Censorship In Catcher In The Rye

J.D Salinger was a peculiar man. He was a man riddled with insecurity from the failures to withstand the standard of normality and conformity imposed by a disingenuous society, a child whose mind could not be understood by the square carved thoughts of the traditional school system, and a soldier whose trauma of World War Two would not let its horror escape his mind. The Catcher in the Rye, Salinger’s one and only novel, was written throughout duration of time in which Salinger’s pain could only be interpreted by pen and paper. Much of Salinger’s reclusive nature is reflected upon in the protagonist, Holden Caulfield and his refusal to allow the adult American society to steal his innocence and curiosity. The Catcher in the Rye is a novel detailing the psyche of a troubled teenage boy, Holden Caulfield, and his struggled transition from the childhood he once

Evidence to support the censorship of The Catcher in the Rye is most often credited to Holden’s frequent use of profanity. Words as "bastard," “hell,” "goddamn," and "Chrissake”, all profane in the society of the 1950’s, were incorporated regularly throughout the novel; a word count claims that The Catcher in the Rye is composite of 785 profanities, including 27 Chrissakes, 7 hornys, as well as numerous damns, craps, and hells (Andrychuk, Sylvia. "J.D. Salinger 's The Catcher in the Rye.”). It is with such accusation and criticism that The Catcher in the Rye remains one of the most censored pieces of literature in society. The oppressive nature of the 1950’s adult society and its attempt to shield the younger generation from liberation in terms of speech and sexuality provided by such platforms as literature led to the censorship of The Catcher in the Rye and its protagonist, Holden