Theme Of Alienation In Catcher In The Rye

In J.D. Salinger’s, Catcher in the Rye, Holden excommunicates himself from everyone he knows because he does not like who they present themselves to be. Holden is extremely closed minded about everyone he knows and he does not understand how to communicate with others; however these actions put Holden in a state of self-alienation. Salinger uses Holden to show how loneliness can leave people in a fragile state and if not helped then it could lead to death.

In the first chapter of this novel, we get introduced to the protagonist and narrator of the novel, Holden Caufield, from a rest home in which he has been sent for therapy. He refuses to talk about his early life, although he does explain that his older brother “D.B” sold out to writing for Hollywood. His story and breakdown begins in the school of Pencey Prep, a boarding school set in Pennsylvania. The setting for the early chapters in the narration is his "terrible" school, to which he describes the atmosphere to be “as cold as the December air on Thomsen Hill”. Holden’s student career at Pencey Prep has been destroyed by his refusal to apply himself. We know this after Holden explains he failed four of his five subjects, passing only English. Due to his lack of effort and determination, he was forbidden to return to the school after the term. The Saturday before Christmas vacation began, Holden overlooked the football field, where Pencey usually

The only constant in life, whether people like it or not, is change. Something in life is always changing. Even within J.D. Salinger’s book, The Catcher in the Rye, change is always happening despite the main character’s wishes. Salinger uses symbols to bring a deeper understanding of the theme about change to the reader in a way no other figurative language could. There are a variety of symbols throughout the book, such as the ducks, to assist J.D. Salinger display his message. Holden Caulfield, the atypical protagonist of this bildungsroman story, gets the ax from the prestigious Pencey. Traveling back to his home state of New York, Holden lives incognito so his parents cannot find out he flunked out of another boarding school. While experiencing New York on his own, a natural maturing process begins to happen. Dreaded by the idea of adjustments within his life, Holden tries to stay in his youthful and innocent state. Realizing this transition to adulthood is inevitable, he tries to figure out what he needs to do, but deep down wishes he could keep everything as it currently is. Holden seems frustrated, even depressed, to find out that he cannot keep life constant with drastic changes always happening. J.D. Salinger uses the significant symbol of the Museum of Natural History, in his novel The Catcher in the Rye, to show that despite desires to keep everything the same, change is bound to happen.

    In J.D. Salinger’s novel The Catcher In The Rye, Holden is excluded and isolated from the world, due to his confusion about life experiences, adult world curiosities, and his discontent with society. He says to Mr. Spencer that he feels trapped on "the other side, where there aren’t any hot shots"( Salinger 8). He always attempts to discover his way in the world in which he believes he doesn't belong in. He enjoys being the one that stands out and is distinct standing in an average crowd. He claims that "All morons hate it when you call them a moron"( Salinger 44). He is against most of the people in his life because he believes that they are selfish and stupid. He feels unique by being different from everyone and as the novel progresses, we begin to recognize that Holden's alienation is his method of protecting himself from the world. One example is the red hunting hat, which sponsors his

Everyone jokes about having an existential crisis, but in reality, the root of the problem is the unspoken existential anxiety that affects all people. Existential anxiety is the anxiety caused by the morality of a person’s life span. This causes them to think about what purpose they have in life, or how they are significant to society. In J.D. Salinger’s novel The Catcher in the Rye, the main character, a young man named Holden Caulfield, recalls his memories of a weekend alone in New York. During this time, Holden attempts to cope with his existential anxiety through immature, childish impulses, causing Self-Hatred, but becomes Self-Compassionate due to his growing awareness of the effect he has on people around him.

Existential anxiety is the negative feeling that arises in a human being. In the novel, Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger, the main character, Holden narrates events that happen after his school, Pencey, kicked him out for his deficient grades.With signs of this anxiety, he quickly finds himself in a state of depression caused by his struggle of growing up. Overwhelmed and afraid, Holden runs the other direction when he is hit with the idea of aging and his immature and innocent characteristics allow him to wander astray. Holden deals with his existential anxiety from his greatest fear, but throughout the story, we distinguish him experience phases of self hate from childish impulses and attempting to move towards the path of self

“The Catcher In The Rye” by J.D. Salinger is an intense psychological novel about an unfathomable teenage boy who wanders through life with traumatic memories of a broken childhood that haunt him. Alongside the struggles which break down the walls of his innocence, further leading to a corrupted young man who struggles with inner conflicts, coupled with surviving the adult world. The novel touches upon many social issues currently trending in the twenty-first-century society. Social issues faced by the present generation that is highlighted to the reader of “The Catcher In The Rye” as seen through the eyes of a marginalized teenager include Social Alienation from society, neglection, further leading to depression, and loss of protected innocence.

