The Total Package of an American

The definition of “what it means to be an American” is difficult to outline in exact terms; however, through the characters in Catch-22 and Catcher in the Rye, Joseph Heller and J.D. Salinger manage to do just that. American spirit, identity, culture, and values are four aspects of America that are the basis of what it means to be an American. The characters in Catch-22 and Catcher in the Rye provide the reader with a solid base of what Americans are all about. Most Americans are independent, fun loving, patriotic, and firm in their beliefs; however, some but few Americans are greedy and imbecilic. Through the works Catch-22 and Catcher in the Rye, Heller and Salinger respectively use characters to showcase the true essence of being an American through American spirit, culture, identity, and values.

Deep down in every American, a sense of American spirit and pride is contained. Since the birth of America, citizens have put emphasis on their love for independence, exploration, and new places, an aspect of American society that is evident in both Heller’s Catch-22 and Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye. In Catch-22, the American spirit is conveyed through the new roommates Yossarian acquires in chapter thirty-two. When Yossarian catches his first glimpse of the roommates, he thinks, “They were frisky, eager, and exuberant [...] They were glad the war had lasted long enough for them to find out what it was really like” (346). Heller notes that the boys are excited to be in a new place and to try new things, supporting the idea of American spirit in that the boys are overjoyed at the chance to be in a new place with new surroundings, even if it is in the middle of a war. The same feeling of American spirit is expressed in Salinger’s Catc...

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...Holden on the right path in life. Salinger puts Mr. Spencer in the story to symbolize all of the wise Americans, be they teachers, parents, or adults in general, who try to steer children in the right direction, whether it is what is best for the children or not. Unfortunately for Holden; however, Mr. Spencer’s beliefs conflicts with Holden’s own views in that he is not looking for the most excellent education at the most excellent school, he is looking for a place to belong; a home. Salinger creates a sense of the many American values in Catcher in the Rye by using characters who exemplify these values. Throughout both Catch-22 and Catcher in the Rye, Heller and Salinger give the reader a strong insight into what it truly means to be an American by intertwining American spirit, identity, culture, and values through the characters’ personalities and the storyline.