Would you drop Of Mice and Men from the exam syllabus? The answer isn’t black and white | Nels Abbey

The book will no longer be studied at GCSE in Wales because many find the racial slurs upsetting. That’s culture war fodder, but it shouldn’t be

In years to come, we might call it the Steinbeck problem. Of Mice and Men is one of the most banned books in the United States and will no longer be studied at GCSE in Wales from September – a reaction to the racism and use of racial slurs within the text.

Is this something to mourn, or cause for wild celebration? It is complicated. Indeed, it represents a near perfect literary and moral conundrum for the education system of a multicultural, multiracial society. Especially one plagued with culture wars fought in bad faith.

Nels Abbey is an author, broadcaster and the founder of Uppity: the Intellectual Playground

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