We should have a say because this ain’t fair

All this creates smoke

At the end we’re all left to choke

Forests are like lungs, taking a breath

I just hope this doesn’t lead to our death

            Before I started writing the poem, I thought about topics that affected me personally in my life. My first idea was animal abuse, but I thought it would make me emotional while writing the poem. That’s when I remembered about deforestation. When I was in 3^rd grade, I wrote an entire essay about deforestation because I thought that this would affect animals and people. Trees are important to the world because without trees the carbon would not get transferred into oxygen. Trees also bring a beauty to city life and color to the gray and white houses. After the essay, I was so affected by deforestation that I wrote a letter to the president to do something and my brother and I donated some of our birthday money to the deforestation charity.

            I thought of words that rhyme like chainsaw and straw, or breath and death. I played around with the words until it all made sense to the topic. I then decided to outline it and talk about parts of deforestation and its future aftermath. I used a little slang to make it smoother to the New York tongue or way of speaking. In the end it sounded pretty good and I stayed with it.

Interview:

Interviewer: Filip Trzcinka

Person being interviewed: Daniel Trzcinka

Q: What is Deforestation?

A: it’s when you cut up tree’s in rainforests to make more room to build houses and farms

Q: From 1 to 10, how do you think deforestation will affect the world?                                             (1 being not that much and 10 being really severe)

A: 7

Q: Why?

A: Because it only affects wildlife

Q: Have you ever thought about deforestation?

A: Only when I had a class assignment, or charity ideas

Q: What would you do about deforestation?

A: try to raise awareness and stop it, if that does not work, save the animals and wildlife

(For this question, I showed Daniel the picture I drew)

Q: Do you think this ad will change people’s minds, or get their attention on deforestation?

A: Yes, when I saw the picture it definitely caught my attention pretty quickly.

Q: Why?

A: lungs are an important part of the body, and if they were destroyed, the body would get destroyed resulting in death, and death will catch lots of attention.

Q: Why is it difficult to stop deforestation?

A: Because people care more about themselves, and big companies destroy forests in their everlasting greed for money

           

My older brother Daniel helped me through a lot in life, especially to understand deforestation. He helped me with the essay, to write the letter, to donate with me. He inspired me to do deforestation as my project, and has helped me do my best in it.

Advertisement

In the poem, I said that “forests are like lungs, taking a breath; I just hope this doesn’t lead to our death” so I drew a picture of a forest in the shape of lungs and a stream running into the forest. I erased some parts of the lungs to show deforestation and how it looks like it is destroying the lungs. Trees take in carbon and provide with oxygen. Destroying forests leads to no enough oxygen and death to animals and people. Trees and forests are like the lungs of the earth and if we destroy them, we kill the earth. That made me think that it was a great idea for a subtitle, but I thought that wasn’t enough. I remembered other ads using subtitles like SAVE THE PANDAS or HELP DESTROY CANCER, that made me realize that it was the missing component and that’s when I knew I was done. 

Social Issue: Smoking

Can you imagine everyone in the world smoking? Sounds impossible right?  Well about 50 years ago, it seemed like everyone smoked: adults, teens, even cartoon characters would fall into the smoking category. Robert K. Elder, the author of: Kicking the Habit states that America began to change their attitude towards smoking in 1964. A surgeon states that smoking is one of the main causes of lung cancer. The author wants to tell his readers that smoking is bad for health and that people should stop because of the great risk.

Have you seen advertisements for cigarettes or to stop the smoking of cigarettes? Well back then, advertising took a big role in the selling of cigs. People became brainwashed thinking smoking wasn’t all that bad and it was cool. Actors dressed up as doctors smoked in commercials to fool people that even doctors smoke and nothing bad will happen. “Magazine ads, featuring beautiful men and women lighting up, to help make smoking seem glamorous” says Robert, “Even the White House provided good PR.” Doctors reported that: it was too damned to be shrugged off.” In 1964, a headline in New York Herald Tribune read: It’s Official-Cigarette Smoking Can Kill You!”

            The notice changed the attitude of America. Congress and the FDA began putting labels on cigarette packs which started out as just: “Caution: Cigarette Smoking Can Be Hazardous to your health.” No one paid any attention to that, so the FDA made them became more direct. They added labels of symptoms such as lung cancer, heart disease and that cigs may complicate in pregnancy. This made a bigger effect than the first one, but still did not change the minds of most smokers. That’s when they became more graphic. Labels held pictures of the aftermath of smoking and it also had a warning label. People started to argue that it went against the first amendment which was about free speech, because the packets of cigs looked like a mini billboard for the anti smoking campaign. The FDA said they would add new labels on packets so people would still get the message.

