“Catcher in the Rye” by J.D. Salinger is, in simplest terms, a book about life. A novel about what it means to exist, to be human, and to live – and a sixteen-year-old boy mercilessly critical of the world of 1950’s New York he lives in. The movies, the music, the people are all meaningless to him, even despicable. He hates the way life works – the divisions between the rich and the poor, the endless walking in circles and the inability to understand one’s purpose. Holden feels that life is sad and empty because of unfair economic inequities, the fragmentation of society into different groups and the boringness of adult life. Firstly, Holden finds existence sad and melancholy because of unjust economic inequities. He doesn’t want anyone feeling inferior or embarrassed, feeling that this kind of emotional sadness over material possessions is depressing. A good example of this is the way he describes his experience of rooming with someone who came from a poorer background than Holden, and how much tension this difference created. Holden had better suitcases than the other boy did, and while Holden eventually hid them under his bed to try and eradicate the economic barrier dividing them, the boy put them back because he cared more about others thinking the suitcases were his, and think that he comes from an upper-middle-class background, than not to be judged based on his economic background at all. Holden doesn’t want to feel the guilt of making someone feel like a lesser person because of material possessions. He describes, “The thing is, it’s really hard to be roommates with people if your suitcases are much better than theirs – if yours are really good ones and theirs aren’t. You think if they’re intelligent and all, […] and hav... ... middle of paper ... .... Holden believes that adult life is boring, which depresses him, and this is one of his greatest fears and insecurities. According to Holden, life is depressing because of societal division – between different groups, between economic classes. As well, he believes that life becomes more boring and depressing when a child becomes an adult and settles into societal norms. Holden thinks himself the ‘catcher in the rye’, saving children from falling into this abyss of repetitive corruption. I agree with him on certain points – although, unlike Holden, I believe that a person can think individually from group opinion and society does not always divide itself into clear-cut, defined groups. However, there is no arguing that life doesn’t have its negative side – and Holden Caufield presents Salinger’s readers with a unique interpretation that rings true to heart for many.
Holden struggles with himself mightily and cannot fulfill his responsibilities. One of Holden’s struggles is that he has a bad attitude towards everyone. For example, at the school he goes to, he hates his roommates and his teachers. In addition to not liking anyone, Holden
Catcher in the Rye is a complicated book about a young man going through, what appears to be a nervous break down. This is a book about the boy’s negative self-talk, horrible outlook on life, and a life itself that seems to keep swirling down the toilet. He keeps trying to fill his life with something, but the reality of it is he doesn’t exactly now what he needs. It’s complicated to understand at parts, because all he does is think of things in the worst possible conditions.
... is apparent that he is a troubled young man through not only what is said and done, but what is also left as unspoken thoughts inside his mind. Holden Caulfield is, beyond a shadow of a doubt, mentally unstable. He is not classified as a "crazy person" or a "loon" but he is a young man who, as a child, had innocence and purity ripped away with no warning or mercy. Instead of reacting more positively and growing older at a young age, the tragedies caused him to year for the innocence of childhood that he knew in some dark corner of his mind had been long gone and was never returning regardless of how much faith and stubbornness he had.
The Catcher in the Rye has been described, analyzed, rebuffed, and critiqued over the years. Each writer expresses a different point of view: It is a story reflecting teen-ager's talk--thoughts-emotions--actions; or angst. I believe it is an adult's reflection of his own unresolved grief and bereavements. That adult is the author, J.D. Salinger. He uses his main character, Holden, as the voice to vent the psychological misery he will not expose -or admit to.
The Catcher in the Rye by J.D Salinger is a coming-of-age novel set in New York during the 1940’s. Holden Caulfield, the protagonist of the story, is a detached seventeen-year old boy harboring feelings of isolation and disillusionment. He emphasizes a general dislike for society, referring to people as “phonies.” His lack of will to socialize prompts him to find nearly everything depressing. He’s alone most of the time and it’s apparent that he is very reclusive. This often leads him to pondering about his own death and other personal issues that plague him without immediate resolution. Holden possesses a strong deficit of affection – platonic and sexual – that hinders and cripples his views toward people, his attitude, and his ability to progressively solve his problems without inflicting pain on himself. The absence of significant figures in his life revert him to a childlike dependency and initiate his morbid fascination with sexuality. In this novel, Salinger uses Sunny, Sally Hayes, and Carl Luce to incorporate the hardships of discovering sexual identity and how these events affect adolescents as they try to understand their own sexuality.
A major theme of J.D. Salinger’s novel, “ The Catcher in the Rye,” is turning your back on the world is not good. The teenage boy Holden Caulfield demonstrates this theme in the story with the constant negativity he receives as result of his negative attitude.
