1. Chapter Thirteen

2.  Short-range emotional responses  “I really enjoyed this.”  “I burst out laughing.”  “It revolted me.”  Long-range effects  “I have always tried to live up to the line in Hamlet, ‘To thine own self be true…’”

3.  What about the consequences of the effects of literature?  Does it shape our character and therefore influence our behavior?  If so, then the question remains, what of the negative consequences?

4.  Can we see a literary value in a work that offends us?  Should some works be censored?  Should some kinds of literature be prohibited because they offer the wrong kinds of pleasure?

5.  The pen is mightier than the sword.  Writers are witnesses.  Poetry makes nothing happen.  Literature is without proofs.  Life is amorphous. Literature is formal.

6.  Think of a children’s story (even in film) that you know that, on reflection, may have been appropriate—perhaps damaging—to you or other children.  Think of the same story—or one like it—that seemed inappropriate or damaging that is in truth not damaging, but good for chidren.

7.  Could one say that the censorship of some children’s reading matter or tv shows underrates their ability to think for themselves, and recognize the dangerous, obscene, or tawdry?

8.  He says that allowing poets to say what they please about the gods is “inconsistent.” What might this mean? What is your considered opinion on the matter?

9.  Should parents censor what children read, listen to, or view?  Should the community censor what adults read, listen to, or view?  For instance, should adults be discouraged from listening to rap, watching X-rated film, or telling ethnic jokes?

10.  Should children be taught that some of our Founders were human, and flawed?  Should children be taught that our nation has ever acted wrongly in its international affairs?  If they should, what is the appropriate age for informing them, and how does one inform them so they are not “damaged?”

11.  Should tax dollars support the arts?  Do any social benefits come from supporting the arts with government money?  Should government-supported art be ap0litical?  Is refusal of support a form of censorship?  Who should decide the merits of an artist’s application for government funds?