APUSH Connection

The novel “IT” by Stephen King could be connected to many different APUSH themes, from identity to politics & power, but in the end the book was banned for violent and discriminatory content, which leads me to believe it best fits with the ideas, beliefs & culture theme. “IT” takes place in the 50s and in the 80s, both times that were plagued by racism and homophobia. These ideas of hatred and fear are extremely prevalent throughout the book.
For example, page 451 of the novel describes the burning down of the Black Spot, which was originally a safe haven for Derry’s citizens of color. It says, “‘He didn’t have to be south of the Mason-Dixon Line to hate [black people]. He just did’” (King, 451). It continues by describing the town’s small scale version of the KKK, known as the Maine Legion of White Decency. This ties to the APUSH theme of ideas, beliefs and culture because it unabashedly portrays a highly controversial and offensive belief system that used to, and still does, exist. Another example of controversial and offensive ideas/beliefs shown in the novel comes from the very first chapter, which is all about the brutal murder of a gay man. One line in particular that resonates with this theme is, “STICK NAILS IN EYES OF ALL F*GGOTS (FOR GOD)” (King, 29). This is one of the tamer phrases graffitied onto the walls of Derry buildings, and one of the less gruesome lines describing the homophobia that Derry’s LGBT community suffered through. The book also deals with antisemitism and other horrific belief systems that ultimately lead to the book being taken off the shelf in Nebraska. “Someone just told someone else that I’m Jewish, I’m nothing but a big nose [redacted] [redacted]... we laugh at them, we laugh and laugh and laugh” (King, 43). Fill in the blanks; clearly in his endeavors to describe discrimination faced by minorities in Derry, Stephen King does not shy away from the use of slurs— but that doesn’t mean they need to appear on this blog. Truly, some lines from the book are so vulgar and awful that one could argue that they should never be repeated— but it’s better to be exposed to them in a safe and controlled environment than it is in real life.
Overall, the novel “IT” by Stephen King is vulgar and unashamed in its portrayal of bigotry and hate crime, but that’s what makes it so real— and that’s what connects it so strongly the the APUSH theme of ideas, beliefs & culture. The different ideologies and prejudices expressed through a multitude of characters are truly disturbing, but they are so crucial to understanding American history and the biases that have stuck with us to this very day. There are countless examples of racism, homophobia, antisemitism and hate crime littered throughout every time period of this country’s past, and it’s so important that we as a nation are reminded of these things so we can avoid them in the future.