TOPIC GUIDE: DM Israel: Artistic Expression
"Artistic expression should never be censored"
PUBLISHED: 11 Mar 2016
AUTHOR: Anwar Oduro-Kwarteng & Will Turner
Share this Topic Guide:
INTRODUCTION
Last year the northern Israeli city of Nahariya banned several pop songs from being played at ‘Nahariya Village’, a series of concerts and other events. The: “List of Banned ‘Anti-Educational Songs’ for Playing” included ‘Blurred Lines’, a source of controversy outside of Israel too, due to “the culture of rape in the song”, and ‘Anaconda’, because “the song objectifies the buttocks of women and girls” [Ref: Ha’aretz]. Nahariya municipality defended the ban, stating that “we want to be responsible for the content featured in an educational setting, as we feel responsibility for what happens there”[Ref: Ha’aretz], mirroring similar reasons used in several UK universities’ ban of ‘Blurred Lines’ from their student unions [Ref: BBC News]. But some have been critical of the move to ban songs, with one commentator suggesting that “if you look to pop music for moral guidance, you’re an idiot” [Ref: Telegraph]. Censoring of art has often been justified on the basis of reflecting social and religious concerns, perhaps most famously in the case of ‘The Satanic Verses’, a novel by British author Salman Rushdie, which was deemed blasphemous to Islam, banned by various countries around the world, and resulted in a fatwa being issued against the author [Ref: Wikipedia]. More recently artists such as China’s Ai Wei Wei continue to have their work censored and banned by authorities for either being subversive or for upsetting cultural sensitivities, and his exhibition in Tel Aviv – originally planned for March 2015 - was cancelled, with Ai suggesting that censorship was at play [Ref: Ha’aretz]. However critics of censorship in any form, argue that allowing art that is “abhorrent, that shocks, disgusts and appals and causes offence” [Ref: Index on Censorship] is a central part of a thriving democracy, whose “power lies in recognizing that the other has the right to express opinions that are unpleasant and hurtful” [Ref: Index on Censorship]. Should artists have the right to shock and appal, or are there instances where their artistic license should be curtailed? Can some art be so offensive that banning or censoring is the right thing to do? Or should artistic expression always be allowed free reign, without any restriction?
DEBATE IN CONTEXT
This section provides a summary of the key issues in the debate, set in the context of recent discussions and the competing positions that have been adopted.
Art for art’s sake?
As a retort to critics who wanted to see his work censored, nineteenth century writer Oscar Wilde stated that: “There is no such thing as a moral or immoral book. A book is either well written, or badly written, that is all” [Ref: Genius.com]. For Wilde, art should be judged according to its artistic merit, and nothing more. However, the Charlie Hebdo attack last year in Paris reignited the debate about artistic expression, censorship and offence. In contrast to the UK campaign group Index on Censorship, which ran a selection of Charlie Hebdo cartoons online in order “to show that fear should not be allowed to stifle free expression” [Ref: Index on Censorship], the Associated Press declined to follow suit, stating that the: “AP tries hard not to be a conveyor belt for images and actions aimed at mocking or provoking people on the basis of religion, race or sexual orientation.” [Ref: Associated Press] The conflict between these opposing perspectives has recently found expression in domestic Israeli politics. Culture and Sports Minister Miri Regev has made clear that “if it is necessary to censor, I will censor,” and that she “will not lend a hand to damaging the image of the state and Israel Defense Forces soldiers” [Ref: Jerusalem Post]. Critics of her approach point to a host of incidents, from freezing funding to the Arab al-Midan theatre and threatening to do the same to the Jerusalem Film Festival in protest over two films, to the Ministry of Culture withdrawing “its support from a video dance by the choreographer Arkadi Zaides, ‘Archive’, because he used visual materials and the logo of the human rights organization B’Tselem” [Ref: Ha’aretz]. These decisions are justified on the grounds that “there is a big difference between the freedom of expression – which has to be wide, irritating and provoking – and the state’s obligation to fund incitement, against Arabs or against the state” [Ref: Ynet]. In response, Salman Rushie himself suggests that, “original art is never created in the safe middle ground, but always at the edge. Originality is dangerous. It challenges, questions, overturns assumptions, unsettles moral codes, disrespects sacred cows or other such entities. It can be shocking, or ugly, or…controversial” [Ref: New Yorker]. But how far should art go to be original? The decision, for example, by a Swedish gallery to exhibit a painting made from the stolen ashes of holocaust victims, asks us to assess what we find acceptable in art, as well as questioning the extent to which artists have the right to be offensive [Ref: New Statesman].