People go through depressing periods in their lives as teenagers, and some experience it more severely or for longer periods of time than others. In The Catcher in the Rye J.D. Salinger expresses this time of dejection through the protagonist Holden’s thoughts and personal feelings. Holden’s tone reinforces a theme of suicide and depression. He is sarcastic, biter, and occasionally upbeat.
Holden cannot accept the loss of innocence as a step into the growing up process. The ones that he loves most, are those who are younger to him, they are innocent, and untouched by society’s truths. Holden says, “…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.
In J.D. Salinger’s controversial 1951 novel The Catcher in the Rye, the main character is Holden Caulfield. When the story begins Holden at age sixteen, due to his poor grades is kicked out of Pencey Prep, a boys’ school in Pennsylvania. This being the third school he has been expelled from, he is in no hurry to face his parents. Holden travels to New York for several days to cope with his disappointments. As James Lundquist explains, “Holden is so full of despair and loneliness that he is literally nauseated most of the time.” In this novel, Holden, a lonely and confused teenager, attempts to find love and direction in his life. Holden’s story is realistic because many adolescent’s face similar challenges.
The world today is very deceptive and phony. J.D. Salinger’s well known novels, The Catcher in the Rye and Franny and Zooey attack this fake and superficial society which is evident through the lives, ideas, actions, and words expressed by the characters in these literary pieces. The transition from childhood, through adolescence and into adulthood is inevitable. The protagonist of The Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield goes through this stage and finds himself in a crisis. He alienates himself from everyone who is around him and tries his best not to grow up. Holden often dwells upon his childhood and the life he had with his family. Franny in Franny and Zooey has already passed this stage but finds it difficult to live in a world where everyone she is surrounded by is only concerned with outward appearances. In these worlds, both characters, Holden and Franny, reveal their struggle of growing up and trying to live as an adult in a world full of deception and shallow-minded people who only care about appearances.
As the book progresses, Holden’s experiences teach him more and more about how life and society really are. He encounters many complicated situations and ideas that he does not understand. “…Holden’s exasperation is overstated…confusion about sexuality and death…” (Pg. 73 Sanford Pinsker). This quote shows how Sanford Pinsker interprets Holden’s remarks as confusion and uncertainty of complex “adult” emotions and ideas. Holden starts realizing how phony and complicated life is. “…the comic irony, the colloquial language the theme of anti-phoniness…[Holde...
J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye portrays the story of a teenage boy, Holden Caulfield, growing up in the decadent world of New York. Holden fears adulthood. He is afraid of abandoning his youthful qualities as he steps into the mature world, in which he perceives as full of superficiality and hypocrisy, or “phoniness.” When in fact, he is oversimplifying adulthood with his cynical, black-and-white views. His judgement serves as a form of protection, allowing him to self-isolate from reality. He chooses to avoid his inner troubles about change and responsibility instead
The Catcher in the Rye follows Holden Caulfield’s journey into acceptance of growing up. At the beginning of the novel, Holden tries to escape from situations which bring him closer to adulthood. This is evident when he leaves school early as he refuses to conform to the rules; Holden believes the adult world is full of ‘phonies’ and so he chooses to run away from this prospect. This decision leads
Catcher in the Rye is one of the most famous books in American literature. Written by J. D. Salinger, it captures the epitome of adolescence through Salinger’s infamous anti-hero, Holden Caulfield. Holden Caulfield learns about himself and his negative tendencies, and realizes that if he does not do something to change his perspective, he may end up like his acquaintance James Castle whom he met at Elkton Hills. Holden tries to find help to mend his outlook on life through Mr. Antolini so he does not end up like James, who did not want to face the problems he created for himself. This is proven by the similarities between James Castle and Holden, Mr. Antolini’s willingness to try and help Holden, and Holden’s future being forecasted by James.
Holden Caulfield can be analyzed through his thoughts, actions and circumstances which surround his everyday life. Holden acts like a careless teenager. Holden has been to several prep-schools, all of which he got kicked out of for failing classes. After being kicked out of the latest, Pency Prep, he went off to New York on his own. Holden seems to have a motivation problem which apparently affects his reasoning. The basis of his reasoning comes from his thoughts. Holden thinks the world is full of a bunch of phonies. All his toughs about people he meets are negative. The only good thoughts he has are about his sister Phoebe and his dead brother Alley. Holden, perhaps, wishes that everyone, including himself, should be like his brother and sister. That is to be intelligent, real and loving. Holden’s problem is with his heart. It was broken when his brother died. Now Holden goes around the world as his fake self, wearing his mask. Holden is looking for love, peace and understanding. He is scared to love because he is afraid he might lose it like he did with his brother. That is the reason for Holden's love of the museum, he feels safe because it never changes it always stays the same. Holden is troubled with the pain of death, it effects every aspect of his life causing him to not care about the future, himself or anyone, except Phoebe and Alley.