Theme Of Corruption In Catcher In The Rye

Holden's Escape of Corruption Through Childhood and Innocence in The Catcher in the Rye Works Cited Missing Holden Caulfield was in conflict with the society he was living in. He regarded it as corrupted and totally insincere; and therefore he attempted to escape from falling into this corruption of adulthood, by holding onto his childhood innocence. However he was unsuccessful in his strong sense of desire to prevent this inevitable fall into adulthood. Later in the novel after coming to terms with this fact, he developed a new desire to act as ' The Catcher In

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

In The Catcher in the Rye, Holden views the world as an evil and corrupt place where there is no peace. His view of the world does not change much through the novel. However as the novel continues, Holden gradually comes to the realization that he is powerless to change this.

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 “The Catcher in the Rye” by J.D Salinger, Holden Caulfield, a 16-year-old boy who has recently expelled from school, had lost his younger brother to Leukemia and witnessed the suicide of one of his peers, struggles in his journey of coming of age. He isn’t fond of the idea of having to mature and be exposed to responsibilities and problems of the real world. As a result, he tries to preserve the innocence of his younger sister, Phoebe. One way in which he aims to accomplish this goal is through a Little Shirley Beans record which he buys in hopes of giving it to Phoebe. Salinger utilizes the symbol of the broken record to develop Holden’s loss of innocence and deteriorating character.

It is known that humans require interaction between each other. As a result we tend to get attached and depend on them. We tend to advocate others from groups and keep to the same people. J. D. Salinger explores this in his book in 1951, The Catcher in the Rye. This book is beloved by many because it is so easy to connect to, even our generation now can connect to Holden and some of the things he goes through. The story is about a boy named Holden, he gets kicked out of school multiple times, and instead of telling his parents he wanders around New York in search of someone that cares and that he can make a connection with. Growing up is hard, and we need human connection to make through the hard times.

“You'll have to jump.' 'I'll jump.' 'Jump!' Major Danby cried. Yossarian jumped. Nately's whore was hiding just outside the door. The knife came down, missing him by inches, and he took off” (Heller 350). Yossarian ends his dialogue in a cheery and fun way because he is finally going to be free from the oppression of the US military. This also shows his increased morals, because in the beginning, he would have just killed the girl for trying to kill him. He also uses arrangement to show America at the time like, “ Heller's satirical masterpiece tells us something about the madness of America” (Pilger, John). This shows how the novel portrays the insanity of the war at this time and how these people need help or to get out. The main part of the novel is just the insane adventures Yossarian goes on throughout his horrifying experience.

If you were to witness something corrupt, what would you do? Would you try to stop it? Or would you just look the other way and pretend it was not there? In today’s society, corruption is almost everywhere, and too often, people just look the other way, allowing it to continue. In writing The Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger attempts to show people the evils of a corrupt society, and how it can harm anyone. He does this through Holden’s experiences at Pencey and in NYC, as well as the uncertainty and confusion that Holden feels about sex.

The Catcher in the Rye is a novel written by J.D. Salinger that occurs around the 1950s. The story’s protagonist and narrator is Holden Caulfield, a seventeen year old white male, who journeys to various places as he mourns over the death of his little brother, Allie. As a white male in a capitalist society, he has tremendous amounts of privileges that allow him to get. However, as the novel progresses, Holden describes his society as a place where honored human qualities are suppressed and capitalist ideals are embraced. Throughout the novel, we see that capitalism, “the social system based on the recognition of individual rights, including property rights, in which all property is privately owned”, destroys the overall society for Holden and his generation (Rand).

In The Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger uses literary elements such as tone, figurative language, and theme to create the overall effect of a teenager’s cynical and conflicted approach to dealing with the concept of adulthood. Salinger writes about Holden Caulfield, a sixteen year old boy, and his venture through New York City after he is expelled from his preparatory school due to academic failure. During his time in the city, emotional and mental problems surface, and his desperate want for companionship exposes his inability to connect with others.

American literature is full of classic novels containing heroic protagonists; Holden Caulfield of The Catcher in the Rye is not one of these classic heroes. The article Some Crazy Cliff by Arthur Heiserman and James E. Miller Jr. provides one interpretation of the novel suggesting that the protagonist is unique compared to others commonly found in American literature; most heroes are seeking acceptance while Holden is seeking something within the society he is trying to leave. The novel follows Holden Caulfield, a young boy who recently flunked out of high school, over the course of three days. During this time, the protagonist returns to New York via train, but does not want to be with his parents until they have already learned of his

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.

"Anyway, I keep picturing all these little kids playing some game in this big field of