paradox
(㇏(•̀ᵥᵥ•́)ノ)
Why would anyone be faced with sexual content in a public library?
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Library Idiocy
- Thread starter The Hammer
- Start date
Whoa! There’s sexual content in this library?
What do they have in stock?
The libertine books from the 1500s perhaps? Which I suppose did indeed have hardcore pornography in them, though they are still considered part of the Western canon (aka classical literature.)
The classical Greco/Roman myths, which were often rather lurid, depending on the translation.
Shakespeare? With all his bawdy jokes and scandalous material about murder, revenge and suicide?
How about Chaucer and his downright filthy Canterbury tales?
1001 Arabian nights, perhaps? With its tales told to a sultan who was killing all his brides after the wedding night sexcapades? (No, seriously, that’s literally the framing device for the classic collection of tales.)
Any public library worth their salt should at least stock some classical literature. So really the question should be, why wouldn’t you encounter sexual material in a public library?
Nothing bawdier than the classics, as they say
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PureX
Veteran Member
Because sexuality is a huge part of the human experience, and libraries exist to contain and share information collected about the human experience.
paradox
(㇏(•̀ᵥᵥ•́)ノ)
You're probably right, but I don't think anyone would find these books disturbing, in fact many people would enjoy hardcore stuff I'm sure.Whoa! There’s sexual content in this library?
What do they have in stock?
The libertine books from the 1500s perhaps? Which I suppose did indeed have hardcore pornography in them, though they are still considered part of the Western canon (aka classical literature.)
The classical Greco/Roman myths, which were often rather lurid, depending on the translation.
Shakespeare? With all his bawdy jokes and scandalous material about murder, revenge and suicide?
How about Chaucer and his downright filthy Canterbury tales?
1001 Arabian nights, perhaps? With its tales told to a sultan who was killing all his brides after the wedding night sexcapades? (No, seriously, that’s literally the framing device for the classic collection of tales.)
Any public library worth their salt should at least stock some classical literature. So really the question should be, why wouldn’t you encounter sexual material in a public library?
Nothing bawdier than the classics, as they say
I should probably correct myself and say that LGBT books were likely found sexually disturbing to local residents so they decided to defund the library.
homosexuality is definitely not huge part of human experience and beside that I think books on sexuality are absolutely unneeded.
Yeah, let's get rid of the community library (it won't be replaced). Because 84/70000 books were "wrong".
I just love the snowflake right.
Edited: they have 70000 books in carry. Soo... That's 0.12% I think.
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Aštra’el
Aštara, Blade of Aštoreth
Really? Because I never would have learned how to be comfortable with myself and sexuality if I didn't have some gay role models, and actual literature to read that reflected my lived experience as a bisexual man growing up in the late 90s.
So I'll agree to disagree with your point here. Unless you think my straight parents had any idea on how to educate a LGBT teen.....
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VoidCat
Pronouns: he/him/they/them
As a kid the only proper sex education I got was from library books. Just saying. The sex ed was so bad where i come from I had to once explain to a fellow classmate in high school having sex standing up does not prevent pregnancy. I then directed them to the school library where they had books on sex ed and a few on pregnancy because the girl they slept with had a missed period and they were a bit worried. I don't know if the girl was pregnant and that's why they missed their period or not but the books I lead them to probably were very useful to the guy i showed them to.
I think age appropriate educational books on sex ed is a must for for schools particularly middle and high schools
I'm upset at any library being closed. **** I still cry about the library of Alexandria.
But who is the snowflake enough to ***** to the point of getting books cancelled, because I'm not being forced to read them.....
Aštra’el
Aštara, Blade of Aštoreth
I'm upset at any library being closed. **** I still cry about the library of Alexandria.
But who is the snowflake enough to ***** about getting books cancelled, because I'm not being forced to read them.....
It is entirely possible that we have a situation of snowflakes complaining about snowflakes complaining…
I mean in fairness, a lot of the content might be a bit hard to spot without some insider knowledge. Like a lot of the really dirty jokes Shakespeare used were in the slang of his era, so you kind of need a bit of a translation to understand them today lol
It says a lot about a person that they find a benign book about a gay person living their life far more disturbing than say 50 Shades of Gray. A book literally about discovering and enjoying BDSM.
Apparently the book was even shunned by the actual BDSM community for being harmful. Fun fact.
Or even say Lolita, a book about a pedophile who kidnaps and rapes a young child, told through his perspective.
I can only conclude that such folks are merely bigots desperately looking for plausible deniability. Because they know that in civilised society such behaviour is frowned upon these days.
And to be honest with you, I think such folks should just mind their own damned business and let others enjoy the books. Even if they might not like those books.
I thought Americans valued freedom, no?
Where’s the free speech loving anti censorship folks on this one?
Guys???
Is any book really needed?
I mean is your life going to altered that significantly by reading Homer or Wilde? I mean honestly?
And yet we stock them all the same. If you don’t want to read a book, no one is forcing you to. But the option should be available to folks if they so happen to choose for themselves if they want to read it. Again that whole freedom thing Americans like to boast about. Doesn’t seem very freedom loving to me.
Thread, or forum....ahem...
Again, not really. Because no one is trying to shut down libraries because they are carrying Trump Jr books or Christian books promoting Christian family values.
Only one end here seems to be getting the short and end of the dick... Eerrr stick.
Secret Chief
nirvana is samsara
I hear ya bro.
muichimotsu
Holding All and None
That's not remotely how libraries work, they are not beholden to the preferences of their community in an absolute sense, they are meant to give access to a broad array of materials and subjects, not just what makes a majority (or in this case, a vocal minority moralizing about things that they don't understand) comfortable
Because that arrangement is not freedom of information remotely, it's authoritarianism via populist mobs claiming they're "protecting the children" or other sound bites that seem affable, but they're superficial at best and hypocritical at worst
JDMS
Academic Workhorse
Among those 8,618 people, at least 350 of them are likely queer adults given the state averages. Do those 350 people's opinions not matter? Do they not deserve their own freedoms to enjoy what they want? No one has to read the book.
muichimotsu
Holding All and None
Your personal library is just that, it's not funded by taxpayer money and donations, it's not involved with the community, it's insular and otherwise a library in name only as to the broader functions of libraries in society. Unless you're also doing the various functions that a library is generally expected to do, then don't try to compare your personal collection to something that is communal in nature and not about protecting the feelings of reactionaries that prefer a status quo where their children remain ignorant of the world
muichimotsu
Holding All and None
The community's will and their welfare are not always the same thing: people can be so selfish and short sighted they advocate things against their own self interest and values without realizing it
muichimotsu
Holding All and None
LGBTQ is not exclusively or even primarily sexual attraction. Also pretty sure libraries don't just loan out any book to any patron, especially those who are underage, there's protocol there, same as protecting personal information
muichimotsu
Holding All and None
So you think sexuality shouldn't be something that we discuss at all or just when it makes you or others comfortable? Thing with social change, it's not meant to be comfortable or it wouldn't be addressing injustices and actually be improving things, it'd be putting a bandaid on a festering wound and acting like it's okay because no one can see it under that appearance of cleanliness
"Disturbing"? Being offended is part of life, we don't assume children are so utterly stupid they can't understand things in an age appropriate fashion or that generally children will want to read certain things, juveniles will want to read certain things, young adults have their preferences, etc, that's why libraries tend to divide it up like that