A theme in a work of literature is the author’s way of relaying a message to their audience. Often times, many themes are similar and recur throughout different pieces over time. For example, many characters begin their development as innocent and naive. However, as the course of the novel progresses, the characters evolve, and they can lose their innocence, which can later influence the characters behaviors and attitudes. The theme of innocence frequently appears in many classic American novels such as The Great Gatsby, The Crucible, The Catcher in the Rye, Of Mice and Men, and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. The 1925 novel, The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald demonstrates the theme of innocence throughout the sequence of events. According …show more content…
Salinger’s classic novel, The Catcher in the Rye, displays a character longing to protect the essence of childhood innocence. In The Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield loses his brother, Allie, at a young age. Holden feels responsible for not protecting Allie and seeks out to protect all of those around him. According to “The Theme of the Loss of Innocence in Catcher in the Rye by Salinger,” Holden seems to show compassion for younger children due to the innocence they possess that adults do not, which leads to them becoming “phonies.” Later on in the novel, Holden’s younger sister, Phoebe, asks him what he would like to be, and he explains his vision. In his vision, the field of rye is too tall for the children to peer over, which serves as a metaphor. Realistically, the children are not capable of seeing past the innocence that separates them from adulthood. Thus, when Holden tells Phoebe that “I mean if they're running and they don't look where they're going 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). He wants to be a catcher in the rye field. He is saying that he wants to protect the young and innocent minds of children from the adult world. Holden wishes to be the gatekeeper of childhood and keep the children from falling off of the cliff into a mature, and often darker, world that he finds himself in. In addition, Holden wants to be a catcher in the rye because nobody …show more content…
In the novel, Jim, a runaway slave, and Huckleberry (Huck) Finn, the protagonist, go on an exciting and eventful journey down the Mississippi River. Throughout the course of the novel, Huck and Jim have an interesting dynamic, and Huck is forced to confront mixed feelings towards society’s beliefs on slavery and racism. Towards the beginning of their journey, Huck begins to feel confused as to whether or not helping Jim escape to find his family is morally right. Eventually, Huck comes close to sending a letter to Miss Watson, the slave owner of Jim, in regards to Jim’s whereabouts, but he is unsure if he is doing the socially acceptable act or betraying Jim. In the story, he says, “I took it up, and held it in my hand. I was a-trembling, because I’d got to decide, forever, betwixt two things,” (Twain 220). However, Huck decides to go against society’s belief in slavery and tear the letter up, and he states, “‘All right, then, I’ll go to hell’- and tore it up,” (Twain 220). This evolution of Huck’s innocence leads to an interesting narration, and allows the reader to grow alongside
When Phoebe asks Holden what he likes, he replies by saying, "I thought it was 'If a body catch a body,'" I said. "Anyway, I keep picturing all these little kids playing some game in this big field of rye and all. Thousands of little kids, and nobody's around—nobody big, I mean—except me. And I'm standing on the edge of some crazy cliff. What I have to do, I have to catch everybody if they start to go over the cliff—I mean if they're running and they don't look where they're going 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. I know it's crazy, but that's the only thing I'd really like to be. I know it's crazy." (Salinger 173). The top of the cliff symbolizes the innocent child life, but below the cliff symbolizes the adult world of phoniness. Holden wants to catch the children before the run off into the phony adult world. In conclusion, Holden wants to be the “catcher in the rye” as he wants to catch children’s innocence before they fall into the phony adult
In The Catcher in The Rye, by J.D, the main character, Holden, can be seen as a troubled teenager growing up in a less than perfect society. Throughout the novel Holden struggles with the fact that many young and innocent kids will grow up and see the world from a different perspective. He naturally becomes worried for all future generations who will one day grow, as he did, and loose their innocence. The fixation of youth and innocence can be seen in the title of the book, as well as throughout the novel.
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.
In The Catcher in the Rye, Holden’s outlook in life is either the innocence of childhood or the cruelty of adulthood. He believes that the innocence of childhood is very valuable and it should be protected from
In J.D.Salinger’s novel, Catcher In The Rye, Holden Caulfield, the main character of the novel, is a walking paradox who desires to hold onto his innocence and ,in his mind, thinks that people who lose their innocence will either turn into a “phony” or a “jerk”. During his journey towards trying to preserve his innocence Holden affected his desire to hold on to his innocence through his action, such as his experience with a prostitute named Sunny, his interaction with Sunny shows him that most of the world of adults is just an illusion. Another person who affects Holden desire is his 10 year-old sister Phoebe Caulfield, his interaction with his sister phoebe shows how it’s ok to lose your innocence because with the loss of that innocence you
He's having a conversation with his sister and she asks him what he plans to do with his life and he respond with "I’m standing on the edge of some crazy cliff. What I have to do, I have to catch everybody if they start to go over the cliff—I mean if they’re running and they don’t look where they’re going 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." this quote here shows a lot about how holden feels about childhood and that he will play the role as the protecter of their inocence.
In Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, Holden Caulfield is a teenage boy who has been kicked out of his school, Pencey Prep. He is now back in New York City, wandering about since he didn’t tell his parents about his expulsion. Through his journey, Holden discovers the many hardships of adulthood, one of them being the loss of innocence. J.D Salinger uses tone to develop the theme that innocence is short-lived.
A major theme of the novel "Catcher in the Rye" is the expression of Loss of Innocence. This is theme is shown through out the novel numerous times. One example of the theme is when Holden stated, "I thought how Phoebe and all the other kids would see it, and how they woner what the hell it meant."(Salinger 201). This quote represents Holden's desire to protect children. Holden is frustrated by his inability to act and to keep little kids fro losing their innocence. It is very difficult to prevent young people from all the terrible things that they can face while growing up. As soon as children go to school and become part of the society they start to learn and see things that they have never seen before, and because they are still young they
The first time when Huck Finn is pulled in conflicting desires is when he finds Miss Watson's runaway slave, Jim, at Jackson's Island. Huck knows that if he doesn't turn the runaway slave in to his owner, "People would call [him] a low-down Abolitionist and despise (him) for keeping mum. " (Twain 43). Then later in the novel when he tries to write to Miss Watson that he knew where Jim was, he doesn't because " she'd be mad and disgusted at his rascality and ungratefulness for leaving her, and so she'd sell him straight down the river again." (Twain 212). The conflict within Huck Finn illuminates the meaning of the work as a whole because during the novel Huck develops affection for Jim are through he is challenging societal norms. When Huck tears up the letter when he remembers the time Jim said that "[he] was the best friend old Jim ever had in the world, and the only one he's got now." (Twain 214)
A third example of Huck’s growing maturity is when he tore up the letter he wrote to Miss Watson. In this part of the story, Jim has been captured by some farmers, the Phelps. Huck decides to write to Tom Sawyer to tell Miss Watson where Jim is. Huck, despite believing it was wrong, Huck tears up the letter. “‘All right, then, I’ll go to hell’-and tore it up” (Twain 321). Despite believing that he was wronging Miss Watson by
“Catcher In The Rye”, is Holden’s dream. He stands in a field of rye, while catching children who are playing too close to a cliff. This represents his love of children’s innocence. When he sees kids who are innocent and how real it is, it makes him very happy. Little things upset him, such as bad words on a wall, because of how powerful pure innocence is to him.
Furthermore, Huck internally criticizes Jim’s talk about “saying he would steal his children—children that belonged to a man I didn’t even know; a man that hadn’t ever done me no harm,” and states that it was a “lowering of him” (16). Huck’s lack of moral development epitomizes here, as he criticizes a “n*****” for his utopian vision of a peaceful life with his family. Huck’s conscience starts to attack him in this moment as he no longer thinks about Jim as his friend and starts to acknowledge that, in reality, he’s a black person. Although it appears that Huck is moral since he helped Jim escape, Huck doesn’t disapprove of the institution of slavery; he only helped Jim because he values their friendship. This is further exemplified when Huck makes the decision to take the canoe and go tell on Jim, though he tells Jim that he will go and check if they’re in Cairo. Twain juxtaposes Jim’s two possible futures, one of freedom, and the other of enslavement, to show the influence Huck’s choice will have. When Jim calls out “‘Jim won’t ever forgit you, Huck;
In THE CATCHER IN THE RYE by J.D. Salinger, Holden is talking to his younger sister, Phoebe, after he snuck into his apartment. During their conversation, Phoebe asks Holden what he would like to be when he grew up to which Holden responds with, "I'd just be the catcher in the rye and all." Holden's answer is naive and he himself criticizes the idea saying that it was "crazy." His answer allows the reader to delve deeper into Holden's character and interpret Holden as a protector of innocence. Holden's answer supports the novels underlying theme of how it is challenging to maintain childlike innocence in an adult-like world notioned by the Holden's imagery of a cliff and how "nobody big" is present.
Huck seems torn between the “right” thing, and what he feels is right. Writing to Miss Watson, he says, is "the right thing and the clean thing." To do otherwise would just confirm his "wickedness", "stealing a poor old woman's nigger," he says, "who hadn't ever done me no harm." But Huck also loves Jim. He says, "I couldn't seem to strike no places to harden me against him, but only the other kind." So Huck seems torn between his sense of what's right and his feelings. When, he finally decides not to write the letter, but chooses instead "to go to hell," proving that what is really right
Edwards’ point that Salinger has created a moral character who “wants to...guide and protect those younger than he” is valid because Holden treats all children with benevolence and genuinely cares for their well being (Edwards). The tragic death of Holden’s younger brother Allie, triggered a strange, moral obligation to protect other children from the perceived inevitably horrific fate of adulthood. Holden’s sister, Phoebe, is upset that her brother has been kicked out of yet another school, asks him what he likes and wants to do with his life. Holden takes a long time to ponder before coming up with an answer that he likes Allie and wants to be the catcher in the rye. He elaborates by explaining how there would be a field of rye, where he would stand “on the edge of some crazy cliff” and catch children “if they start to go over the cliff” (Salinger 173).