This paper aims to examine the relationship between The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger and the Swedish translation of the novel entitled Räddaren i Nöden (The Rescuer in Time of Need) undertaken by Birgitta Hammar in 1953. the author intends to contrast the source and target text in order to discover some of the strategies adopted by the translator and to suggest some of the reasons for these choices, i.e. the norms governing them. The author also examines, on the basis of the data obtained during the comparison, the target system’s norms of the time, and the function of the translation within the Swedish literary polysystem. The emphasis of the study lies on the problem of translating spoken language into literary prose, as well as on the interaction of spoken and written language and the literary tradition of using spoken language markers in character speech and narrational discourse.