was the book the catcher in the rye ever banned?

Question

if it was who challenged it and was succesful... actually any info would be so helpful cuz i have to write a research paper

Answer 1

I have no knowledge of any legislative body banning the book. However, back when I was in high school in the late 1960's, many libraries would opt not to carry it. Certainly no school library would have it. I think it was readily available in bookstores though.

I never read the book till I was in my 40's. (By then, I was too old to be very impressed by it, I must say.) However, I remember that high school friends who had read it would talk about it with smirks, almost as if they were discussing a porn novel.
In retrospect, I think that they felt proud of themselves for having "gotten away with something", knowing that adults frowned on that book.

My 12th grade English teacher told the story of how he recently had gone to the public library to check that book out. The library had the book, but did not keep it on the shelves. It was kept behind the circulation desk. When he inquired about checking it out, the librarian looked at him sternly, and then said, "well, you're an english teacher, so I guess it's ok."
As he exclaimed to us, why in the world would an english teacher be less prone to being 'corrupted' by the book than anyone else? lol

As I recount all this, it occurs to me that there has been a big shift in librarian's attitudes over the years. Nowadays, libraries hold "banned book weeks", and librarians present themselves as the enemies of censorship. But back then, it was librarians themselves who were deciding either to not carry the book or to restrict access to it. At least, that was my experience growing up in the suburbs of New York City.

Answer 2

From Wikipedia: "The Catcher in the Rye is a novel by J. D. Salinger. First published in the United States in 1951, the novel remains controversial to this day for its liberal use of profanity and portrayal of sexuality and teenage angst; it was the thirteenth most frequently challenged book of the 1990s according to the American Library Association."

See http://www.ala.org/ala/oif/bannedbooksweek/bbwlinks/100mostfrequently.htm for the 100 most frequently CHALLENGED books.

Was it officially banned? No. Has it been challenged because of language and content? Yes.

Answer 3

ya it was

vulgarity, violence, and sexual content
suicide, cynicism, influence of buddhism, antiheroes

no worse than the nightly news

The Catcher in the Rye is famous as the most censored, banned and challenged book between 1966 and 1975 for being "obscene," with an "excess of vulgar language, sexual scenes, and things concerning moral issues."

just because the government didnt ban it, doesnt mean individual school districts, libraries and book stores didnt...

Answer 4

Well in most libraries, that book is placed in a separate section, because of the controversy. But I don't know who got it to be that way. good luck!