Catcher In The Rye Innocence Theme

Holden has numerous distinct attributes pertaining to both childhood and adulthood. His transition from growing and relational life, to an uncontrolled spiritual realm, this stresses him. He has instances of introspection that helps him encompass a realization for his own livelihood. When he shares with his sister Phoebe what he would sincerely like to do with his life he says “I have to come out from somewhere and catch them. That’s all I’d do all day. I’d just be the catcher in the rye and all.” (Salinger 173) That quote reveals the reasoning for the title of the book because Holden wants nothing more than to protect the innocence of children.

Holden is talking about protecting the children so they will not experience the cruelty of the adult world. If he catches the children before they fall, he will preserve their innocence and keep them from the cruelties of the adult world. Holden’s only desire and goal in life is to be the catcher in the rye because is the only job that is appealing to him where he can shows his love and protection for childhood innocence, “That’s all I’d do all day. I‘d just be the catcher in the rye and all. I know it’s crazy, but that’s the only thing I’d really like to be” (173).

“Don’t let the concept of change scare you as much as the prospect of remaining

The Catcher in the Rye fixates upon the fragile mental state of jaded sixteen-year-old Holden Caulfield. Ever since the death of his brother Allie, Holden has been expelled from every school he’s ever attended and has become increasingly cynical of human nature, condemning everyone he meets for their phoniness. He lacks the ability to identify his own feelings and prefers the word “depressed” to describe every negative emotion, hoping to take away the word’s severity with his overuse of it. At sixteen, Holden is realizing that it is time for him to become an adult, and while he attempts to do adult activities once he is on his own, he ultimately resists the pull of adulthood and equates aging with losing one’s innocence; he wishes to preserve

Holden Caulfield, the narrator and the main character of The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, is a young adult, who, at first seems to simply describes his four day adventure in New York City after bring expelled from his forth school. However, at the same time he narrates more; through his many experiences, which he describes in the book, we can see the themes of the work. The theme that definitely stands out is the loss of innocence. Holden portrays himself as an individual, who does not want to grow up and change. From the beginning, it is obvious that Holden does not like anyone, except children. To Holden, the world around him, the adult world and all of its members, is phony. In other words, the innocent world of children is

As the novel progresses, we began to realise that Holden 's alienation is his way of protecting himself. Just as he wears his red hunting hat as a sign of individuality, he uses isolation as a proof that he is better than everyone else around him. He never describes his own emotions directly, and never attempts to discover the source of his pain, which shows he desperately needs love and companion. This painfulness of growing up is another theme of "The Catcher in the Rye" that helps our understanding of the novel. Holden is growing into adulthood, yet, he resists it. He fears change and complexity and wants everything to be simple and predictable; just like childhood. He rejects his fears and creates an idea that adulthood is superficial and "phoney". As the

The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger is a story about mind-shattering change and the heart-stuttering transition from being a carefree teenager to a full-blown adult. The main character, Holden Caulfield, struggles across a mental and emotional chasm left by the conflict between recklessness and accountability. To cope with these warring ideas, Holden deems himself ‘the Catcher in the Rye’, a protector of childhood and everything it represents. He faces conflict with this alter-ego when it comes to making choices between solving a problem with a childish mentality or an adult mentality. Ultimately, the catcher in the rye represents the preservation of innocence, running away from fears of the future, and the rejection of adulthood.

Instead of acknowledging that adulthood scares and mystifies him, Holden convinces himself that adulthood is a world of superficiality and hypocrisy, while childhood is a world of innocence, curiosity, and honesty. Holden tells Phoebe, when she asks what he wants to do with his life, that he would “just be the catcher in the rye.” (chapter 22). He imagines childhood as a golden field of rye in which children romp and play; adulthood, for the children of this world, is equivalent to death, a fatal fall over the edge of a cliff. Holden’s imagined understandings of childhood and adulthood allow him to isolate himself from feelings of pain, failure, and sadness. He wants to catch children before they fall out of innocence into knowledge of the adult world, which leads to his glorification of Allie, and protective feelings towards Phoebe. Holden has become so lost in this simple world that he cannot see the complexities of growing up. He views maturity as a fall, rather than an ascension into greater knowledge and a newer perspective on life. He would rather shelter the innocent from pain and loss forever, rather then let them meet reality, and grow into stronger, more perceptive human

In J. D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye Holden is having to fight a battle between two worlds one being a mature adulthood, which he fears, and the other being his childhood one with no change and the memory of his brother Allie. He is stuck between these worlds because he is one that fantasizes over the innocence and immaturity of his childhood and others. He believes that this is the time where you are untouched by Society’s ways. If he could do anything in this world he would want to save and free children of having to grow into adulthood and to be forced into growing up, changing, and becoming a mature adult. Holden is having to fight the battle of growing into adulthood because he is one that fears change, confrontation,

Holden realizes he must let go of children trying to take risks, “If they fall off, they fall off, but it’s bad if you say anything to them” (Salinger 232). Holden realizes his dream of being “a catcher in the rye” is impossible. Holden cannot dictate a child’s future because it’s his or her choice and not Holden’s. Holden finally comes to a conclusion that he himself will have to grow up too in order to accept the complexities of adulthood that he has a hard time with grasping, such as relationships with women. If he doesn’t grow up like people around him, then he will become embedded with bitterness and loneliness. Holden finally learns that he should take risks in order to gain new experiences that will help him transition to adulthood.

The Catcher In The Rye was a book written by J.D Salinger, Salinger writes about a boy who struggles with depression, PTSD, and possibly most threatening: a grasp on reality. Holden doesn't have the ambition that most teenage boys do to grow up and become an adult; or better said, to become a man. Holden sees the adult world as a bittersweet lie that is condescending and phony, therefore, he would rather stay a child. Holden's idea of growing up and his opinions on childhood put him in a conflicted position in between adolescence and adulthood because he faces the loss of his brother and the lack of closure. In Holden's battle to stay a child, he enters his biggest enemy, adulthood He sees children as pure and innocent, as where he sees

The most important theme in this novel is innocence. Holden demonstrates this theme constantly throughout the novel. Holden wants to be the “the catcher in the rye” and save all the innocent children from losing their innocence and going into adulthood (Catcher). Holden believes in this because he thinks that he has fallen into adulthood too early and his main enemy is the adult world so he does not want kids to fall into the adult world and wants them to stay kids for as long as they can (Catcher). Towards the end of the novel, Holden slightly changes his view on this.

J. D. Salinger’s, The Catcher In The Rye, is a coming of age story about a young man named, Holden. Holden is a troubled young man that wants to maintain his innocence, because he believes adults live fake lives, and are unhappy. Throughout this book Holden is constantly having doubts about growing up and maturing, but in the background is slowly becoming what he despises the most.

In the Catcher in the Rye there are a lot of themes and the most important one is growing up. Growing up is part of life and sooner or later we all have to go through it. Holden doesn't seem to want to grow up. Throughout the whole book Holden complains about adults and how they’re phonies. He says that when people grow up and they turn adults they get stuck in a routine, but holden doesn't like routine. When you are a child you don't necessarily have to have a routine.

In The Catcher in the Rye, written by J.D. Salinger, there are several themes that stand out. Among these thematic ideas is the topic of innocence. Within the novel, there are numerous areas and characters that represent the various aspects of innocence, whether it be the very image of innocence or a view of it from someone who has lost their innocence. These display a common message, which is that innocence is a value that should be held onto for as long a time as possible, but will sooner or later be lost.