A lost sixteen year old boy deals with death and trying to find his place in the world. Despite growing up in a privileged white household, Holden Caulfield is still crippled with feeling invisible. In Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye, he makes Holden come to life by creating a personality that is easily relatable to rebellious teenage boys. And though this work caused much controversy, Salinger was able to capture the struggles of not wanting to grow up and the preservation of innocence. In The Catcher in the Rye, J.D Salinger creates a character that reflects his own difficulties growing up in a privileged white household in the 1950s while struggling with the the difficult realities of the adult world and finding his place in the it. …show more content…
The Catcher in the Rye was originally published in 1951 (Hunt-Steinle 129). It was a very controversial book in the 1950s and was called “a potentially dangerous, even seditious book.” The main character is named Holden Caulfield, and he definitely was not the kind of role model that parents wanted for their young boys (Lundquist 54). Salinger created Holden as a relatable, adolescent young man “growing up in pain” (Hunt 131). He is trying to navigate his way through the world as a lost, sixteen year old boy who wants to remain a child forever, while dealing with the loss of his younger brother Allie. Holden is terrified of growing up and disappearing into the adult word because passing time is what took his brother away. His dream in life is to be the “catcher” and help lost kids like him navigate through life when parents are absent. However “he cannot remain a child -he can not stand at the edge of the cliff and be the catcher; he must fall off into adulthood” (Lundquist 46). Holden eventually must grow up and face the harsh realities of the adult world. The Catcher in the Rye also challenged many parents’ views on conformity and normality. Holden is characterized as a lost and rebellious teenager trying to make it through adolescence. He is wise, but at the same time reckless. He gets kicked out of schools because of poor academic standing and runs …show more content…
It’s so phony” (Salinger 115). Holden is different from most teenage boys, he is overwhelmed with the feelings of loss when he does not even know who he is yet. At one point, Holden feels like he is disappearing into the adult world. To guarantee his place in the it, Holden calls out to Allie “don’t let me disappear. Please Allie” (Salinger 213). His fear of conformity is another reason why this book was so controversial. Parents felt threatened by Salinger’s views on a non conformist society and contradicted their beliefs (Weinstein 125). People did not want to listen to Salinger’s views on society, because he threatened the new, stable, 1950’s American society. In the meantime, teenagers during this time were becoming more rebellious and defiant. Holden exemplified the kid that parents did not want their child to turn into or the kid that they did not want their child hanging with. He is described to be a “troubled teen trying to work his way through adolescence in a world peopled by phonies” (Kahane). The phonies of the world are those people who surrendered their individuality to conform to society’s definition of normal. Holden’s rebellious nature is a result of defying the social norms and pressures of his time. He is thought to be a dangerous thinker who would endanger the new America. And because of his beliefs, he feels he is
Literature has always relied on techniques to catch the reader’s attention and format the story, and “the Catcher in the Rye” is no exception. Salinger brought many different writing styles into his novel to make it a bestseller. With his knowledge, Salinger was able to depict the persona of Holden to the reader without directly stating his characteristics. Salinger proves Holden is a lonesome figure who wanted to fit in but struggles to be accepted. The Catcher in the Rye depicts Holden as one who struggles with his sexuality and adulthood and wants to save children from adulthood because of the difficulties that it has brought himself. Salinger greatly expresses Holden through the use of metaphor, imagery, symbolism,
The Catcher in the Rye written by J.D Salinger is a coming of age story. It is a story narrated by the protagonist, Holden Caulfield, who is a sixteen year old boy, but has a mind of a ten year old innocent kid. In the beginning he thinks of innocence as important, but later he realizes that growing up cannot be stopped. He wanders around the New York City by himself and gains experience of life that teaches him to become mature. This book is clearly written to show the theme of coming of age because it shows many symbols of coming of age, it shows the changes of young adults in modern life, and it creates an image of Holden growing up.
Teenage years are difficult. Time tells this story of struggle again and again. The Catcher in the Rye is a classic novel showing the struggles a teenager goes through while transitioning into adulthood. The main character, Holden Caulfield, is a judgmental and temperamental boy who struggles to see the positivity in life. Throughout the story, Holden searches to find himself, as he feels forced to grow up. He holds onto aspects of his childhood and isolates himself so much that it is even harder for him to transition. J.D. Salinger uses the red hunting hat, the museum and cigarettes as important symbols in the story to convey the themes of transitioning from childhood to adulthood, loneliness, and isolation.
The Catcher in the Rye is one of J. D. Salinger's world-famous books about the disgruntled youth. Holden Caulfield is the main character and he is a seventeen- year-old dropout who has just been kicked out of his fourth school. Navigating his way through the challenges of growing up, Holden separates the “phony” aspects of society, and the “phonies” themselves. Some of these “phony” people in his life are the headmaster whose friendliness depends on the wealth of the parents, and his roommate who scores with girls using sickly-sweet affection. This book deals with the complex issues of identity, belonging, connection, and alienation. Holden senses these feelings most of the time and is guilty about many things in
The Catcher in the Rye is a novel by J.D. Salinger. It is narrated by Holden Caulfield, a cynical teenager who recently got expelled from his fourth school. Though Holden is the narrator and main character of the story, the focus of Salinger’s tale is not on Caulfield, but of the world in which we live. The Catcher in the Rye is an insatiable account of the realities we face daily seen through the eyes of a bright young man whose visions of the world are painfully truthful, if not a bit jaded. Salinger’s book is a must-read because its relatable symbolism draws on the reader’s emotions and can easily keep the attention of anyone.