Decency Vs taste: Blurred Lines?
In Israel, the video of a radical settler wedding where the Dawabsheh murders were celebrated [Ref: Russia Today] has prompted some to question whether traditional Jewish wedding songs are “anthems of hate and incitement”, and should be abandoned as a result [Ref: Ha’aretz]. Meanwhile, there are calls from campaigners for controversial books containing sex, violence, bad language and offensive terms to have ‘trigger warnings’ on the covers. For advocates of such measures, it is not about censorship but accepting that art does not have the right to offend everyone, as one commentator points out: “Trigger warnings are fundamentally about empathy” [Ref: New Statesman]. But trigger warnings could potentially stifle the creative output of writers if they are afraid that their work will come with a warning on the cover opponents argue, with writer Jay Caspian Kang observing that: “Any amount of guidance will lead to dull conformity” in literature [Ref: New Yorker]. Such concerns are heightened by the news that racial epithets are to be censored from the new editions of Mark Twain’s ‘The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn’ because, “abusive racial insults that bear distinct connotations of permanent inferiority…repulse modern-day readers” [Ref: Guardian]. But do we lose something from novels when we seek to censor them retrospectively in such a way? After all, argues one critic, art and literature are meant to push boundaries and make us think: “One thing a novel never is, is simple. That’s why we read them, because they are challenging and thoughtful” [Ref: spiked].
Art, politics and self censorship
For some, the result of restricting artistic expression is that artists will begin to self-censor. Yossi Klein argues that Miri Regev’s appointment and proclamations in defence of censorship will kick-start this phenomenon, stating that “the discussion about the right to free artistic expression won’t be conducted between politicians and artists; each artist will engage in it privately. How far do I need to go to satisfy them, he’ll wonder. What else do I need to censor?” [Ref: Ha’aretz] This, critics of censorship fear, is problematic because: “Art can only mirror the culture which produced it. It shows us all of the positive aspects of humanity, but it is also the duty of art to examine the uncomfortable, dark stuff. Sometimes art will be troubling, but then so too will the society it is depicting” [Ref: Guardian]. Yet others suggest that self-censorship can be seen simply as the artist being responsible. Reflecting on the Danish Cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad, Sukhvinder Stubbs notes that far from being merely art: “Cartoons…can be a powerful means of catalysing and disseminating ideas, be they pertinently satirical or hideously warped. Cartoons were, for example, used extensively by the Nazis in their anti-Semitic propaganda campaigns” [Ref: Guardian]. If we view art from this perspective, it is not a thing in and of itself, to be judged by its own standards as Oscar Wilde suggests; but instead, has the power to influence; the power to be political. Art with a political message, such as Picasso’s Guernica painted in 1937 [Ref: Pablo Picasso.org], continue to evoke strong feelings [Ref: Slate], and today, political concerns about the power of art continue to manifest themselves globally. Whilst artist Ai Wei Wei continues to be seen as subversive by the government in Beijing [Ref: BBC News], challenges to the cultural orthodoxy are also considered problematic in Northern Ireland [Ref: The Sunday Times]. And in December last year, Israel’s Education Ministry controversially removed Dorit Rabinyan’s ‘Borderlife’ from high school curricula in order to maintain, “the identity and the heritage of students in every sector”, and to uphold the belief that “intimate relations between Jews and non-Jews threatens the separate identity” [Ref: Ha’aretz]. So how should we view censorship in the arts? Should artists, musicians, playwrights and novelists have the space to express themselves, even if their work is challenging and offensive to some? Should artists moderate their work in the name of, “discretion, good sense, good taste and goodwill” [Ref: Guardian]? Or should we resist any attempt to dilute the content of an artist’s work?
ESSENTIAL READING
It is crucial for debaters to have read the articles in this section, which provide essential information and arguments for and against the debate motion. Students will be expected to have additional evidence and examples derived from independent research, but they can expect to be criticised if they lack a basic familiarity with the issues raised in the essential reading.
Taking the offensive: defending artistic expression
Index on Censorship 13 May 2013
How one book ignited a culture war
Andrew Anthony Guardian 11 January 2009
FOR
Israel’s censorship frenzy is hurting its democratic image
Ha'aretz 4 June 2015
Blurred Lines shows how zealously intolerant we’ve become
Brendan O'Neill Telegraph 13 September 2013
Julia Farrington Independent 31 May 2013
Salman Rushdie New Yorker 12 May 2012
AGAINST
Sharon Pian Chan Seattle Times 13 July 2014
The whole Canon needs a trigger warning
Sarah Ditum New Statesman 21 May 2014
Why other universities should ban Blurred Lines
Daisy Lindlar Huffington Post 30 November 2013
Is this the most offensive art ever made?
