According to Susan Jacoby , "political correctness has run mad in public education." I can't help, but agree. At times this may be appropriate so as not to offend. Other times, though, the obsession with being politically correct runs nearly on the verge of censorship. In the case of books, if the public becomes too concerned with being politically correct, they may lose the moral behind the story. For example at
this link, there is a politically correct satire of Little Red Riding Hood. The rhetoric is distracting and the readers lose sight of the original intent of the fable. This shows that if the public becomes too concerned with political correctness they may be sacrificing education.
What I wonder though is why America particularly seems to be obsessed with being politically correct? I'm sure it can be attributed to the belief in our various freedoms, but I think being bothered by a show, book, or movie because of its political incorrectness is whining over the trivial.
Your thoughts?
I'm going to have to bring in my copy of The Language Police by Diane Ratvich. It would be funny if it weren't true.
ReplyDeleteI hadn't noticed how ridiculous we had become in our efforts of being politically correct. The Little Red Riding Hood story really allowed me to see the faults in our obsession. I guess because it sounded, although funny, very unnatural. I think we are growing so use to it that we have forgotten the meaning and purpose of being "politically correct” and it has become a kind of second nature to us.
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