Faith and Literature: A Look at Book Censorship

For centuries, society has debated the issue of book censorship. Before Johannes Gutenberg introduced the printing press in 1455, the burning of hand-scribed books destroyed limited copies and guaranteed they would not be read. With the printing press, books could be produced in greater numbers; yet, printed speech was still a commodity that could be controlled. In 1517, Pope Leo X condemned Martin Luther\u27s Ninety Five Theses, an early example of religious censorship of materials deemed dangerous or subversive. Political censorship quickly followed when Emperor Charles V issued the Edict ofWorms, containing a Law ofPrinting which banned the printing, copying, sale, or reading of Luther\u27s writings (Foerstel xi). Beginning in 1564, the Catholic papacy promulgated its Index Librorum Prohibitorum (Index of Prohibited Books). Compiled by the Holy Inquisition in Rome, the Index listed the books and authors Catholics were prohibited from printing or reading. This censorship system was finally abandoned in 1966, the last list having been published in 1881 and last revised in 1900 (Karolides 156). Protestant censorship during this time relied more on the state as the source of censorship. In England, the crown issued censorship regulations that were then enforced by civil agencies. However, Europe\u27s heterogeneity and lack of political cooperation allowed authors to have their books printed in other countries, thereby avoiding local censorship (Foestel xii). In the nineteenth century, a social consensus on censorship emerged. Private virtues and propriety became grounds on which books were examined. Ann Alter claims, in her introduction to the 1984 New York Public Library exhibition on censorship, that there may have been more censorship, self-imposed or otherwise, during the nineteenth century in the United States and England than during all the preceding centuries (Foestel xii). In the twentieth century in America, book censorship debates continued, predominantly centered around the interpretation of the First Amendment. Today, the debate goes on. Throughout history, books have been banned and suppressed due to the beliefs of the times. As society changes, many books that were once banned become acceptable and many even become classics such as Harper Lee\u27s To Kill a Mockingbird or Mark Twain\u27s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Books that were once deemed inappropriate, such as James Joyce\u27s Ulysses and D.H. Lawrence\u27s Lady Chatterley\u27s Lover, now appear on college courses\u27 required reading lists (Karolides IX). While these books have not changed, the social environment has. Huge strides have been made against book censorship; yet, twenty-first-century society continues to debate the issue of free speech versus book censorship. At the close of the twentieth century, several infamous book censorship incidents gained international media coverage. Many who are familiar with the title The Satanic Verses (1988) know of Salman Rushdie\u27s novel not because they have read the book but because of the massive media coverage of the international controversy it spurred. The Satanic Verses led to public outcry, numerous bomb threats, violent demonstrations, a death edict against Rushdie issued by the Iranian government, and a three million-dollar reward for Rushdie\u27s death. In the United States, J.K. Rawling\u27s Harry Potter series ( 1997-2007) created controversy when religious fundamentalists claimed it promoted satanic worship, witchcraft, and occultism. Book burnings, church sermons, boycotts, and media coverage of the controversy reminded Americans that book censorship is still an active issue today. Most censorship attempts in the United States today challenge books available in libraries and taught in the classroom. The American Library Association (ALA) Office for Intellectual Freedom recorded 3,869 book challenges in school or public libraries during the years of 2000 to 2007. Research suggests that for each challenge reported there are as many as four or five which go unreported. If that is correct, the number of challenges made in the United States between 2000 and 2007 could easily be 19,000 (American Library Association). As a Christian and English major at a Baptist university, I believe this issue is particularly relevant to my life. How has the history of book censorship impacted society today? What are the current United States Supreme Court rulings on book censorship? How does book censorship affect my education at a private Baptist university? Where should I draw the line between valuing literature as art and staying true to my faith? These are the questions I hope to answer

Happily Ever After? Redefining Womanhood and Marriage in Nineteenth-Century Novels

Jane Austen, Elizabeth Gaskell, Charlotte Brontë, and Henry James challenged patriarchal conventions and assumptions by redefining womanhood and marriage in their novels, particularly by breaking from the traditional marriage ending. While Pride and Prejudice, North and South, and Jane Eyre end in marriage, these novels depict a freely chosen companionate marriage based on equality; Villette replaces the typical marriage ending with complete independence; and Washington Square and The Portrait of a Lady both portray the decisive rejection of the marriage ideal for a life of renunciation. This thesis analyzes the ways in which these novels challenge nineteenth-century society, as well as the ways they fail to break free from the confines of patriarchy. It looks at the ways in which each novel portrays womanhood and marriage and questions whether the novel presents a realistic alternative for women struggling to attain independence in an oppressive society

Comparative structures and evolution of vertebrate lipase H (LIPH) genes and proteins: a relative of the phospholipase A1 gene families

Lipase H (LIPH) is a membrane-bound phospholipase generating 2-acyl lysophosphatidic acid (LPA) in the body. LPA is a lipid mediator required for maintaining homeostasis of diverse biological functions and in activating cell surface receptors such as P2Y5, which plays an essential role in hair growth. Bioinformatic methods were used to predict the amino acid sequences, secondary and tertiary structures, and gene locations for LIPH genes and encoded proteins using data from several vertebrate genome projects. Vertebrate LIPH genes contained ten coding exons transcribed on either the positive or negative DNA strands. Evidence is presented for duplicated LIPH genes for the chicken and zebra fish genomes. Vertebrate LIPH protein subunits shared 56–97 % sequence identities and exhibited sequence alignments and identities for key LIPH amino acid residues as well as extensive conservation of predicted secondary and tertiary structures with those previously reported for horse pancreatic lipase (LIPP), with ‘N-signal peptide’, ‘lipase,’ and ‘plat’ structural domains. Comparative studies of vertebrate LIPH sequences with other phospholipase A1-like lipases (LIPI and PS-PLA1), as well as vascular and pancreatic lipases, confirmed predictions for LIPH N-terminal signal peptides (residues 1–18); a conserved vertebrate LIPH N-glycosylation site (66NVT for human LIPH); active site ‘triad’ residues (Ser 154; Asp 178; His 248); disulfide bond residues (233–246; 270–281; 284–292; 427–446), and a ‘short’ 12 residue ‘active site lid’, which is comparable to other phospholipases examined. Phylogenetic analyses demonstrated the relationships and potential evolutionary origins of the vertebrate LIPH family of genes related to, but distinct from other phospholipase A1-like genes (LIPI and PS-PLA1), and from vascular lipase and pancreatic lipase gene families. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s13205-012-0087-z) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users