Analysis Of ' The Catcher Of The Rye '

J.D. Salinger’s, “The Catcher in the Rye” explores the idea of an outsider through character, Holden Caulfield, a student at Pencey Prep who struggles to find similar interests as his peers and gain acceptance from his surrounding environment. From the beginning of the novel, Holden displays a lack of interest in his academic studies. Having failed four out of five classes at Pencey and facing similar difficulties at “Whooton school and Elkton Hills,” (pg.16) leads to his expulsion from the prep school. Adjusting to the strict academic expectations is not the only thing Holden fails to do, he is also unable to form relationships with other students. During a fencing meet, Holden loses his team’s equipment at the subway causing them to forfeit the

J.D. Salinger, the author of The Catcher in the Rye, uses the behaviour of protagonist Holden Caulfield to shape his personality in the way he alienates himself from the rest of the world. Holden alienates himself from the society he lives in, his relationships with others and also the relationship he has with himself. Holden struggles to cope with the fact that eventually he will have to grow up and so will everyone around him. Holden see’s the world not being perfect as a huge problem that he alone has to fix because everyone else is too much of a ‘phony’ to do it. The novel explores Holden’s weekend after he got kicked out of his fourth school, Pency Prep, and the struggles he faces with alienating himself.

“I swear to God I’m a madman” (149) Holden Caulfield says, revealing the wicked nature of J.D Salinger’s 1951 novel The Catcher in the Rye. The book follows 16 year old Holden Caulfield in his days spent alone on the streets of New York City after getting kicked out of prep school. During this time Holden goes on an alcoholic rampage, fueled by hate and filled with anger towards anything he sees as phony. The book has been the cause of major controversy since its release, with schools across the country banning it from the realms of teaching for decades. Now, it is read in many high school literature classes because of its alleged similarity to the way teenagers think. The Catcher in the Rye should not be taught to young, impressionable teenagers in public schools because of its rampant profanity, glorification of alcohol and tobacco use, and narration by a mentally ill, generally horrible person.

In The Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger uses literary elements such as tone, figurative language, and theme to create the overall effect of a teenager’s cynical and conflicted approach to dealing with the concept of adulthood. Salinger writes about Holden Caulfield, a sixteen year old boy, and his venture through New York City after he is expelled from his preparatory school due to academic failure. During his time in the city, emotional and mental problems surface, and his desperate want for companionship exposes his inability to connect with others.

One must inevitably confront the daunting face of adulthood. In J. D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye, Salinger depicts the disheartening journey from adolescence to adulthood that Holden Caulfield endures. Although holden seeks the freedoms that mark adulthood, he has yet to take up the role of a truly mature citizen as the society conforming nature of those adults disgust him, leading him to his gradual mental decline. J. D. Salinger uses the immature character of Holden Caulfield as a means of revealing the difficult transition from adolescence to adulthood and its psychological effects.

Holden’s story takes place in the 1950s. Because of this, it is necessary that the reader reads the story from multiple points of views. As Foster puts it, “don’t read with your eyes” (Foster 228) meaning that it is sometimes necessary to read from a perspective that will let you relate to and sympathize with the characters. The time period is shown many times such as when Holden goes dancing and asks a girl if she feels like “jitterbugging a little bit” (Salinger 72) referencing an iconic dance from that era. What people said and how they said it were very different in the past, and it is important to keep that in mind while reading.

Holden Caulfield is the main character of the novel The Catcher in the Rye, written by J.D. Salinger. The story is developed in the Mid-twentieth Century, in the United States, and it is narrated in first person by Holden, a sixteen years old teenager, who is influenced by the society at that time. The fact that the book is narrated by the main character, let the reader know not only the events that have been taken place during Holden’s journey in New York, but also, the reader can know everything that Holden thinks about each situation, letting Holden’s mind exhibited to analyze. From the first moment, it is easy to realize that Holden is a character with a difficult personality, a very opinionated mind, a strong point of view, and a massive list of negative traits, which made him one of the most interesting and confusing characters in all of literature. Holden is unique in many ways. Unfortunately, his many weaknesses, reflected throughout the novel, overpower his strengths, due to Holden’s tendency to judge people, to isolate himself and take bad decisions, which push him further into a trench of loneliness and depression. All over the story, Holden frequently wishes himself dead or decides he already is dying from something, in this order, let analyze this Holden traits with more attention

