Episode Details

Old Mr. Antolini finishes his speech about the size of your mind, makes up the couch, and calls Holden "handsome." Then something happens that readers and scholars have been arguing about since 1951. Jennifer's reaction is immediate. Dan's is complicated. Robot refuses to say a word about it.

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:

• Jennifer's question before anything bad happens: "Is this Holden's catcher in the rye? Who's gonna catch him?"
• Dan's relief when Holden says "I still have the paper he gave me" — and what that means about whether Holden survives
• Dan's Spencer vs. Antolini comparison — two very different kinds of teachers, two very different kinds of concern
• The toothbrush debate and Dan's "Jennifer, I don't want you to die on this hill — this is a very unnoble way to go out, worrying about Holden's teeth"
• Dan's full Antolini impression involving a bathrobe and a swizzle stick
• Robot's refusal to explain what happened — and why 75 years of scholars can't agree either
• Jennifer holding both truths at once: admiration and violation
• Dan waiting for the world's slowest elevator while his creepy teacher watches from the doorway

Why was The Catcher in the Rye banned? The people who want this book banned will use this chapter as proof that teachers are dangerous. They'll miss the part where a teenager recognized a boundary violation in real time and walked out. That is exactly the skill they claim to want kids to have. This book just taught it.

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 If you liked Banned Camp, check out these podcasts we think you'll enjoy:

• Why Is This Happening? The AI End Game — Chris Hayes speaks with leading experts about artificial intelligence, what it is, what it isn't, and what the end game looks like. A special miniseries from MS Now.

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