The Book that Must not be Banned

The Catcher in the Rye a popular coming of age novel written by J.D. Salinger was published in 1952 and it was said to be an “anti-everyone book” (Chasan 1). The book was banned because of its sex and profanity theme, and it also provoked outrage from parents and elders for many decades. The book is about an alienated teenager, Holden Caulfield, who doesn’t specify where he is located, but he’s clearly in a mental hospital narrating the his experience before he got to there, specifically, a few days before his Christmas break when Holden is sixteen years old. The Catcher in the Rye was originally written for adults but it has now become popular with adolescents for its themes and now Holden Caulfield has become a teenage icon for rebellion.

            In the story, Holden experiences what seems like a bizarre month for the reader, in only three days. At Pencey prep school, the school Holden’s been recently kicked out of, he has a fight with his roommate, Stradlater, and Holden decides to drop out early and wait a few days before he actually has to go home for Christmas break. Holden takes the train to New York but he doesn’t stay with his family, instead he checks in at the Edmont hotel to evade discussion with his parents about being kicked out. In those three days Holden gets drunk, goes out, gets beat, visits an old professor, goes ice skating, sneaks into his house to visit his sister, and goes through much more events that help him change in a way. I think those three days were enough for him to finally realize he needs to change, and the he actually can try to do something useful for once in his life.

            I think that The Catcher in the Rye is still a relevant book of our time because of the way it speaks to teenagers. The book itself is so unique; due to the fact that it covers only three days of Holden’s life and yet the reader learns so much about the protagonist and the other characters, most books cover a year or two. I think that it is its uniqueness and the fact that it’s from the point of view of a teenager – a person so full of confusion, decisions, angst, and rebellion – that speaks to the young reader. In a certain way, one can relate to the characters in this book, not based on their experiences, but based on their points of view, or their feelings. It’s safe to say that this book will always be relevant for any era since teenagers can appeal to the story and enjoy reading about Holden’s experience because it is a guide to them, it contains all those feelings one feels while going through adolescence.

            Many people think that the teachings of this book justify the banning of it; however, I don’t agree with this. I think that no book should be banned at all, whatever its message or teachings are. The book might not be interesting to adults because they no longer go through these emotions Holden goes through; therefore, the book has no profound meaning to them. Whereas a teenager has the feelings and worries Holden has, perhaps at a lower level, but still they do, and reading about someone as rebellious, lost, confused, and emotional as Holden might speak to them because it’s what they feel they are going through. I don’t agree with this book or any book actually, to be banned because it might not speak to adults, but it sure speaks to teenagers and they do have a real meaning for the book.

            Reading The Catcher in the Rye was a very interesting experience for me; the uniqueness of the book is what captivated me. This book is written in a way that you won’t end up hating the whole book, just certain aspects of it, and then maybe in the end, your view might change and you end up loving the whole novel. It sort of helped me because I realized that I could do worse, meaning, Holden goes through a lot more stuff that’s not as good as what I go through in my life. Yet that is also due to Holden’s attitude towards everything, but it still taught me that you need to follow your pace in life, at some point you’re going to have to grow up and stop being as childish as you were before. I loved the book and every single aspect of it, but when I first started reading it, there was something about Holden that irritated me; I didn’t like Holden at all. And when I finished the book, I knew Holden a lot more; I understood how he felt because it’s what every adolescent goes through. Even though this book is from a different time, the meaning of it is still the same; I don’t think it should be banned because this book is an icon for teenagers, it speaks to them and believe it or not, it helps them. It might be profane from an adult’s point of view but a teenager’s years of adolescence might just be the angst, confusion, and rebellion Holden goes through in this book.