In Robert Cormier’s The Chocolate War. the narrative itself may be considered a small controversial. Although the plot line is interesting and many people had their eyes glued to the page. others believe that some parts in the book are excessively controversial that it should be banned in schools. I personally believe that even though The Chocolate War was an interesting book to read. it should be banned from schools.
While reading The Chocolate War. I noticed that the manner Cormier depicts the females’ functions in this book was a small male chauvinist. Discrimination against genders is an arguable subject. When Archie thinks by himself waiting for Obie. he realizes that he’s been so busy with his work that he “doesn’t seem to hold any clip to himself any longer. non even clip for girls” and he thinks back to the yearss when “you could allow your eyes devour some juicy sights and normally speak one of [ the misss ] into the auto. for a drive home” and normally halt one time in awhile for some roundabout waies.
In my sentiment. Archie treats girls merely as eye-candy. He doesn’t attention about their personality or their wellbeing but merely their physical visual aspect. While Jerry was lying down seeking to fall asleep. he laid their thought about the miss and the manner “her jumper had bulged attractively. her textbooks pressed against her rounded breasts” and he merely wished for the books to be his custodies. All Jerry was believing about was his yearning to touch the girl’s chests. Alternatively of believing about what truly makes her beautiful. he laid at that place in bed thought of her chests and nil else. Girls in this book are merely thought of as something reasonably to look at.
Another debatable subject is the manner faith is portrayed in the book. Trinity High School is an all male childs Catholic school. but the pupils are really blasphemous. When Obie and Archie are working on assignments to give to people. Obie swears and Archie Acts of the Apostless like he cares but he subsequently admits that “when you march down to the rail. you’re having The Body [ but he is ] merely masticating a wafer they buy by the lb in Worcester ( 9 ) ” . Archie isn’t serious about his faith. He merely does what he has to make but doesn’t truly believe in any of it. During that same conversation between Obie and Archie. Archie besides reveals his beliefs about the function of Jesus when he doesn’t refer to Jesus as his leader but as “a cat who walked the Earth for 33 old ages like any other cat but caught the imaginativeness of some PR cats ( 10 ) ” . This besides shows that Archie has no regard for Jesus even though he calls himself a Catholic. He speaks as if he isn’t spiritual at all.
Defiance is besides seen legion times during the book. Normally. schools have the standard hierarchy of instructors being in charge of pupils. but at Trinity. the pupils seem to hold more power over the instructors. Brother Leon asked Archie to assist with the cocoa gross revenues because “ [ he ] has influence” on the pupils and Archie agreed that the Vigils will assist him even though the Vigils was supposed to be a secret organisation and instructors try to disregard the being of it. but Archie thought “it was beautiful to utilize [ those words and ] to see the surprise on Leon’s picket sweating face ( 27 ) ” . It shows that Archie likes to dally with those who are supposed to be above him.
Although Brother Leon has high quality over Archie. Archie still ends up turning the tabular arraies and leaves Leon as the one to sudate. During Jerry’s battle with Emile. Brother Leon was watching it from a distance and when Brother Jacques was traveling to set the incrimination on Archie. Leon came to his deliverance because Archie knew that “if [ Leon ] was here and portion of the proceedings. he’d besides be protection for [ them ] if anything went incorrect ( 211 ) ” . Leon doesn’t have a good sense of judgement because he allows Archie and The Vigils to walk all over him. Archie and The Vigils abuse the fact that the instructors at Trinity. particularly Brother Leon. are pushovers.
One concluding debatable subject in the book is the violent and disdainful Acts of the Apostless that are being portrayed in the book. The pupils at Trinity are so disrespectful towards one another and they think the lone solution to their jobs is to reason and contend. During the clip that Archie encountered Emile in an awkward state of affairs. Archie blackmailed him with a image because “the exposure besides could be used as a weapon” . but small did Emile cognize that Archie was lying approximately taking a image ( 85 ) . Archie seems like he wants to worsen Emile merely because he thinks it’s good story.
It’s events like these where immature male childs start to hold jobs with each other which can later on lead to confrontation. Emile besides provoked Jerry in a state of affairs where he was naming him a fagot and impeaching him of “living in the cupboard. concealment away” because he wanted to pick a battle with him ( 171 ) . Emile’s the type of individual with a violent nature because this battle between him and Jerry was unjust and Jerry was provoked. Emile merely enjoys the hurting that he inflicts on others because he finds the wretchedness of other people slightly diverting.
Other statements about Cormier’s novel The Chocolate War are that it shouldn’t be banned because non all readers are immature. My ground for believing that The Chocolate War should be banned from schools is because immature readers might non be able to manage the mature content in the book like how big readers can. If this book is available to immature readers at their school library. they might non be able to to the full understand what’s traveling on in the narrative without holding jobs with the force or sexual content. It’s of import to recognize that there are twice every bit many immature immature readers as there are mature 1s.
I feel really strongly about my grounds on why The Chocolate War should be banned from schools. This book is really sexist towards females because even though misss were barely mentioned. every clip they were. it was about their physical visual aspect and how the male childs react to it. There were besides some pupils who didn’t have every bit much religion in their faith as they should hold and talk of blasphemy. The instructors besides didn’t know their topographic point because they were ne’er in charge of the pupils because the pupils ever overpowered them.
And in conclusion. the pupils didn’t have regard to non merely the instructors. but besides the pupils because they took each other for granted and fought and argued with each other over things that shouldn’t truly matter. These are the grounds why this book should be banned from schools and maintain off from those immature readers who don’t cognize how to cover with subjects outside of their comfort zone.
