Burned Books, Banned Books
On Wednesday, September 25th, Professor Daniel Sarefield gave a PowerPoint lecture on the history of book burning. This event was part of the Fahrenheit 251 Collaborative Project with Cultural Alliance partners, the Fitchburg Art Museum, Fitchburg State University, Fitchburg Public Library, Rollstone Gallery, FATV, and WPKZ. Mayor Lisa Wong gave the welcome. Professor Sarefield split his 75-minute speech into three parts, the Contemporary, Personal, and Historical.
Starting with the contemporary view of book burnings, Dan spoke about Pastor Terry Jones, who in 2010 ignited controversy by marking September 11th as “Burn a Quran” day. He initially backed down due to the pressure of media attention but on March 2011, he put a copy of the book on trial and burned it. Other modern references of book burning that were brought up were the burning of Gaddafi ‘s 1957 manifesto. According to Sarefield, book burning and banning became heavily driven by political motives. The ability to maintain what the people read and see in the news and in books can keep people in line and make for much less hassle.
Once he covered the contemporary view of book burning, Dan moved on to his personal experience with censorship by the government. Over the summer, Daniel, his wife Tracy and their daughter Stella traveled to Istanbul. During their time there, the riots revolving around Giza Park erupted and were quickly silenced by the government. Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube were blocked while protestors flooded the streets. Television was also controlled as the news said nothing about the conflict as if pretending it was not happening right outside. It was not until the Sarefields were out of the country that they were able to see how bad things really were for the protestors in Istanbul. The government was using their power to control the flow of information in order to gain a political foothold.
Having covered his first two points, Dan then moved on to the historical background of book burnings. When the first book burning took place is a question that can be answered several times with different answers. The first rumored book burning took place in 500 BCE when Diogenes Laertius, a Greek philosopher, wrote a piece about the possibility of the Gods not existing. His writings were quickly gathered up and burned after they expelled him from Athens. However, outside of a reference to this event, there is no solid proof that it actually occurred. It was not until 181 BCE in Rome that a record appears of a book burning occurring regarding a text that supposedly “pertained to the dissolution of religion.” This is our first look at recorded politically motivated censorship.
The country North Korea burns books with a sense of patriotic duty. Burning books that promote immorality within the people or in most cases books that would cause a deviation from certain ideas. Sarefield ended the presentation by answering questions and having two Fitchburg State students to take people’s opinions regarding what book would save if a book burning took place today.