Into the Wild vs. Catcher in the Rye

Many parallels can be drawn between the main protagonists in John Green's Looking for Alaska, and J.D. Salinger's Catcher in the Rye. Although these two coming of age novels differ greatly in setting and in circumstance, many of the broader, more fundamental themes in each are actually quite similar. John Green was very much influenced by J.D. Salinger, and even admitted that Miles "Pudge" Halter in Looking For Alaska, was based largely off of Holden Caulfield, the main character in Catcher in the Rye. In reading the two books, this statement becomes less and less difficult to believe as we see ignorance, rebellion against authority, death, isolation, and eventually maturity, and

Every human actions meets in nature and they find their own characteristic feature in a good or bad way. Not everyone can say it is a pleasant experiment, but no one can deny that it happened. This single event is ‘growing up’. The transition between childhood innocence and adulthood is long and confusing, often uncovering questions that cannot be answered. During this time the adult world seems inviting and free, but only when we become members of a cruel, society can the happy ignorance of childhood be appreciated and missed. The novel Catcher in the Rye examines how adult life appears complex and incomprehensible to teenagers on the brink of entering it. Through the main protagonist Holden Caulfield, J.D. Salinger captures the confusion of a teenager when faced with the challenge of adapting to an adult society.

The reader often searches for a glimpse of himself in the characters he is reading about, and this is especially true with the adolescent readers of The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger. The author paints a picture of a conflicted youth by emphasizing his idiosyncrasies, and although Caulfield’s traits may seem exaggerated and alien at times, he is a character who is relatable to American youth today. Holden Caulfield has a strong sense of civic duty that is overshadowed only by his suicidal tendencies, is exceedingly sensitive to the evil in the world and prone to angst, yet empathetic to the emotional upheaval other children will experience when entering adulthood.

There is only one experience that unites every single person in the world. Many people in the world can agree that it isn’t always the greatest experience, and many people have an extremely hard time getting through it, but every single adult goes through the act of ‘growing up’. For many, the transition can be very depressing, and confusing. When a child is young becoming an adult seems to be enjoyable and exciting, but it isn’t until that child is forced into the cruel, harsh world where the innocence of childhood can be appreciated and missed. The novel Catcher in the Rye explores how teenagers who are nearing adulthood see the adult world to be incomprehensible. J.D Salinger illustrates the confusion of a teenager when faced with the challenge of transitioning into adulthood using Holden Caulfield.

That's one nice thing about carousels, they always play the same songs.” (pg. 189) The carousel that Holden used to visit as a child still played the same song giving him hope that if the carrousel didn’t have to change over a such a long period time maybe he didn’t have to as well. By Salinger describing the young mind frame of Holden it is seen how his obsession with his world not changing can cause him to alienate himself as he feels as though if he is alone, he can control the way his own world works.

In J. D Salinger 's novel, The Catcher in the Rye, the protagonist, Holden, goes through many hardships in his journey to self-knowledge. In the beginning, Holden has to deal with being kicked out of school and not having any place to call home. He is also struggling with the unfortunate tragedy of the death of his beloved younger brother Allie. At the same time, Holden is trying to deal with growing up and accepting the adult world. Throughout the novel Salinger addresses the conflicts faced by a young man struggling with the trials and tribulations of growing up while also confronting personal loss and loneliness along the way.

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.

    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.

In the studied works ''Into the wild'', "Anthem", and "The catcher in the rye", they all have many things in common. One of the biggest things they have in common is they each have a society they live in that greatly impacts the way they behave throughout the story. In the studied works an important element of the story and characters is the society they live in with the standards and the way they respond to it. I strongly believe this adds a lot of meaning to the story and the way it unfolds. Chris McCandless from Into the wild lived in a society that has many standards and expectations.

In the bildungsroman Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger employs the struggle of individuality, inevitable maturation, and the childhood corruption of adulthood to reveal Holden’s alienation from society.

“If I could not do these things, my life would have no value. Merely to live, merely to exist --- what sense is there to it?” (Potok 218). A person’s life measures up to be what they decide to do with it. Although, it may be hard for them to achieve what they want within a troubled society, it is still possible. In Chaim Potok’s The Chosen and J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye, both authors portray their purposes by demonstrating hardships of coming of age and growing up in conflicting societies in order to argue that the environment in which an individual grows up in cannot prevent them from reaching their full potential by using repetition, simile, imagery, and arrangement within their novels.

The novel ‘The Catcher in the Rye’ by J.D Salinger is a coming-of-age story. It follows the short tale of Holden Caulfield, a sixteen year old boy, who throughout his experiences in the novel, changes and becomes more mature and independent. The story essentially has two Holden Caulfields, the one telling the story, and the one that the story is being told about. This essay will look at the differences and similarities between the two Holden’s’.

We all have to make choices in life, and sometimes those choices aren’t the best choices to make. Holden’s journey of life is full of sadness and depression and Chris who is searching for true happiness and meaning to his life. Chis from Into the Wild and Holden from The Catcher in the Rye are similar because they both seem to be struggling with themselves and society but they are different because their decisions caused their lives to have different outcomes.

Jerome David Salinger’s only novel, The Catcher in the Rye, is based on the life events shaping main character, Holden Caulfield, into the troubled teen that is telling the story in 1950. The theme of the story is one of emotional disconnection felt by the alienated teenagers of this time period. The quote, “ I didn’t know anyone there that was splendid and clear thinking and all” (Salinger 4) sets the tone that Holden cannot find a connection with anyone around him and that he is on a lonely endeavor in pursuit of identity, acceptance and legitimacy. The trials and failures that Holden faces on his journey to find himself in total shed light on Holden’s archenemy, himself.

In J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye and Yann Martel's Life of Pi both main characters Pi and Holden have an equal amount of grief and pain, so they can relate to each other. Pi is more mature than Holden Caulfield, but they both have not found that fulfilment that makes them feel whole. They search for two different things to find satisfaction and coping methods with their problems in life. Pi seeks the spiritual world through God and religion for help with his struggles. Holden takes the logical approach through materialistic things such as money to cope with his own set of troubles. Both characters seek happiness, they come from two different backgrounds and have two different ways of approaching adversity to try to achieve the same goal.