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Excellent article on "safe reading"
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Just to defend the ‘paranoid’ in The Music Man, the particular books in question are by, “Balzac”. And you really have to sing that to make it sound as loathsome as the mayor’s wife in the movie does. But…back to the point: Honore de Balzac was a 19th century French novelist. Here is a brief summary of what his work is about:
“For example, the scandalous novel Vicaire des Ardennes (1822)—banned for its depiction of nearly-incestuous relations and, more egregiously, of a married priest—attributed to a ‘Horace de Saint-Aubin’. These books were potboiler novels, designed to sell quickly and titillate audiences. In Saintsbury’s view, “They are curiously, interestingly, almost enthrallingly bad.” Saintsbury indicates that Robert Louis Stevenson tried to dissuade him from reading these early works of Balzac.”
So, while it is easy to poke fun at the prude women in the Music Man who would have the librarian pull Balzac from the shelf, I think under closer scrutiny, we would all agree that it isn’t quality literature.
If we do as Charlotte recommended and go straight to the source material, we will understand what is appropriate and beneficial for our families.
“All things are permissable, but not all things are beneficial.” 1 Cor 10:23
I found the article insightful and touching, but I don’t think that any of the books the author mentioned reading would be considered ‘un-safe’ for Christian readers. Heidi isn’t really cutting edge in the moral content department!
Charlotte recommended we get children in touch with the BEST ideas through direct contact with the BEST minds, through the BEST books. There are many gifted writers in the world, but only some of them have the kind of character I would want my children to acquaint their minds with.
An example:
Jane Eyre was one of my favorite books as a young teenager. As I read that book today, I can see that there were many themes (potential adultery, immorality, etc) that made this a book that I probably wouldn’t recommend to a young Christian reader today. But because Jane always struggled to do the right thing in every circumstance and trusted God for the outcome, I connected with her. She became part of the ‘inner script’ of my life. When I was confronted with tough life choices, I know that her stubborn insistence to do the right thing helped steer me in the right direction.
Those are the kinds of minds and ideas that strengthen our children, and those are the ‘norms’ we want established in their hearts.
Actually, ServingwithJoy, I have had conversations with Christian mothers who objected to Anne of Green Gables, and even Little House on the Prairie.
Oh, and I even had once a discussion with a mom who did not like Heidi. She thought the relationship with Peter was a “romance.”
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