Catcher In The Rye Should Be Banned In High Schools

While the 1951 novel, The Catcher in the Rye has been challenged many times by school boards across America, it has also won the hearts of countless fans, who claim that the merits outweigh the controversial issues. Sailinger's most popular novel has been ridiculed for its use of vulgar language, sexual references, alcohol abuse, and violence. Although the novel contains mature subject matter, The Catcher in the Rye should be included in all high school curriculums because it is a classic coming of age story that students can learn from and connect to their own lives. Specifically, the majority of high school students reading The Catcher in the Rye can relate to the prevailing pressure to meet high family and class expectations. The main character,
Holden, struggles with living up to these expectations that have been cast upon him. He buckles under the pressure and expectations of his family and culture, so he seeks escape, but his plans are impulsive delusions that can only lead to failure. A parent's educational expectations "has been documented as correlate of grades and test scores, both directly and indirectly through children's own educational aspirations and their beliefs about their academic abilities" (Lawrence 187). The quote proves that while a parent's educational expectations can directly correspond to a student's success in school, the stress of parental expectations can also adversely affect a student's mental health as students feel anxious over an anticipated failure to perform at a certain level. This can damage a student's self-esteem and make it harder to adjust to school. The article goes on to say, "Parent educational expectations, or how far in school a parent expects his or her child to go, have been shown to influence a variety of educational outcomes" (Lawrence 184). Not only do parental expectations influence a students grades and test scores, they influence a variety of educational outcomes such as how far a student goes in school. When students read Catcher in the Rye, they can see how Holden collapses under the expectations and realize that running away from the pressure is not an option. The tremendous amount of pressure put on Holden guides him towards a life of failure and impulsive decisions. He starts to withdraw from society immediately after leaving the Pencey Preparatory Academy. He fantasizes over being alone and independent. In one of his fantasies, he decides he would rather be a ‘deaf mute’ because then he could avoid socializing with people. Holden would rather live in desolation where no one expects anything of him, rather than being part of society where he is expected to become a successful young adult. In the end, Holden does go out west, but not in the way he was planning, his parents believe that he will be better off in a mental health facility rather than moving to a new school. This proves that no matter what the pressures, running away is not an option, and that you are going to have to face the consequences sooner rather than later. This moral lesson is valuable for high school students to learn, so they can understand how not to react to family and class expectations. Moreover, high school students can associate with the copious number of frustrations that Holden experiences.
Holden's grievances consequently lead him to continually battle with depression and loneliness. His depression was evoked by the death of his brother Allie, which furthermore shifted his self image and his perception of others. After Holden is expelled from the Pency Preparatory Academy, he retreats to New York City, where he finds himself at the epitome of his loneliness and depression. While he is all alone, he laments, "what I really felt like doing was committing suicide. I felt like jumping out of the window," (Salinger 104). Readers are exposed to Holden's darkest thoughts and his desire to end his life. Holden is unfortunately one of many adolescents that suffer from undiagnosed depression. Doctor McGill states, "failing to diagnose depression is a health risk. The longer the depression goes untreated, the harder it becomes to treat" (McGill 24). Many teens are at risk of undiagnosed depression that can become fatal to ones mental health. Holden is continuously battling with depression symptoms, which escalate when he retreats to New York City. According to the Depression and Suicide Education Awareness Program, I Need a Light House, "Approximately 20 percent of teens will experience depression before they reach adulthood. Between 10 to 15 percent of teenagers have some symptoms of depression at any one time" (Teen Depression). Depression is a common struggle amongst adolescents and teenagers. Holden's experiences can help bring awareness to adolescent depression. The Catcher in the Rye can make readers more aware of and alerted to warning signs of
depression. Conversely, opposers of The Catcher in the Rye believe the language used throughout the novel is too mature for high school audiences, however the controversial language is not new to many high school students. The Catcher in the Rye is one of the most banned books in public school libraries due to the extensive use of various curse words. A member of a South Carolina school board exclaimed, "It is a filthy, filthy book, it has 269 some odd pages or so, and if you took out all the [profanity], the sarcasm, the mockery of old people, the mockery of women and decent people, you would get to read about 10 minutes' worth" (Goldberg). Although the language used throughout the novel may seem inappropriate for younger audiences, high school students are constantly surrounded with the same language. High school students are exposed to vulgar language when they turn on popular television shows, "In 2002, foul words aired 5.7 times per hour during the earliest prime-time hour... and this number is constantly increasing" (Kaye 24). Students are exposed to cursing throughout their daily lives including popular television. Also, some authors have advocated for cursing to help express characters, "the art of cursing--and cursing in art--reveals cultural undercurrents and personal intricacies that are not as easily expressed through conventional language" (Adams 224). Adams argues that the use of cursing can be used to illustrate the diversity of characters in an artful manner. Salinger uses curse words to artfully show Holden's character. The majority of Holden's swearing is restricted to his inner monologue. The reader is getting a glimpse into his thought process. When Holden is speaking to another character, he cleans up his language. Holden's jargon gives color and reality to his character, helping to define him as someone who does not care about impressing people and it keeps the reader confided to Holden's character. Not only is the vulgar language used throughout The Catcher is the Rye normal for the majority of high school students it can also teach students about Holden's character. In conclusion, The Catcher in the Rye is beneficial to high school students and should be included in curriculums, because students can learn and relate to the novel. Students can gain from Salinger's famous novel, because the majority of high school students can relate to the prevailing pressure to meet high family and class expectations and the frustrations that Holden experiences throughout the novel. The benefits of reading the novel far outweigh the negative connotations and should be taught to all high school students. Works