And the winner was….

 

 

Did you think I was going to talk about American Idol?  :)

Nicole chose “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest”. 

I loved all your comments, but one in particular got me to thinking.  Lizzi at  Bellingham Daily Photo mentioned about some recent controversy with Huck Finn.  I’m terribly ill informed sometimes and had to go and look up what she was talking about.  The controversy is about the use of the “N'” word.  Now I don’t like or approve of the “N” word, but understand its use in certain works of literature that were written during certain times. 

This statement was written by (I believe) Robert O’Meally in the Endnotes of the copy of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn that Nicole has.

“Because of the casual use of this racial epithet throughout the novel, many readers have been put off by The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Many have even believed the book should be banned, despite the fact – some would say because of the fact – that “n*****s” is used by the novels favorite characters, including Jim, often with affection.  The challenge for today’s reader is to confront the word in all its violence and contradictions, and to consider its meaning for various audiences – for nineteenth-, twentieth-, and twenty-first-century readers; for blacks, whites and those of other races; for children and adults. Readers also should consider the fact that much of the novel is satirical – intended to spoof and upend the prevailing values, racial and otherwise, of the characters and communities it describes.”

(The asterisks are mine)

Nicole’s copy is the original.  I do not want to offend anyone in anyway and probably should stay away from such topics, but what kind of a mom would I be then?

I personally find several words that I find in today’s literature repulsive and offensive.  I don’t like to be filling my tank at the gas station and have to listen to someone’s music that uses not only the “F” word, but also the “N” word.  I’m embarrassed and ashamed by the use of either word. But I believe in our freedom of speech rights.  I don’t believe it would be right to ban or edit Mark Twain’s book.  Reading it is a choice and one that everyone should have the right to make or not make.

Okay, let me step down off of my soap box and continue spreading flowers and sunshine.  That is what I do, isn’t it?  :)