It is not unusual to use fiction literature in order to help children understand the process of growing up.
A teacher uses books from on-campus libraries as ways to approach complex issues in a more subtle manner, but what happens when these books, such as “The Higher Power of Lucky,” by Susan Patron, create controversy as opposed to their original purpose, to inspire and educate? Due to one word, “scrotum,” mentioned within the first two paragraphs of Patron’s book, librarians and teachers have denounced it and some have even refused to stock it in their libraries or read it aloud in classrooms.
The single passage of the word scrotum was brought forth when the 10-year-old heroine, Lucy, an orphan living in a small town called Hard Pan, Calif., eavesdrops on an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting and hears the word when a recovering alcoholic, Sammy, explains his lowest moment.
The story reads, “Sammy told of the day when he had drunk half a gallon of rum listening to Johnny Cash all morning in his parked ’62 Cadillac, then fallen out of the car when he saw a rattlesnake on the passenger seat biting his dog, Roy, on the scrotum.” The book continues to say how Lucky thought, “Scrotum sounded like something green that comes up when you have the flu and cough too much. It sounded medical and secret but also important.”
All this talk about scrota has brought forth debates on what should be acceptable content for children’s literature. “The Higher Power of Lucky,” a story meant for children between the ages of nine and 11, was recently awarded the John Newberry Medal, the most distinguished medal for children’s literature. Patron believes there is controversy only because the word was mentioned on the first page of the book. However, after first reference, the word “scrotum” was defined tactfully.
Patron was stunned by the objections to her book and feels that the whole purpose of the story has been blurred by just one word. “I wanted to write an honest story that would fill readers with hope and let them see that even in a gravely flawed world, there are adults who will nurture them, adults – no matter how scruffy and unlikely – who have compassion and integrity. I wanted to give readers a book in which they, like Lucky, would find courage, love and empowerment,” Patron wrote in a Los Angeles Times article speaking out against the protest of her book.
It’s nerve-racking to see such uproar over a single passage of a word that was used properly. Many children reference their private parts improperly.
Megan Alvaro, a sixth grade teacher at Monroe Magnet Middle School in Inglewood, Calif., said, “Between the ages of nine and 11 children know what a scrotum is, usually not as a scrotum but as their ‘balls.’ It is appropriate for teachers to step in and help students use correct terminology when referencing them.”
Librarians and teachers who have issues with stocking Patron’s book back it up by stating that children will mock the usage of the term, creating an uncomfortable environment while teachers or librarians try to explain the definition of the word. However, many issues in teaching can be uncomfortable, and it is all about how one approaches the situation. Students may giggle at first, but setting boundaries in the classroom will reassure students that it is merely a matter of understanding how to refer to one’s anatomy.
It is important for teachers and librarians to deal with quality literature in a quality way. We shouldn’t reject such literature because of word usage. Instead of teaching about reality, we in America tend to be sheltered and make normal things taboo. It is time that we unite in understanding that children will grow up to be adults and then befittingly help them transition to that future.
Candice Curtis is a senior public relations major.
