Holden Caufield Takes Our Bullets

Finishing reading Catcher in the Rye I couldn’t help but feel the nostalgia of rereading Holden’s story. I was brought back to those teenage years where things didn’t make sense, everything was such a big deal, and the helplessness of it all. I cannot speak for everyone’s reactions acknowledging that some may feel Holden is whiny and hypocritical or whatever else. However there’s something captivating about this time period in Holden’s life that resonates with a lot of young adults and adolescents. It trails a young man’s journey through his mistakes and the consequences of his actions. I think the power of this book overcomes the idea of censorship. Holden tries to protect the innocence of children especially his sister Phoebe. He strives to find purpose in life and deep down does want to be a good person. Through his own pitfalls we as readers are able to see that he is a lost boy in the face of this privileged world. Therefore I hope that the censors of this book would read this book with more indulgent minds and come to understand its value in a younger person’s hands. We must challenge our youth with subjects that are more mature so that they are not left making rash, uncalculated decisions or forming uneducated beliefs. Holden makes the mistakes for us. He goes through the journey of the fall so we don’t have to and we see the beauty of his rise to realization of his own cultural landscape and his part in it. Because in the end he even excuses himself for telling his story and comes to realize that what he misses the most of this time in his life are the people in it. Holden learns the value of human interaction and the construction of positive relationships in the wake of a time where everything is becoming more and more materialistic. It makes me wonder of the premises of banning such a book and even if those doing so read the books they ban with adequate attention.