This post will be used to reflect my current feelings on doing primary source research and trying to get in contact with others for interviews.
In the course of this research project, creating a website with a plethora of different sources, and setting up interviews, things are bound to go wrong and you will have setbacks. The never ending Ocean of Life will bring wave upon wave till it swallows you whole. The wind will fan the flames as you feel overwhelmed with all of your school work pile up. The earth will shake and you will feel powerless as the world around you crumbles down. But, there is a silver lining. If you are able to embrace the chaos going on around you, you will be able to emerge wiser, stronger, and prepared for the next storm or fire or earthquake. At this point of the semester, the flames are a roaring, and now is the time to focus on the research, the website, and the interviews.
The amount of research that my partner and me have compiled is staggering, but that is all through newspapers and opinion pieces of the book censorship. Song of Solomon has faced the fire in St. Mary’s county, and it appears to have emerged unscathed from the censorship. One thing I was interested in was if anytime since the first conflict of the novel in the County if it has been tired to be used again. Or if it is on any school suggested reading lists. But much like everything in life, your questions and exploration sometimes come up with nothing but more questions than answers. Looking into the ban and any additional bans has come up with no yield, it would have added to our website to see if the book were to be banned again. Possibly have a comparison of the complaints against Toni Morrison’s book.
The most recent progress I have made on editing the website is our “about the author” tab. I started off much like any other biography about an author and started to look at her education, where she grew up, when she graduated high school and college, and seeing if they went onto any major accomplishments. Toni Morrison is one of the most successful African American writers in the United States, her books and novels, all in some way similar to the Song of Solomon, such as the Bluest Eye, have helped her to earn several awards and lifetime achievements. The research of her life helped me to put more of the novel into perspective, from what is known about the Song of Solomon and why it was banned, I never would have imagined her other books facing similar charges. But I also believe that the book was banned for additional reasons than what I initially learned, race also played a large roll in its censorship. Toni Morrison’s book was censored in some other school districts, but it will take additional research in order to find out those causes, and connect them back to our County in a specific case.