This 4 page paper is an argumentative paper against the banning of books, especially James Joyce's Ulysses. Points supported with examples from the book, as well as Supreme Court rulings. Bibliography lists 0 sources.
Name of Research Paper File: D0_MBbanuly.rtf
Unformatted Sample Text from the Research Paper:
in James Joyces novel, Ulysses. And, yet, this book, which is examines the human soul and the human predicament in detail, continues to be banned from libraries and school rooms
across America. When one hears of a book being banned, ones nerves should be shattered. Not only does the first amendment guarantee the right to free speech, but its
intention was to insure that no one political agenda or ideology would become the overriding and controlling force in a nation which was to be founded upon libertarian principles.
Perhaps the problem lays in the assumption that the very people who are brandishing firebrands and pitchforks of the literary sort do have simply not
taken the time to read the book. Perhaps they do not understand the deeply inspirational messages which are conveyed in the pages of Ulysses. One has to suspect that this
may be true. One also must suspect that somewhere in the past, ones English teacher failed to pass along the skills necessary to assess quality literature and to understand when
symbolism is being used by the author. In James Joyces case, then, Ulysses is a parody, of sorts, on Homers play, Odysseus. Ulyssess adventures parallel those that Odysseus faced
in the Odyssey, though on a modern scale. Additionally, Molly is patterned after the strong and determined character of Penelope, who must fight off the suitors and save her kingdom
until her husbands return. If one reads Ulysses only for this shallow adventure, then one misses out on the deeper and truer meaning of
the novel. Wrapped in the adventure and the actions of the character is really two men who are searching for a relationship which they have lost and feel incomplete without.