<p>Hi, I wrote an essay for a practice test, and I would like to get a rough feel for where I would be on the 2-12 scale. It would really mean a lot to me if you could read and score my essay. Thank you so much in advance!</p>
<p>The prompt:
Can censorship limit people's rights? </p>
<p>Censorship through the filtration of media and current events limits people's rights as it forces people to act, think, and behave alike. The act of censorship is used to bring about conformity; however, when everyone in society is conformed, there is a lack of individuality a fundamental right that people are entitled to hold. This ill effect of censorship can be observed through evidence in literature.</p>
<p>An example of how censorship robs from one's individuality stems from the novel The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood. In the novel, women of the Republic of Gilead are suppressed by the society as they are stripped of their identities and are assigned to preform one of only a handful of duties that women are allowed to have. In the Republic, women of the same class must all dress alike, think alike, and behave in the same manner. These women are held captive by the Republic's censoring of media, events, and religion as these women are unable escape due to a lack of knowledge of how the Republic is run and by who. Reluctantly, the women of Gilead are forced to assimilate into their given roles as they are withheld the knowledge necessary to act against society and free themselves. </p>
<p>Conversely, it can be argued that while censorship limits the freedom of individual thought, it ameliorates people's lives by restricting their scope of knowledge so that they may live happier with less to worry about. This phenomenon can be seen in the novel A Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. In the novel, citizens of a society are constantly being withheld information from, yet are able to find themselves living jubilantly and pleasantly. The members of this society are only fed happy, positive events through the media, and, consequently, they are able to feel joyful at all times. This happiness induced by unawareness to events around oneself may appear to be positive, but, nevertheless, restricts one from seeing the truth and allowing one to think for him or herself. </p>
<p>In conclusion, censorship limits and restricts the natural human right of individual and free thought. Censorship confines people to think simply and like-minded which may allow for a happy, stress-free society, but also takes away from the people's right to know the reality of what is going on and think for themselves. While not everyone can be happy in the absence of the institution of slavery, people deserve the right to process reality for themselves. It is this emotional grit that allows humanity to progress as a whole. Only when individuals are allowed to think individually and free of manipulation is when society as a whole can move onward.</p>
