I think The Catcher in the Rye can be compared to The Outsiders. In both books, both of the protagonists felt they were isolated from the society. Holden is clear that he was not part of any social group and showed no interest in joining one. While in The Outsiders, the title alone tells the readers that they are from the outside, they are outside of the society. The only difference is that Holden was alone, while Ponyboy had a gang (Greasers). Since Holden was alone, he had no one to express his emotions to, while Ponyboy had a gang and they understood one another like a gang.
On April 24, 1967, a remarkable book was published by eighteen year old S. E. Hinton. Themed on a greaser named Ponyboy who him and his gang are treated badly by the Socs, the book is about Ponyboy and his best friend Johnny on the run after Johnny kills a Soc. With help from one of their gang members, they sneak on a train to get to a church in the countryside. While eating at a restaurant, the old church catches fire with kids stuck in it, leaving Johnny and Ponyboy the ones to save the kids. While saving the children, a large, scorching piece of timber falls on Johnny, putting him in critical condition. While Johnny is in the hospital, a ‘rumble’ goes on in which the Socs and greasers fight in the vacant lot,
The Catcher in the Rye by J.D Salinger is a popular novel that was originally published in the 1950’s. In the book, Salinger explores various themes through the main character Holden and his interactions with others. Some of these themes include, alienation, loss and betrayal. Holden constantly feels betrayed throughout the novel by several people, including his roommate, teacher, and sister.
The Outsiders and The Wednesday Wars deal with misunderstandings among young people in the 1960’s and show how people can form friendships despite their differences. The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton is about two rival gangs, the Greasers and Socs. Ponyboy Curtis and some Greasers befriend Cherry Valance, a Soc. She spies on the Socs and helps out the Greasers. Ponyboy and his friend, Johnny Cade, become involved with the killing of a Soc, so they run away to an abandoned church. When the church catches on fire, Ponyboy, Johnny, and their friend Dallas Winston, save a few children who were trapped in the burning building. Johnny gets injured during the process and later dies. The boys are mentioned in the newspaper as heroes. The
middle of paper ... ... eling of separation in the ‘Catcher in The Rye’ by how Holden attempts to sever himself from society. The final method J.D. Salinger uses is how Holden himself appears to act differently from everybody else, for example when he is talking with Mr Antolini, and is discussing the Oral expression class which he ‘flunked’, we see that while all the other children are shouting digression and seem to relish in the boys obvious discomfort, Holden himself pities the boy, this shows how Holden is separate from all of the people of his age, as he says ‘that digression business got on my nerves’. Ultimately it is confusion that leads to Holden attempting to isolate himself. It is confusion about his purpose and identity and what he is doing in this life, that gradually lead to his isolation from most of society.
A theme throughout Catcher in the rye is Holden continuously writing about how mad or frustrated he is, and that is largely down to how much he isolates himself from society.
The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger is an enthralling and captivating novel about a boy and his struggle with life. The teenage boy ,Holden, is in turmoil with school, loneliness, and finding his place in the world. The author J.D. Salinger examines the many sides of behavior and moral dilemma of many characters throughout the novel. The author develops three distinct character types for Holden the confused and struggling teenage boy, Ackley, a peculiar boy without many friends, and Phoebe, a funny and kindhearted young girl.
In a perfect world, everyone would be happy with the way they are and everyone would accept the differences of others. Unfortunately, the world we live in is not perfect and not everyone accepts who they are . Is there a reason why people cannot be content with their lives or with the differences of other people? The answer is yes, and the reason for the discontent is society. With society telling the masses what is, and is not acceptable, it is no wonder that people seem “lost”, and are desperately searching out their place in the sun. This search for identity seems to be the case in JD Salinger’s novel, The Catcher in the Rye. Through settings in the novel and symbolism, Salinger illustrates that while the main character, Holden Caulfield, needs the support of the environment around him, the environment also needs Holden as a person. Holden Caulfield is out of place in any environment in which he is placed. At Pencey, his school, Holden gets excluded from the activities of his classmates. At the very beginning of the novel, Holden becomes expelled because his grades are not up to Pencey’s standards and also because he does not feel like he belongs there. Holden separates himself from his classmates for the most part by not becoming involved in the school. Although Holden is the equipment manager of the fencing team, he distances himself from his companions by losing the equipment, showing that he does not fit in, and he really does not want to. As he reflects back on his final day at Pencey he says: “ They kicked me out. ...I was flunking four subjects and not applying myself at all. They gave me frequent warnings to start applying myself...but I didn’t do it” (Salinger 4). The school is throwing Holden out because he is not what they want to represent to potential students. They want to show examples of fine, upstanding young men, instead of giving off the image of the failing, confused young man. Salinger uses Pencey as a mock society of some sorts. Holden does not fit in at Pencey, and he most definitely does not fit in as seen in the later settings of the novel. A second example of Holden’s isolation from his classmates can also be seen when he stands alone on the top of the hill during the “big game”.