“The Catcher in the Rye” is about a sixteen year old teenager talking about the story of his mental break down. It is really impressive because J.D. Salinger’s writing style is very direct as if Holden is talking exclusively to me and telling me about his struggles between childhood and adulthood. “The Catcher in the Rye” illustrates Holden’s hope to protect childhood innocence from adult phoniness.
J. D. Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye features a complex narrative surrounding a troubled young student, Holden Caulfield. Difficulties he faces throughout the story force Holden to confront his fears of adulthood and maturation and the responsibilities therein through the difficulties he faces throughout the story. Academic controversy surrounds whether Holden learns from these confrontations and adjust accordingly, maturing throughout the story. While initially this seems rather subjective, a thorough analysis of Holden’s actions throughout the story as well as of the symbolism injected by Salinger makes it quite clear that Holden does undergo a significant maturity arc as the story progresses. Holden’s social development and maturation
Lies, failure, depression, and loneliness are only some of the aspects that Holden Caulfield goes through in the novel The Catcher in the Rye written by J.D. Salinger. Salinger reflects Holden’s character through his own childhood experiences. Salinger admitted in a 1953 interview that "My boyhood was very much the same as that of the boy in the book.… [I]t was a great relief telling people about it” (Wikipedia). Thus, the book is somewhat the life story of J.D. Salinger as a reckless seventeen-year-old who lives in New York City and goes through awful hardships after his expulsion and departure from an elite prep school. Holden, the protagonist in this novel, is created as a depressed, cynical, and isolated character and he
One of the greatest American Literature writers, J.D. Salinger, was familiar with a rough childhood by experience. He was able to parallel his experiences to the experiences of Holden Caulfield, the protagonist in The Catcher in Rye. In this novel, Holden experiences conflicts that most youth are not familiar with. The conflicts in Holden Caulfield’s life are caused by various forces and circumstances.
In the novel The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger, the theme is based on the teenage confusion of the main character Holden Caulfield. Salinger introduces Holden Caulfield, second out of four children coming from an upper middle class New York family, who tells the story of his youth. The Catcher in the Rye is the most famous J.D. Salinger’s novel and has made a great impact when it came out due to its controversial nature. Holden is portrayed as a 17-year old who feels lost in the modern society and finds flaws in almost all of its segments, resulting in repulsion towards nearly everything he encounters.
J. D. Salinger's The Catcher in the Rye is the chronicle of a young man's metamorphosis from immaturity to unsure manhood. Holden Caulfield, the protagonist, is a sixteen-year old boy who leaves the prep school he has been expelled from to escape the frightening reality of dealing with his parents. However, during his visit to New York City he is faced with the harsh reality that he cannot continue to hold onto his childhood. Holden is an extremely complex character and it is only by examining each layer of him that the reader is able to understand his painful metamorphosis.
J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye presents a look into the mind of Holden Caulfield, a popular literary icon numerous teenagers have rightfully found themselves relating to at some point. While the familiar emotions of Holden were welcoming for me, his anecdotes and witty remarks proved entertaining as well. The story chronicles Holden’s exploration through New York post-expulsion, with his point of view influenced by his growing alienation with the world. He represents that growing sense of unease at growing up and facing a reality that is not always pretty, and, in his case, a need to save children from having to face that reality. I personally admired the fact that he was not just an angry teenager in the world as stereotypes suggest.
Written in 1951, J.D. Salinger’s, The Catcher in the Rye continues to be a popular book amongst Americans. Although The Catcher in the Rye has been banned in many public school settings in the United States it continues to stay atop some of the greatest books of all time lists. Whether people are in their teens or in their fifties they find themselves drawn to Holden Caulfield. At some point in their life they could relate to a sense of alienation, caused by money and wealth. Humans are wired to be jealous and want what others have. Holden Caulfield has the opposite problem, he has money and wealth which he inherited from his hard working parents. However, he himself is not motivated to work hard, graduate prep school and earn his own wealth. Instead he despises hard working students at the many prep schools he drops out of. Holden also has a big number of family complications. An area to explore is how wealth can contribute to feelings of alienation and despair. Holden Caulfield has a complex relationship with money, not wanting to associate from it, but benefiting from it. A further look into the 1950’s may give an insight into the troubled mind of Holden Caulfield.
Holden Caulfield plays a timeless character in the sense that his way of life is common for the American teenager, in his time as well as now. Today parents dread the terrible and confusing adolescent years of their child's life. In J.D. Salinger's book, The Catcher in the Rye, Holden is in this terrible and confusing point of his life. At this point in his life, as well as in modern teenager's lives, a transition occurs, from child to adult. Holden takes this change particularly rough and develops a typical mentality that prevents him from allowing himself to see or understand his purpose in life.
The author has put in plenty of themes, messages, ideas, issues, and motifs. The character, Holden Caulfield is alienated from society, is experiencing the painfulness of growing up, thinks that the adult world is full of phoniness, and is sick of hearing about the American Dream from his teachers. JD Salinger has created a book that has raised plenty of questions and controversy towards the readers. The Catcher in the Rye shows how a teenage mind works. JD Salinger has used a stream of consciousness writing style where the character (Holden Caulfield) talks in first person as he presents his thoughts and feelings to the readers. The setting has taken place in the early fifties and the book uses a lot of profane words. The New York