Dan Humphrey 11/21/13 ENGW1111 Dr.

Cecelia Musselman Project 3; Final Draft MLA 827 words A letter written to the Committee for Public Education of St. Louis County, Minnesota published (but not really) November 4th, 2013 To those who seek to ban Heart of Darkness in the county of St. Louis, Minnesota: Hello, my name is Daniel Humphrey and I am currently a student at Northeastern University in Boston, Massachusetts. I am writing to you all because I have heard that you will be deliberating soon whether to ban the use of Heart of Darkness in your high school classrooms. I am writing to you all to implore you not to do this.

As a student at Northeastern, I have independently read Heart of Darkness and have found problems with it that Im sure many of you would find as well. The book does contain some violence; there is a clear mistreatment of the African people, and racism plays a very prominent role in the story. And yet, these are what make the book so vital as an educational tool.

As educators, you know as well as I do that High School is an important time for the students to decide the kind of person they want to be and how they will define themselves into the future. I recognize the potential dangers inherent to educating impressionable students on racism and violence, and the fear that they might misinterpret the lesson and, rather than recognize these things as wrong, embrace them. But you, their teachers, are able to point out these flaws and

show them who not to be. While you may feel that the racism and abuse present in Heart of Darkness is potentially dangerous, recognize that these dangers are inherent in our society, and that the best chance your students have to fight this bigotry is for you to bring it to light, and show them why these things are wrong.

St. Louis County has nearly 96% of its population identifying as white according to the 2010 census, so I recognize that maybe racism isnt really a problem for you, and that you would rather keep your children from being exposed to the concept. But in this world of increasing connectivity, students are being exposed to things such as racism and homophobia in a much larger sense via the internet, and may not know how to approach it. The benefit of permitting the teaching of Heart of Darkness in your schools is that the teacher will be able to walk through these difficult concepts with the students, and show them why they are wrong. Teachers will be able to discuss King Leopold II of Belgiums complete mistreatment of the Congolese and help the students to see the injustice, so that they dont behave similarly towards others.

And to suggest that the students have no concept of race and sexuality in this new age, and to introduce them to these ideas now would be unnecessary, is nothing but nave. Please do not think that just because our President is half African-American that some people around the country and around the world do not see him as inferior for that reason.

As a novella, Heart of Darkness is an outstanding piece of literature - flowing and complex language, with unforgettable moments which have captured the imagination and inspired the

likes of T.S. Eliot, as well as other authors and poets. The text has been taught in high school and college classrooms for decades and teachers have found endless things to talk about and elaborate upon in the story, such as the history behind the novel, the motivation of each character and the nature of their relationships. It would be a waste and a shame to forbid students access to this piece of literature. Also, considering that the students reading this book are typically between the ages of 16-18, they are reaching a time in their lives when they should be able to make their own decisions. To deny them the choice or opportunity to read Heart of Darkness denies them the opportunity to begin exploring their newfound adulthood, all the way down to what information they can be exposed to. I think we can all agree that when we were that age, we wouldnt be too happy with being told we werent ready to read a particular book, no?

So again, I implore you all as educators or as those who care about the education of your children, give your students the chance to read this book and expose them to maybe unpleasant topics with the purpose of showing them the wrongs. This is a crucial time in their lives to decide who they want to be, and this book has not only pretty poetic writing, but so many important things worth discussing that will help them grow into aware and conscientious adults. I wish you all good luck in your deliberations, and I hope that you make the right choice and decide not to ban Heart of Darkness. Thank you.

Daniel Humphrey Boston, Massachusetts I would like to thank Dr. Cecelia Musselman and Mr. Talal Abuissa for helping me write this letter.