The Catcher in the Rye Ch. 3.2: Why Ban a Book That Shows People Are Complicated? | Why Books Get Banned

Ackley barges into Holden's room and proceeds to do everything wrong: picks up personal items, clips his toenails on the floor after being asked 50 times to use the table, and laughs when Holden gets hit in the head with a tennis racket. But instead of just calling him an asshole, Holden says "I felt sort of sorry for him in a way." Then he defends Stradlater—the conceited guy—by pointing out he'd literally give you his tie if you liked it. When Ackley says "If I had his dough I would too," Holden fires back: "No you wouldn't." People aren't one thing. That's the lesson that gets books banned.

Banned Camp is a comedy podcast where we read banned books chapter by chapter—we don't read ahead, so you're discovering the story with us.

Things To Listen For:

• Holden horsing around with his hunting hat pulled over his eyes: "Mother darling, I'm going blind"
• The "people shooting hat" line that definitely wouldn't fly in 2026
• Robot's fact-check about tooth brushing in the 1940s—only 20% of Americans owned toothbrushes until WWII soldiers brought the habit home
• Dan's story about a guy clipping his toenails on an airplane and the nails flying like boomerangs
• Holden's insight that Stradlater would give you his tie but Ackley wouldn't even if he had the money
• Jennifer's breakthrough: "They're using language as an excuse when that's not the real reason to ban the book"
• The beautiful writing: "He never exactly broke your heart when he went back to his own room"

Why was The Catcher in the Rye banned? Jennifer nailed it this episode—it's not the swearing. It's that Holden questions things and tells the truth about people. He sees that annoying people deserve sympathy and conceited people can be generous. He refuses to reduce anyone to one trait. That's dangerous.

If this is your first episode, you're fine starting here. Our fact-checking Robot catches you up fast, then we read the next chapter (spoilers).

Banworthy to Bingeworthy:

• Rachel Maddow Presents: Burn Order - A deep dive into when the US military was deployed on American streets, targeting whole communities for removal, and the burn order issued to cover it all up. A stain on this country we said we'd never repeat.
• Good News for Lefties - Beowulf Rochlen brings you the positive news on the progressive front that mainstream media won't cover.

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Disclaimer Banned Camp features readings and discussions of banned books for the purpose of criticism, commentary, education, and entertainment, in accordance with fair use guidelines.

The material used from the book The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger is shared under these principles, with the intent of provoking thought and discussion about literature, censorship, and societal issues. The original work remains fully owned by its copyright holders, and we strongly encourage listeners to purchase a copy here to experience the book in its entirety.

This podcast is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or officially connected to J.D. Salinger, his estate, or the publishers of The Catcher in the Rye. Any monetization of the podcast is separate from the copyrighted material discussed.

Topics Covered: The Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger, Chapter 3, Holden Caulfield, Ackley, Stradlater, people shooting hat, hunting hat, tooth brushing history, seeing people clearly, generosity vs selfishness, complicated humans, banned books, banned books podcast, book banning, censorship, literary analysis, comedy podcast