Why Is The Catcher In The Rye Banned

Ever since its publication in 1951, The Catcher in the Rye' by J.D. Salinger has been the center of controversy and has been banned in many schools throughout the United States for its profanity, sexual content, and violence. I am here to convince you all why banning the book would be a mistake. To start off, it is invalid to exclude a novel from high school curriculum based off of its profanity. This language has become very rampant in today’s society through radio stations, social media, and even casual conversation. For example, TV Guide mentioned, "Profanity is uttered once every six minutes on American primetime television”. Moreover, our children are permitted to watch movies rated PG-13 saturated with profane, obscene language not to strengthen the plot, but to entertain the children watching. However, in the novel, the coarse language helps deepen the understanding of the real world while advancing multiple scenes throughout the novel. So, if children who reach the age of thirteen are permitted to experience such obscenity, why does the

The first amendment clearly states, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press”. Therefore, banning the novel is limiting freedom of speech, hence acting against the Constitution. This implies that students should be allowed to form their own ideas freely and receive any information to do so. J.D. Salinger writes, “The thing with kids is if they want to grab for the gold ring, you have to let them do it, and not say anything. If they fall off, they fall off, but it’s bad if you say anything to them”(211). Personally, I believe this quote exemplifies the idea; it teaches that although the novel is controversial, each student should decide for themselves whether to read it, and we cannot shield them from the