                The electronic cigarette is here. These battery powered devices worry health experts and doctors over America. Electronic cigarettes or e-cigarettes vaporize liquid nicotine and are added with flavors from banana cream pie to cotton candy. There are more than 7000 flavors and critics say these flavor are too appealing to kids. But the main reason is for normal day smokers to quit and use this product instead. “It is said to be less harmful” says Robert K. Elder, “But public health officials are still concerned.” A doctor states that the emergence of e-cigs is a déjà vu all over again. He also adds that nicotine is what gets you addicted, and that e-cigs are simply getting America to be nicotine addicts.

            I remember when I was 2 years old; a cigarette fell and burned my leg. I also remember when I was 6, a person was smoking in front of us and I was coughing a lot from the lack of air. Since then I have never imagined myself smoking. This article told me more about it and why it is bad for you. It also made me think, how the world look like if no one held or smoked a cigarette. And I hope the government would do something to stop the usage of these harmful products. 

Language in Banned Books

            “SHUT UP, YOU STUPID…” I’ll leave the rest for you to think about. Cursing is a big thing in the world. It is used in many cases of emotion by the person projecting it or as a use of emphasis. The main character: Charlie finds seniors that take him under their wing and help him. The book The Perks of Being a Wallflower, holds many parts that use cursing to show what the world is for high school students.

The work “F***” is used a lot in the book. The characters mostly say it when they are angry or just they just use it in a casual talk, for example: “Sam told me as we were hanging our coats that Bob was baked like a f*****g cake. (page:33).” Even though Sam, another character, is about 17 or 18 years old, she curses to act like a grown up. A lot of people do. Another example is when Charlie’s older brother says “b****y dyke” to his sister. He is in college so he wants to act and feel like an adult. People curse because they think it is cool and want to feel like a grown up. They do this to feel free from their parents and rebel against rules.

People also curse when they are mad or emotional. They curse people out so the people can feel bad about what they did. On page 178, Sam’s boyfriend is forced to tell Sam that he has hooked up with other girls during their relationship. After that Sam runs crying, a friend screams at the ex-boyfriend saying: “You’re a f*****g bastard!” even though the friend wasn’t in any kind of relationship with the ex. He still got pissed at him and cursed him out. People will always get emotional, and they will do anything to get the other person to feel bad.

Cursing helps certain people let out their anger and that is much more helpful than keeping all that anger inside. This book shows the world that we all live in and the language that is used. It also shows what almost all high school students do in their lives. People especially parents, should know what is going on in their child’s life, and they should know how they can help. 

Charlie’s Past

            Charlie’s life story is uncovered more and more throughout Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky. The book tells us the story of his friend who died or how his aunt died and that these things have shaped him to who he is now. There are still many things that are not yet reviled, but using evidence, you can piece together Charlie’s past. I think Charlie depression and lack of self-esteem started after his aunt died.

            Charlie always refers to his aunt’s death and how it makes him cry. This already is a sign of depression, and it is brought up in the book over and over again. There was one part in the book when Charlie has a flashback of his aunt’s death. There was a car accident and the police came to tell him the horrifying news. Charlie’s brother and sister cried, but Charlie believed it was a mistake; he didn’t want to believe his favorite aunt died. That is until the body was identified as the aunt. Charlie was taken to the doctor for questions, but it never says his siblings had to do the same. Either he felt guilty, or he tried to do something unspeakable. I think he blamed himself, because later on, he states that his aunt gave him two presents for his birthday and for Christmas, since his birthday and Christmas are very near each other. His aunt forgot to buy him a second present, and decided to go and buy one right away. That is when she had the crash. Charlie blamed his birthday and himself and his guilt led him to depression.

            Charlie’s best friend, whose name is not given, committed suicide near the end of eighth grade. Charlie became even more depressed. He was asked questions about his friend, which lead to even more sadness. Even though he did not blame himself, he lost his best friend. That really molded him. There is also a part where Charlie states that his brain started hopscotching” he thought of names, good times, bad times, and then came to his aunt’s death. Then he apparently fell asleep in the snow. He says it was pretty normal for him, which means it happens often. This is bad because he can’t stay happy if he always thinks of the worst in his life. It seems like he gave up on life and himself.

            Charlie has gone through bad times in his life, which probably led him to sadness and depression. He has found new friends: Sam and Patrick, who have taken him under their wings.          I think they are going to help resolve Charlie fragile character into a strong, confident young man.

Guilt of Tris

Contains Spoilers from Divergent and Insurgent!

