Darkness Too Visible

      Megan Cox Gurdon wrote the article “Darkness Too Visible” to inform people about her opinion on young adult literature.  In the article, she shows her opinion through examples of books written in the past and books that were just published.  She knows her reader how inappropriate and violent some books are, but she also explains that she doesn’t agree that they should be banned.  “How dark is contemporary fiction for teens?  Darker than when you were a child my dear.”  Says Megan Cox Gurdon.

      To show her opinion she comes across sarcastic and sometimes uses a mocking tone. In her article, the author really shows her belief that books should be judged but not banned because people are allowed to read what they want.

      When someone wants to prove a point, they show their opinion through examples but also through personality and the way they write or speak.  The author of he article uses words like “lurid” and “grotesque” to make me feel what she is really trying to say.  She gives examples from young adult books by Lauren Myracle and describes a certain scene where the character was “savagely beaten.”  Examples like these really put an image in my mind of how disturbing these books can really be.  I got to understand and realize that some books are very inappropriate for young adults and should be judged. 

      Furthermore, to reinforce the author’s voice and how it comes across, only her opinion was really shown in the article.  In the article, the only opinion that is voiced is her own.  There are a few minor counterclaims put in, but she always tries to prove how they are wrong.  I think the reason she only really uses her voice in the article is to really prove a point and to have readers only thinking about what she is saying.

      In addition, Megan Cox Gurdon only includes adult opinions in the article and not young adult opinions.  This is to show how adults feel about these books because most adults feel the same way the author does. 

      Many of the points Megan Cox Gurdon uses are very valid and some I disagree with.  Some young adults books should be judged and discussed because of the disturbing topics, but I don’t believe any should be banned.  Some of the books the author mentions, like “Shine” by Lauren Myracle, are very gruesome and I agree that the content could be inappropriate for many people.  On the other hand, books like Judy Blume, like “Are you there God? It’s me, Margaret”, are books that I think young readers should read because the content maybe a little inappropriate or provocative, but it contains messages opinions that people need to learn and know about and form their own opinion on.