Kamila Kocialkowska New Statesman 6 December 2012
IN DEPTH
Why AP didn’t run the Charlie Hebdo cartoons
Associated Press 8 May 2015
David Marcus The Federalist 21 July 2014
KEY TERMS
Definitions of key concepts that are crucial for understanding the topic. Students should be familiar with these terms and the different ways in which they are used and interpreted and should be prepared to explain their significance.
BACKGROUNDERS
Useful websites and materials that provide a good starting point for research.
Religious Jewish wedding songs are anthems of hatred and incitement
Michael Melchior Ha'aretz 24 December 2015
Reality check: Job description- Minister of culture, not chief censor
Jeff Barak Jerusalem Post 14 June 2015
What Israel’s new Culture Minister bodes for artists
Yossi Klein Ha'aretz 24 May 2015
Index on Censorship 8 January 2015
Yes to freedom of expression, no to freedom of incitement
Ynet News 26 November 2014
Trigger warnings: A gun to the head of literature
Dr Tiffany Jenkins spiked 22 May 2014
Trigger warnings and the novelists mind
Jay Caspian Kang New Yorker 21 May 2014
Trigger warnings: what we’re really talking about
Laurie Penny New Statesman 21 May 2014
Blurred Lines: The most controversial song of the decade
Dorian Lynskey Guardian 13 November 2013
Censorship is stifling Australia’s freedom of expression
Steve Cox Guardian 14 June 2013
Nothing, however vile deserves censorship
Nick Cohen Guardian 16 September 2012
Censoring Mark Twain’s ‘N’ word is unacceptable
David Messent Guardian 5 January 2011
National Portrait Gallery bows to censors
Blake Gopnik Washington Post 30 November 2010
Its about discretion and good taste
Sukhvinder Stubbs Guardian 3 February 2006
Whats so controversial about Picasso’s Guernica?
David Cohen Slate 6 February 2003
Lit Genius.com
Pablo Picasso.Org
The Satanic Verses controversy
Wikipedia
ORGANISATIONS
Links to organisations, campaign groups and official bodies who are referenced within the Topic Guide or which will be of use in providing additional research information.
IN THE NEWS
Relevant recent news stories from a variety of sources, which ensure students have an up to date awareness of the state of the debate.
Tel Aviv Museum nixes Ai Weiwei exhibit; Israeli artist says censorship at play
Ha'aretz 4 February 2016
Israel bans novel on Arab-Jewish romance from schools for ‘Threatening Jewish identity’
Ha'aretz 31 December 2015
Radical Orthodox Jews stab photo of murdered Arab baby at wedding ceremony
Russia Today 24 December 2015
Israeli city bans Nicki Minaj’s ‘Anaconda,’ and 13 other songs from summer teen event
Ha'aretz 24 July 2015
Painting removed from exhibition because of female public hair
Independent 8 July 2014
Council bans gay art from exhibition
The Times 8 June 2014
Scared artists are self censoring says Sir Nicholas Serota
Independent 30 May 2014
Censor cast stricter eye over suggestive dance videos
The Times 14 January 2014
Nude artwork censored in Berlin due to religious sensitivities
Huffington Post 15 November 2013
UCL becomes another university to ban Blurred Lines
BBC News 4 November 2013
BBC News 6 November 2011
New editions of Huckleberry Finn to have offensive words replaced
Guardian 5 July 2011
What the Muhammad cartoons portray
BBC News 2 January 2010
Japanese publisher of Rushdie book found slain
New York Times 13 July 1991
12 die in Bombay in anti Rushdie riots
New York Times 25 February 1989
Ayatollah sentences author to death
BBC News 14 February 1989
AUDIO/VISUAL
Radical Orthodox Jews stab photo of murdered Arab baby at wedding ceremony
Russia Today 24 December 2015
This site contains links to websites operated by parties other than Debating Matters. Although we make every effort to ensure links are current, they will sometimes break after Topic Guide publication. If a link does not work, then the publication reference and date should enable you to find an alternate link. If you find a broken link do please send it to the webmaster for review.
TOPIC GUIDE MENU
Select the relevant option
Related topic guides