The Troll Under the Bridge: should Australian publishers of young adult literature act as moral-gatekeepers?
Date: 07/12/2023
Author: Shivaun Plozza
Format: Article
Time: 1 hour
Level: Librarians, publishers, the general public
Subject Area: Literacy, censorship, information access, right to read freely, young adult literature, adolescent development.
Objective: Research on censorship within YA literature
Reason for attending: Comprehension of perceived impact of texts deemed detrimental to YA readers from the perspective of the writer and publisher.
What was learnt: Australian children’s and YA author Shivaun Plozza has won a myriad of awards and honours for their novels and short fiction, and is highly regarded for their poetry and essays. Formerly an English and Philosophy secondary teacher they are a passionate advocate for young readers, and include creative writing tuition, editing and assessment of manuscripts for adults and youth in their repertoire. Describing themselves as a “character-focused writer” (Booktopia, 2022, para 5) their protagonists are generally adolescents trying to accept/ combat their environment to better understand themselves (Booked Out, 2023).
Plozza’s essay “The troll under the bridge: should Australian publishers of young adult literature act as moral-gatekeepers?” is composed from the perspective of writer, editor and teacher with a strong philosophical foundation. Using two contentious Australian YA texts, Sleeping Dogs (Sonya Hartnett, 1997) and Dear Miffy (John Marsden, 1997) Plozza discusses purported consequences and potential censorship of YA reading material within “the moral, social and psychological development of its readers” (pg. 1)
Plozza articulates the variance in purpose of children’s and YA fiction, dependant on perception. For the intended audience these texts promote reading for leisure, enjoyment, discovery, information, escapism and affirmation of “social orthodoxy” (societal norms) (Nimon and Foster, 1997 cited by Plozza, pg. 2) and “moral education” (West, 1998, cited by Plozza, pg. 2). From a parental standpoint YA fiction is often as “primarily a teaching tool, and only secondarily an art form” (Pausaker, 1194, cited by Plozza, pg. 3) that should reinforce their social skills, values and moral standing to be considered appropriate.
Plozza queries the purpose of youth fiction in relation to the former, “should YA be a space to safely and objectively navigate complex, open-ended moral dilemmas?” or the latter “should YA treat its reader… as a passive receptor of the unambiguous views and values dictated to him or her by knowledgeable, authoritarian adults?” (pg. 2) in which they are “impressionable, reckless and incapable of self-reflection” (pg. 3). Plozza differentiates these as two separate markets that require consideration from writers, publishers and information providers. The author champions the young reader as possessing perceptivity, intuition and insight to see beyond uncertainties of morality, ambiguity, social realism and character flaws that are deemed potentially damaging by some parents.
Plozza makes a valid point in her identification of YA fiction as a “readership, not a genre” (pg. 6) in that it caters for as wide a range of readers as adult fiction but with more defined parameters relating to individual social and emotional development, maturity and suitability. YA fiction requires determination of appropriateness for particular age groups: a 17 year old is far more likely to have higher sagacity to comprehend realistic portrayals of challenging characters, actions and consequences than a 13 year old. Successful YA writers consider the maturity of their intended audience in their presentation and detail of fiction, and have confidence in publishers and providers to purposefully promote the material to a pertinent audience.
Relationship to work or study
As an imminent librarian specialising in young adult readership Plozza’s article is extremely relevant in advisory services, particularly in parental interview discussion. Whilst it is important to respect adult opinion in suitability of material for their child, it is the reader themselves who will invest the time and effort to engage with the book. Their age, interests and emotional maturity are paramount in their reading experience and require professional consideration. It may potentially take some gentle encouragement toward the parent to remove their censorship glasses and acknowledge that books depicting negative, challenging and contentious issues are less likely to promote such behaviours in their children than to “prepare, inform and empower” them for the real world (pg. 3).
Connected Libraries and Frankston High school are guided by best practice and differentiate resources according to age, maturity and appropriateness . The latter particularly will read every potentially challenging text to discern between junior, middle and senior suitability (or not), and arrange and shelve them accordingly.
Plozza’s article is relevant to INF205: Literature and Other Resources for Children and Young Adults”; INF329 Leadership in Library Service to Children, and Young Adults and INF330 Library Services for Children and Youth (8) as it discusses cultural and social influences in YA reading, librarian advocacy of the YA patron and facilitation of information resources, services and access to this readership group.
References
Booked Out. (2024). Shivaun Plozza: Author, new speakers. https://bookedout.com.au/find-a-speaker/authdventureor/shivaun-plozza/
Booktopia. (2020). Ten terrifying questions with Shivaun Plozza! https://www.booktopia.com.au/blog/2020/10/22/ten-terrifying-questions-with-shivaun-plozza/
Plozza, S. (2015). The troll under the bridge: should Australian publishers of young adult literature act as moral-gatekeepers? In TEXT Special Issue 32: Why YA?: Researching, writing and publishing Young Adult fiction in Australia. Seymour, J. & Beckton, D (Eds).