Holden Caulfield is the main character in the novel The Catcher in the Rye, written by J.D. Salinger. The story is developed in the Mid-twentieth Century, in the United States, and it is narrated in first person by Holden, a sixteen years old teenager, who is influenced by the society at that time. The fact that the book is narrated by the main character, let the reader know not only the events that have been taken place during Holden’s journey in New York, but also, the reader can know everything that Holden thinks about each situation, letting Holden’s mind exhibited to analyze. From the first moment, it is easy to realize that Holden is a character with a difficult personality, a very opinionated mind, a strong point of view, and a massive list of negative traits, which made him one of the most interesting and confusing characters in all of literature. Holden is unique in many ways. Unfortunately, his many weaknesses, reflected throughout the novel, overpower his strengths, due to Holden’s tendency to judge people, to isolate himself and take bad decisions, which push him further into a trench of loneliness and depression.

The Biographical Lens applied to The Catcher in the Rye J.D. Salinger expresses his view of society in his novel, The Catch in the Rye. His viewpoints are seen in the book through the eyes of young Holden Caulfield. This novel demonstrates modern-day dilemmas and complications that teenagers confront in life. Throughout this novel, Holden Caufield, the protagonist shows signs of clinical

As Catcher in the Rye progresses, Holden’s experiences become more meaningful and reflective; as a result, the protagonist accelerates towards his inevitable breakdown, revealing a pain-riddled, lost, thoughtful, oddly hopeful, and utterly real personality in the process. Holden is increasingly disgusted with how normal people approach life, thus making him unsure in how to approach his own life. “People never think anything is anything really. I’m getting goddamn sick of it” (Salinger 190). This prodded question of what is meaningful reverberates throughout the movies, plays, books, stories, and other creative works that span the length of human existence. Nodding at the true root of his obsession with phoniness, Holden often struggles with

Two novels the first is The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger and The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien both published 4 decades away from each other. One is a Historical Fiction and on is Realistic fiction coming-of-age that is going to show how the both novel is gonna differentiate in this essay. The Catcher in The Rye compared to The Things They Carried have different method on how to tackle the characters and objects with going on a different phase

The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger is a novel about a boy named Holden Caulfield who struggles with many problems in his life that we learn about all in a short span of time. The stories starts with Holden leaving Pencey, another school he has been kicked out of, and his small journey before he needs to return home. There are four major symbols that are shown in the book to help the reader fully understand the theme of the story. The four themes are Holden’s loss of innocence, his preoccupation with death, his struggles with depression, and finally his inability to transition. These four themes have numerous symbols that reflect why they are important into explaining Holden’s story.

As American society becomes more diverse with immigrants coming from far away lands, different cultures are being introduced into the ever growing melting pot of America. Due to this melting pot and realization that America is made up of many, not one, young adult protagonists have become more diverse in American literature. This diversity in young adult protagonists includes race, gender, class, and sexuality. However, despite the identities these protagonists are associated with, they all have the same inner conflict, knowing where one truly belongs. The inner conflict of fitting in and trying to belong to someone or something has been, and should be continued to be written about since many teenagers struggle with their personality and identity.

In J.d. Salinger’s novel the Catcher In the Rye there are many events that occur that can be interpreted differently. The different interpretations that can be interpreted could be the scenes about Jane’s stepdad, Holden’s childhood, Mr. Antolini, James Castle’s suicide, Holden’s sexuality and the ending of the book. When Stradlater tells Holden who his date is he gets really excited and anxious.

Holden does often point out the flaws and imperfections of other people. Holden is not fully happy with himself. There are moments when he is hypocritical, but for the most part he is honest with himself. This mindset he has, has led him to depression.