Catcher in the rye shows alienation when the main character, 16 year old Holden Caulfield got expelled from his private school, Pencey Prep School. This isn’t the first school he’s been kicked out of, it’s the fourth. Holden alienates himself from everyone and everybody around him. The book covers the three day period in his life, after he got kicked out and left Pencey days before he was meant to. He ended taking the train to got to back home to New York City, but instead of going back home he decided to stay at a motel.

Holdens alienation is the cause to all is pain, he thinks he is better than everybody else that’s why he expresses himself through his actions, just like when he wears his red hunting hat to show his uniqueness. Alienation is the stability holden holds, but its destroying him, that is shown when holden tells Mr Spencer that he feels trapped on the other side of life, where he doesn’t belong. Holden’s identity can be seen through his alienation from other people, Holden is shown as an unconnected person, showing that his interactions confuse him and overwhelm him. Holden often feels lonely and sad and that’s why he gets motivated to go on a date with Sally Hayes but his need for isolation causes him to insult her and drive her away. That

Alienation & outcasts: The reason why the characters we've read about feel victimized by society is because of their differences, they believe that people aren't real/truthful with them and they retaliate by being aggressive. One example of this would be Holden from Catcher in the rye. When his roommate Ackley asked him if he knew who won the fencing match Holden responded with “ I don't know and I don't give a damn. How ‘bout sitting down or something, Ackley kid?”

In The Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger discusses the ideas of alienation and isolation. He notes that if one is unable to keep up with society they lose touch. Salinger portrays alienation and isolation through literary devices such as symbolism. Some of the symbolic features use in the novel is Holden’s red hunting hat which shows Holden’s uncommon desire compared to society’s desires. Another significant symbolic feature is the catcher in the rye; this represents Holden’s idea of protecting children from maturing as adults and facing reality. Another literary device is tone, although Holden seems preoccupied, he constantly tries to seek companionship throughout the book. J.D. Salinger also portrays irony, it is ironic that Holden calls the people around him loners and phonies when he, himself is a loner and a phony that refuses to accept taking on responsibilities and growing up. The literary devices used in this novel, further support Salinger’s recurring theme of alienation and isolation.

Holden Caulfield, a cynical seventeen year old male, embarks on a journey to find himself after being expelled from his fourth prep school. Troubled by females, grief, and innocence, Holden learns many aspects about himself through his survivalist adventure in New York City. Holden’s expedition in The Catcher in the Rye by J.D Salinger exemplifies his search for identity and alienation from society. Holden Caulfield perceives himself to be a courageous adolescent, yet he consumes himself with fear of girls, disappearing, and another life-changing loss. Although he marvels at Jane Gallagher, his first female friend that he finds attraction in, he finds himself unable to contact because her mother answers the phone and in response he proceeds

Considered one of the best novels of the 20th century, The Catcher in the Rye has affected readers around the globe since its publication in 1951. Its contemporary critics, however, gave the novel mixed reviews. Compared to the ideals of 1950s America, Holden Caulfield, the emotionally immature, extremely judgmental, teen-aged main character of “Catcher,” embodies the antithesis. Holden was an affront to the new social order, which demanded conformity and propagated the “father knows best” mentality. Americans, however, despite the postwar economic boom, remained suspicious of authority. In idyllic suburban neighborhoods across the country, while families huddled around their new television screens, people discussed their neighbors’ movements, made distrustful even of their closest friends by the “Red Scare”. The American Dream seemed like a golden ring just out of reach, leaving people feeling like they were going around in circles without a clear destination or purpose. With his sense of nostalgia for better times, his bleak perspective of the future, and his contradictory nature, Holden speaks directly to this sense of confusion at the world that Americans felt during the 1950s.

A great philosopher once said, “There is no crueler tyranny than that which is perpetuated under the shield of law and in the name of justice” (Charles de Montesquieu). The rebellious nature of some people is necessary for survival and development under circumstances that standardized institutions present. In Joseph Heller’s Catch-22 and J.D. Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye the consequences of rebellion against a traditional institution are shown through the eyes of main characters while showing rebellion leads to a development of increased morals and overall happiness; they show their purpose of promoting rebellion, even with its consequences, through repetition, simile, tone, colloquialism, and arrangement.

The author from The Catcher in the Rye J.D. Salinger utilizes motifs loneliness and depression to show how Holden a teenager from the book explains the struggles he had during the great depression. J.D. Salinger uses the motifs of loneliness and depression to illustrate the theme that when people feel lonely they try to connect with people to get rid of it.