Challenged Book - Forever by Judy Blume

Sharp 1 Jason Sharp Challenged Book Defense: Forever by Judy Blume I have chosen to be a High School Librarian for the purposes of this assignment and I will be evaluating and defending the highly controversial book Forever by Judy Blume. I will be representing Whitehaven High School in the Whitehaven area located in the city of Memphis, Tennessee. The Whitehaven area is almost exclusively African American; in this particular high school, there are no Caucasian students or Asian American students and only a few Hispanic students. The families in this area are generally low income; the crime rate is high and teen pregnancy rates are high, although not quite as high as other areas of Memphis. Parents are not typically involved in the education of their middle school or high school students in this area; some parents are involved during the elementary school stages but typically transfer their children to higher rated schools in Memphis to provide them with better opportunities. While Whitehaven is it’s own distinct area, it is important to take into account the influence of the Memphis City School System. Sexual education is contested issue in the greater Memphis area as many parents believe that sex should not be discussed, leading to limited exposure to sex education in the schools. Forever details a young woman’s first love and her first sexual experiences. Katherine is a high school senior who meets a fellow senior named Michael at a New Year’s party, with whom she quickly begins dating. Michael frequently attempts to progress the relationship physically, but Katherine is uncomfortable performing sexual acts too soon and they wait until they feel a deep emotional connection before finally having sex. Katherine and Michael both alter their college plans in an effort to stay together and deeply miss each other when separated, but are forced to be apart for seven weeks when they each find separate jobs out of state. Despite

Sharp 2 frequent letters and assurances that they will be together forever, Katherine becomes attracted to a co-worker and kisses him. Michael surprises her at her summer job and Katherine reveals that she no longer feels as certain about their relationship. They break up and it is implied that Katherine forms a new long distance relationship with the co-worker from her summer job. Side stories include a friend who becomes pregnant during high school and delivers her baby shortly before graduation, a male friend who questions his sexuality and attempts suicide, and the death of Katherine’s grandfather. Forever, released in 1975, has been frequently challenged during the past 38 years. The most controversial issue today will be the detailed depictions of sexual intercourse and foreplay; Katherine and Michael are very much in love and engage in frequent sexual acts. Katherine is sexually inexperienced and frequently rebuffs Michael’s advances, so the act of intercourse doesn’t occur until halfway through the book (101) and even then it is unlikely to be considered erotic. Their couplings are brief and Katherine is frequently in pain or disappointed during sex while Michael experiences premature ejaculation. While depictions of heavy petting, oral sex, and intercourse occur at several points throughout the book, it is not the sole focus of the novel; instead the focus is placed on Katherine’s feelings towards Michael and on her positive interactions with her family. The sexual situations can even feel a bit sanitized at times; Blume uses the euphemism “Ralph” for Michael’s penis which makes the sexual content feel somewhat removed from reality. For example, a passage that reads “I began to stroke Ralph (97)” does not read as graphic as the alternative “I began to stroke his penis”. Other sources of controversy and concern include everything from the use of birth control to mild swearing to abortion. Birth control was a major source of controversy around the time the book was released, but it seems unlikely it would still be an issue today as Katherine was two

Sharp 3 weeks away from turning 18 when she received the birth control pill. Others may possibly be offended by the character Artie, a teenager who questions his sexuality and attempts to commit suicide before being committed to a mental institution. The issue of confused sexuality is unlikely to cause problems as we never see or hear of Artie acting on this question and it is never clear if the character was gay or simply questioning. The suicide attempt is only briefly mentioned and done in a nonviolent way by hanging from a shower rod; the character had been known to suffer from mood swings and to have some serious family issues so it is not simply included for shock value. Additionally, there is some swearing in the beginning of the book although it is infrequent. “Fucking” (40), “Bitch” (47), and “Shit” (48) are each used once during particularly heated moments and not used again. Marijuana is used by adults, but the teenage main characters avoid it as Katherine does not like to lose control of herself. Alcohol is used when the characters turn 18 (as it was legal when the book was written), but Katherine drinks responsibly and her friends who drink excessively become horribly sick and seem to regret it. Finally, some Pro-Life proponents may not appreciate Katherine and her best friend’s view of abortion. The girls seem to have no qualms about having one: “I’d have an abortion…wouldn’t you?” “In a minute…” (140); although those same detractors may be pleased to see that a girl who actually becomes pregnant hides her pregnancy so as to keep her parents from demanding she have an abortion. It could be argued that this was a product of its time as the book was written shortly after Roe vs. Wade was first passed. One could also argue that idle conversation is very different than actually being faced with an unplanned pregnancy. These points of controversy must be taken in context. The characters engage in frequent sexual activity, but there is a heavy focus on how sex without love is meaningless and Katherine takes her time to ensure that she is not being pressured into something she is not ready for. She

Sharp 4 receives a substantial amount of information from Planned Parenthood and her adult family members about the physical and emotional risks involved and we see many of these drawbacks firsthand. Michael had gonorrhea at one point after having (presumably) unprotected sex, a high school senior becomes pregnant, and Katherine experiences pain and disappointment during the majority of her sexual encounters. This isn’t glamorized Hollywood sex that many teenagers are accustomed to, this is a book that takes a long hard look at sex and asks the readers to determine if the costs are worth the benefits. Although this book has been banned or challenged at several points since 1975, I do not believe it should still be banned today. Judy Blume has won countless literary and lifetime achievement awards and in 1996, YALSA awarded Forever with the Margaret A Edwards Award for its lasting contribution to YA literature (“1996 Margaret,” n.d.). I think the main concern is that young readers will confuse Judy Blume’s children’s series Fudge for her Young Adult book Forever, but I am not planning to put this book alongside those excellent books. This is a book written for high school students about high school students and as such they should be allowed the opportunity to read it. HW Wilson’s Senior High School Library Catalog labels this book as being appropriate for grades 9 through 12, recommending it as part of a Core Collection, whereas parent reviewers from Common Sense Media rated it as being for ages 13 and up (Pavao, n.d.). This is not required reading, parents who do not wish their teenagers to read this book can ask them not to, but parents who wish to use Forever as a discussion tool should also have that opportunity. Given that children receive limited exposure to sex education in the schools, but instead are exposed to sex via the media (many watch R rated movies in middle school) or friends from middle and early high school who have become pregnant, this book should be made available to all students in my high school. Furthermore, given the rates of

Sharp 5 early high school dropout and the notably young age of teenage pregnancy, limiting the book to Juniors and Seniors limits its effectiveness during the time when my teens arguably need it the most. Likewise, requiring parental permission to check out this book will only discourage my teens from reading it given that explaining to a parent why they want to read a book with sexual content will likely be too uncomfortable for most of them and they will instead seek less reputable sources. I can understand much of the reasoning for this book to be challenged in 1975, but our culture has changed quite a bit over the past 40 years and we should look at this book with fresh eyes in light of our current social climate. This is a thoughtful, intelligent look at teenage sexuality by an award-winning, established writer and will remain in my collection.

Sharp 6 References 1996 Margaret A. Edwards Award Winner | Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA). (n.d.). American Library Association. Retrieved July 31, 2013, from http://www.ala.org/yalsa/booklistsawards/bookawards/margaretaedwards/maeprevious/1 996awardwinner Blume, J. (1975). Forever ...: a novel. Scarsdale, N.Y.: Bradbury Press. Pavao, K. (n.d.). Forever - Book Review. Reviews and Ratings for Family Movies, TV Shows, Websites, Video Games, Books and Music. Retrieved July 31, 2013, from http://www.commonsensemedia.org/book-reviews/forever