“Isolation is the sum total of wretchedness to man.” (Thomas Carlyle). In the story Catcher in the Rye by J.D Salinger, this coming of age book tells of the teen troubles experienced by the main character Holden Caulfield. After Holden gets expelled from his school Pencey Prep, Holden leaves school a couple days early to explore New York City. In his travels he experiences isolation from friends at school, feeling disconnected from his family, as he tries understand these periods angst he finds some peace.
West Side Story is a book about two gangs living in a large city. The Outsiders is a book with the same concept, two gangs that are archrivals. Even though two different authors wrote these books during two different time periods, they have the same story line. These books are realistic, because gang rivalry is still going on today. They are different, since they were written separately. Also, both these books have different problems between the main characters. Still, West Side Story and The Outsiders have many similarities.
In the novel, Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger, Holden Caulfield is an example of a prosaic rich adolescent boy,with a pedestrian set of problems, but a psychoanalysis reveals that Holden has a plethora of atypical internal conflicts. Internal conflicts that other students at Pencey, such as Stradlater and Ackley, would not normally experience.
The Catcher in the rye , a novel by J.D Salinger is about a young teenage boy named Holden who has been kicked out of his current school and leaves earlier than he is supposed to because of a fight with a student. He decides to explore New York before going straight home . During his exploration he has encounters with prostitutes , teachers , nuns , an old girlfriend , and his sister. During his time in New York , the theme alienation for self protection and numbness caught my attention.
The catcher in the rye by J.D. Salinger is about a boy named Holden Caulfield and his struggles in one part of his life. Holden seem very normal to people around him and those he interacts with. However, Holden is showing many sighs of depression. A couple of those signs that are shown are: trouble sleeping, drinking, smoking, not eating right, and he talk about committing suicide a couple times during the book. On top of that Holden feel alienated plus the death of Holden’s brother Allie left Holden thinking he and no where to go in life.
The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger, is a classic novel about a sixteen-year-old boy, Holden Caulfield, who speaks of a puzzling time in his life. Holden has only a few days until his expulsion from Pency Prep School. He starts out as the type of person who can't stand "phony" people. He believes that his school and everyone in it is phony, so he leaves early. He then spends three aimless days in New York City. During this time, Holden finds out more about himself and how he relates to the world around him. He believes that he is the catcher in the rye: " I keep picturing all these little kids playing some game in a big field of rye and all. Thousands of little kids, and nobody's around-nobody big, I mean-except me. And I'm standing on the edge of some crazy cliff. What have I to do, I have to catch everybody if they start to go over the cliff..." (173). He briefly enters what he believes is adulthood and becomes a "phony" himself. By the end of the story, Holden realizes he doesn't like the type of person he has become, so he reverts into an idealist; a negative, judgmental person.
Life is difficult especially for a teenager as they try to discover themselves. To make this journey of self-discovery alone is especially difficult. Support systems offer guidance and comfort along the way. The primary support system are parents. They begin the preparations for a child to take his place in society. Religion offers moral guidance. Friends offer positive self-esteem and encouragement. In the book, the Catcher in the Rye, by JD Salinger, the main character, Holden Caulfield, has none of these support systems. He lives in a form of isolation from his parents, religion, and friends.
While societal attitudes attitudes may change over time, the challenges associated with the transition from childhood to adulthood remain constant. The ideas of individuality, alienation and loss of innocence fortify the theme of coming of age across the texts The Catcher in the Rye and The Perks of Being a Wallflower. The Catcher in the Rye, a bildungsroman novel written by J.D. Salinger in 1951, focuses on teenager Holden Caulfield’s transition from childhood to adulthood in 1950’s America, whereas the film The Perks of Being a Wallflower directed by Stephen Chbosky in 2012 follows teenager Charlie experiencing a similar transition in 1990’s America. Despite their varying contexts, these ideas are presented in both texts through the use the