Banning Catcher In The Rye

The Catcher in the Rye should not have been banned. I found the arguments for banning The Catcher in the Rye to be unconvincing. It was challenged frequently for its extensive use of profanity. Obscene language is highly prevalent in our society and can be found including but not limited to TV, social media, and movies. All teens will inevitably be introduced to profanity. In addition, I think that the swearing complements Holden’s character traits of being cynical, judgemental, rebellious, and angsty. Without the profanity the book would have an entirely different tone. Another reason it has been challenged is for its negative themes and topics of drunkenness, prostitution, delinquency, and references to sex. These themes are a part of life

I believe that by doing so we are limiting the amount of ideas and perspectives there are. We simply should not erase a text and pretend that it didn’t exist. Instead we should use these controversial texts as an outlet to have a thoughtful conversation about issues that may not normally be brought up in school. By stifling ideas we are attempting to uphold the status quo and prevent people from being heard. In addition, people have different opinions. Although you may disagree with a book there a still a lot of people who want to read it. People should not force their views onto others. Books are also vital to our society because they enable people to act, think on their own, and teach empathy.
I think that the banning of any one thing does create an atmosphere in which other items can be banned more easily. People can argue that another text deserves to be banned because it is very similar to the first one. It may also validate the idea of banning books.
Diane Lee, a librarian at the Elmhurst community library, believes that books should not be banned and that readers should be free to make their own judgements on the material they’re reading. She believes that The Catcher in the Rye should not be banned because it provides many moral lessons a student can learn from and that by banning books we are infringing on the rights and freedoms of individuals as laid out by our