Imagine a world that is peaceful and perfect, and then suddenly there is a war to eliminate a large society completely. Tris, the main character lives in a utopia where there are five factions that represent a part of society. Abnegation runs the government and focuses on selflessness, Dauntless focus on protection, strength and bravery, and Erudite focus on education, science and facts. In the books, Erudite leads an attack against Abnegation using a mind control serum on the Dauntless. Only Divergent cannot be controlled by the serum, and Tris is Divergent. During the attack of Abnegation, in order to save the faction, she was forced to kill her fellow faction members and even witnessed her parents sacrificing themselves to save her. One horrific thing Tris experienced was her forced action to shoot Will, a good friend of hers. Why would she do this? In the world, organisms have two choices. If the environment is comfortable, the organism will thrive, but if the environment is uninhabitable or violent, the organism’s instinct will take over so the organism can survive. This is exactly what Tris experienced. Her instincts took over and she shot Will, because he was trying to kill her. Now Tris holds the guilt of murdering her best friend’s boyfriend.

            In book 2, it always refers to Tris’ flashbacks to the attack and everyone dying. She can’t fire a gun without freezing and remembering that she shot Will. When she looks at a dead body, she immediately remembers her dead parents or the dead Abnegation members. There is no way that she can break the spell. Even though she believes she is never going to shoot anyone ever again she was still able to attack and stab a traitor of the Dauntless faction multiple times without a second thought. This makes me think that she can leave her guilt behind, focus on reality and let go of all those things that happened in the past. I know forgetting your dead family may seem impossible and wrong, but there is no way to bring them back and the best to do is to move on. Tris is carrying a burden that can crushing her inside, she needs to let go and live freely like she wanted when she was still in Abnegation.

           

One of the things Tris always reminds herself is that her parents are dead. The reason they are dead is because they sacrificed themselves to keep Tris and her brother Caleb safe.   They also died so Tris would be able to end the stimulation and save the rest of Abnegation.          I don’t know right now why Tris is throwing her life away, but it might do something with her parents sacrifice. Her boyfriend Tobias says: “Sensibly risking your life...” and I 100% agree with him. I do not think it is a good idea to throw your life away like that, because your instincts are to survive, not die. This is something that shows her self-image. She doesn’t want to be leader of Dauntless nor a hero, but her actions about going to Erudite and turn herself in is a Divergent. That is heroic but stupid. I would create a plan that might give an advantage to the non-traitor Dauntless. The plan would consist of retrieving the divergent, and destroying every serum that can mind control.

Tris has changed a lot between book one and two and I disagree with her actions in many ways. Before, she used to let her instincts take over so she can survive, but know she doesn’t seem to care about her life. I think that she should forget what happened in the past and live for today. 

Joffrey's Reign 

The Land of Westeros, also called the land of fire and ice, is a beautiful land with seven kingdoms of seven rich families. One of these families is house Stark of Winterfell. This house is up north near the wall. Their lord, Ned Stark, is a very honorable man who is trustworthy, merciful, and best with a great sword. King Robert Baratheon who was good friends with Ned and fought with him in past wars named him Hand of the King.

            Being named Hand of the King is a great honor. The person elected as the Hand is the King’s adviser and he takes place in the small council. Ned Stark accepted and left Winterfell with his eldest son Robb in charge. Ned took his eldest daughter, Sansa and her sister, Arya, to Kings Landing, the capital. Later on in the book, some incident causes King Robert to die. His son, Joffrey Baratheon rules over Westeros. Ned Stark believes Joffrey is not the true and rightful King. He believes Stannis Baratheon, Robert’s eldest brother, is the true king.

            I do not think Joffrey would be a good ruler. I think that Joffrey is a spoiled boy who was just lucky enough to be the son of King Robert Baratheon. He was born with the blood of a lazy, drunk King and of a rich Queen. Earlier in the book, Joffrey shows he is a teenager who is very proud, lazy and has a tendency to make quick and bad decisions. He does not seem to be a good fit for a king. He is also very self-centered and naïve. King Robert visited Winterfell with his family when he was going to name Ned Hand of the King. Joffrey didn’t care about anything, he didn’t even attend the feast for the coming of the royal family. He was supposed to marry Ned’s eldest daughter, Sansa, but didn’t even care to talk to her, until on the road to Kings Landing. They stopped at a town and Joffrey’s mother insisted he take Sansa on a walk across the river. He was acting it all just to get some credit from his father and mother. This is a reason why Ned did not think he was the rightful king. Unless Joffrey changes, he will be a bad king.

Ned told Joffrey about him not being the true king and he was accused of treason. He was sent to prison later to be trialed with his crime. He would have to confess his crime and beg for mercy if he was to live. If I was Ned, I would have the right to demand a trial by combat. This means I would fight king Joffrey, or, if King Joffrey sends a champion to fight for him, I would either have to fight the champion or send one of my own. I would demand to fight king Joffrey.

            I agree with Ned, Joffrey is not the true king of Westeros. Ned should beg for mercy and join The Wall. Well, that’s what I would do.