Layla Word
Mrs. Knapp
Honors English I
15 December 2014
The Censorship of Ray Bradbury According to definitions.net, censorship is “deleting parts of publications or correspondence or theatrical performances.” Censorship may apply to any form of self-expression. Art, music, speech, and literature are some examples. In America, many pieces of literature have been censored over time, either by government or schools. At times, certain books have even been banned. “Controversial books are still removed from or kept out of local public libraries across the country” (Index on Censorship). Ray Bradbury was one author who was more than familiar with his work being manipulated, so it would be less offensive to the public. One of Bradbury’s most
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He was born in Waukegan, Illinois and lived there until he was about 14. When he was 14, him and his family loaded up and migrated to Los Angeles, California. He had always had a passion for writing and decided to become a writer around the age 12 or 13. He could not afford to attend college, so while he was writing, he sold newspapers to support himself. Bradbury married Marguerite McClure, a book clerk whom he met while she was working. The couple had four daughters, Susan, Ramona, Bettina, and Alexandra. The first extensive book Ray Bradbury ever published was called The Martian Chronicles (A&E). Fahrenheit 451, ironically, is a book in which censorship is a centralized theme. It was first published in 1953 (Lancto). In 1967, however, Ballantine Books took it upon themselves to omit the curse words and alter two situations in the story before publishing a “special edition for high school students” (Karolides 488). In the censored version, the words hell, damn, and abortion were left out. They changed a drunk man to an ill man in the new version. Also, a portion of the story that refers to a person’s belly button being cleaned was changed to their ears being cleaned