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They say you can’t judge a book by its cover. But can you judge The Catcher in the Rye by the number of times it deploys the F-word? Author J. D. Salinger envisions a pretty grim world for his protagonist, Holden Caulfield. But there is a purpose to it—one that brings a certain strange beauty to Holden’s journey from hopeless to hopeful.

Video Transcription:

If you’re not so sure that The Catcher in the Rye is appropriate for high school, you’re not alone. Let’s take a look at the debate—next.

How many F-bombs did you count in this book?

Prostitutes?

How much teenage angst?

And how completely freaky was it when Holden spiraled into a total mental breakdown?

Think they might have a point?

Look, I’m not here to say that The Catcher in the Rye is appropriate for “minors.” And I’m not here to say that I really enjoyed spending almost 300 pages with Holden Caufield.

Ugh.

But I am here to say that I get it: I get the swearing and the coarseness and all the ugly stuff in this book. It’s extreme … but it’s also a metaphor.

What I mean is, that stuff has a point. It’s not gratuitous. It’s supposed to be a stark contrast to the innocence and beauty of childhood. It’s supposed to represent how harsh the adult world seems to Holden.

And it’s supposed to represent his shallowness, too. Holden doesn’t really understand adulthood—and he doesn’t really try.

Maybe that shallowness is a metaphor for readers of this book, too. I’m not saying you have to like it, but try to understand it. Because a real understanding of The Catcher in the Rye might make some people less inclined to ban it.