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Catcher In The Rye Banned Book

Decent Essays

Karrin letcher
Mr. Mahoney
AP Lit & Comp Per.1
November 28, 2016 Many highschool students can relate to Catcher in the Rye because they are the same age as the protagonist, Holden Caufeild, and may find themselves facing similar feelings and situations. Holden is a lanky sixteen-year-old boy. Half of his hair has already turned grey, causing him to often be mistaken as an adult. He often uses his misjudged age to drink at bars and flirt with much older women. Holden has just been kicked out of the third elite prep school he has attended. He is flunking all of his classes except for English and refuses to put up with the “phonies” that seem to be everywhere around him. Throughout the story Holden dons his bright red hunting hat, with ridiculous …show more content…

Just like Holden you probably get yourself into some juvenile trouble. However these adolescent transgressions do not compare to the important adult decisions Holden and every other teen experience. This is a truly incredible book for teenagers to read because it is so applicable to our lives. It genuinely feels as if Holden, is telling his story rather than an adult author writing from a child’s perspective. Because of this, the novel never feels condescending or patronizing. You'll never be able to meet another youngster as likeable and sound as Holden Caulfield, despite of his failings. Although he's still not out of the woods entirely, at the end of the novel, the reader still holds out hope that he's going to turn out all right. It wouldn't even be surprising if he grew up to write a few books (he talks about books quite a …show more content…

Holden often says he will start crying, but he does not know why, then these emotions would vanish and he was filled with manic energy. From this rapid change and waves of emotion the reader can conclude that Holden may have manic depression, also known as bipolar disorder. Salinger is absolutely brilliant in his treatment of his character with a mental illness, he does not play up Holden’s disorder and make it look “cool”. Nor does he chastise Holden for his emotions, he just presents these abnormalities to his readers and encourages them to accept that, “that’s the way it is” that Holden’s mind is not something to be idolized or feared. In this way Salinger is truly forward thinking, his mind was more in 2016 than in

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