To ban or not to ban, THAT is the question

Number nineteen.  Number nineteen is where Salinger's Catcher in the Rye sits on the list of 100 top banned books from 2000 to 2009, according to the ALA.  It is no secret that this infamous novel has sparked quite a bit of controversy in its day; in fact, Sycamore High School just began having its students read this class work this year, causing many current seniors to have missed the gap, to have missed reading one of the most famous works of modern American literature.  This hotly debated book has been in question for many years; should the work be banned or should it be taught?

Well, if you ask me, I would say no, it should not be banned (although, having liked the book, I might be biased).  But before delving into whether is should or should not be, it is necessary to first examine the controversial aspects of the work.  First of all, the book utilizes a wide variety of questionable language, including many swear words.  Additionally, the subject of casual sex is mentioned quite often and there is a decently long scene involving a prostitute.  Finally, Holden is not exactly the ideal teenager, for he fails out of his school and is not always respectful towards others.  From the perspective of parents and teachers, these three reasons are enough to remove Catcher from the shelves of classrooms, libraries, and homes.

Now hear me out: I completely understand that adults would not want children and teenagers exposed to these kinds of vulgarities and poor influences, but banning the book seems to be an extreme measure.  To counter the argument that the novel contains a lot of bad language, almost all readers will already be familiar with these types of words.  Just as Holden sees "f*** you" in several places around Phoebe's school, many students and teenagers have already heard this type of language in music, movies, television shows and seen it in other books, online, or in graffiti.  Seeing it in one more place really is not going to do anything.  As far as the sex and Holden's questionable actions, these are, again, taken to an extreme.  Holden himself never actually engages in any sexual actions and even turns the prostitute away, paying her to leave.  Although he does fail out of school, it is also evident that he feels the impacts of this mistake, as he endures several lectures about his failure.

It is no question that this book has some aspects to it that are a bit risque.  However, despite the not-so-clean cut parts of it, Salinger's novel is of great relevance to what many teens experience today: rebellion, uncertainty, angst.  Sure, students would still thrive if they did not read this book, but that is not what literature is about.  The works students read in school and at home should enrich them, give them something to relate to, to connect with, and Catcher in the Rye can do just that.  So to answer the question: I say "not to ban!"