Banning Catcher In The Rye

Catch Me in the Rye Howbow Dah

Although Catcher in the Rye implements many inappropriate topics for school such as drug abuse, alcoholism, and swearing, it should not be banned because it allows for an open and safe discussion about the dangers of engaging in these actions.

The novel Catcher in the Rye should not be banned from schools because it allows for an open discussion about alcoholism at a young age. In Catcher in the Rye, the main character, Holden Caulfield, is a heavy drinker and struggles with alcoholism at the age of many teenagers. Caulfield is easier than other characters to relate to because he is close to the age of most teenagers assigned to read the book, and goes through some of the same issues that readers of the
In Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield has progressively worse problems with alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs as he progresses in the book. As problems in his life worsen, his use of all of these substances increases. If we do not allow for a discussion about this topic, then teen drug use will worsen because they are not exposed to this issue. If teens are not informed of this topic, they may begin using alcohol or cigarettes, begin using lesser drugs such as marijuana, and quite possibly end up experimenting with more serious and dangerous substances such as crack/cocaine or club drugs such as MDMA and Ecstasy. In School-Based Programmes to Prevent Alcohol, Tobacco, and Drug Use written by Gilbert J. Botvin, statistics of teenage drug use are discussed, and he expresses that "Experimentation is the initial stage in a well-defined sequence of substance use progression that is frequently observed during adolescence (Kandel, 2002). A subset of young people who experiment with alcohol, tobacco, or marijuana will later become regular users of these substances, and some will eventually progress to experimentation and regular use of other more serious drugs, including opiates, hallucinogens methamphetamines and "club drugs such as MDMA ecstasy"), GHB, and ketamine"(Botvin 2-3). If we do not create this safe and helpful discussion for teenagers, then they may not only
In the book, Holden Caulfield frequently engages in purchasing as well as using alcohol, and also smokes. Teenagers should not be exposed to this at this age because they are susceptible to doing these things. If they read about minors purchasing and consuming alcohol, it may give them the false idea that it is okay to do this. In this particular part of Catcher in the Rye, Holden is attempting to get alcohol as a minor and is rejected. It says "I ordered a Scotch and soda, and told him not to mix it—I said it fast as hell, because if you hem and haw, they think you're under twenty-one and won't sell you any intoxicating liquor. I had trouble with him anyway, though. 'I'm sorry, sir,' he said, 'but do you have some verification of your age? Your driver's license, perhaps?' I gave him this very cold stare, like he'd insulted the hell out of me, and asked him, 'Do I look like I'm under twenty-one?'(Salinger 52). It may be argued that teenagers should not be allowed to read this because it may incite them to attempt the same thing that the main character is doing, or use this to pass off these behaviors that they may already be doing. This is false because "Because alcohol use typically begins during adolescence Spoth (Office of the Surgeon General 2006) and because no other community institution has as much continuous effect and intensive contact with underage youth,