Should we censor art?

The opportunity to get the class thinking about the notion of censorship, particularly in the case of works of art.

• What is censorship? Students will try to define the word “censorship” before looking it up in the dictionary. The Larousse dictionary offers the following definition: “Prior examination carried out by the competent authority on publications, broadcasts and shows intended for the public and which results in authorizing or prohibiting their total or partial distribution. » The action of “censoring” therefore corresponds to prohibiting something. Students will be able to suggest other synonyms for the verb such as prohibit, proscribe, disapprove, condemn, criticize, etc.
• Can and should we censor art? Students will be encouraged to debate the subject without looking for a good answer but by organizing their thoughts and comments. We can also specify that nudity has taken different forms depending on the artistic periods and that the nun censors the genitals of works of art. In the Catholic religion, as in many world religions, ascetic principles impose taboos in the area of ​​sex and the nun cannot support showing genitals in the museum... The teacher will check that the students have understood the humor of the film and that in reality the Catholic religion does not censor representations of nudity. The directors of the film simply presented a caricatured nun character for comedic purposes.

The sculpture at the end of the film is Michelangelo's David (1502), a Renaissance masterpiece on display at the Galleria dell'Accademia in Florence. Note that the directors of the film reproduced the real setting of the museum behind the sculpture. Students will be able to have fun checking using the website of the Galleria dell'Accademia in Florence search engine that David is not censored!

• Is it really censorship to ban certain films and games from children? Why was this ban put in place? The students will think about the role of CSA and the PEGI. classifications. We can propose reading work around the acronyms used.