Elusion Of Adulthood

Holden Caufield is a negatively charged character as expressed on the first page of the book before Holden tells his opinion about his childhood. He says, "If you really want to hear about it, the first thing you'll probably want to know is where I was born, and what my lousy childhood was like..." (Pg. 1) Holden shows here that he was negative and depressed even in his childhood years which is mainly due to his brother, Allie's death. Holden's alienation toward the world is what causes these unwanted character traits of Holden's. Holden is also a hostile character who attributes his negativity to block out others around him, and to delay the fact that he indeed will have to face reality sometime.

Lying, drinking underage, smoking, and cursing are all factors that prove that Holden does not have his purity anymore. Holden is not innocent; he is in fact being sucked into the cruel adult world and does not even recognize it. Because of Holden’s opinion that the adult world is filled with phonies, his younger brother Allie’s death, and the deprivation of his own innocence, Holden feels the urge to protect the innocence of the important people in his life. From his weekend long journey from Pencey to New York City, Holden tries to discover the difference between the child world and the adult world. As his trip ends, Holden comes to the realization that growing up is a part of life that everyone experiences.

"(Salinger,173) J.D. Salinger, in his timeless classic, The Catcher in the Rye, a novel depicting the complications of life as an adolescent, uses reality verses allusion, phoniness in society, and the loss of innocence as themes in his novel, to present the true inner character of Holden Caufield. Beginning to learn the truths of society and growing up, sixteen year old, Holden has a hard time adjusting to maturity. After the death of his younger brother Allie, his inability to remain in one school, and his ongoing dislike of many people and their morals, Holden has been driven to depression in which he dispenses to a psycoanaylgist throughout the novel. Through his novel, Salinger incorporated the theme reality verses allusion, to demonstrate how the mind of some adolescents are so unwilling to face the truths of society.

74) Jem’s view towards his father also changes when he risks being shot by Mr. Radley when he returns to collect his pants so that he can avoid the dishonor of having Atticus be disappointed in him. Towards the end of the novel, when Jem hears verdict of the Tom Robinson trial, the darkness of reality destroys whats left of his optimistic innocence. It dispels everything that he had previously held to be true, and Jem is unable to comprehend why people would harbor prejudices. “‘If there... ... middle of paper ... ...essons Scout learns is to stand in others shoes. She had always seen Boo Radley as a villainous monster with no capacity for feeling, but has her perspective vastly shifted when he rescued her from the destructive Mr. Ewell.

Elizabeth’s metaphor “the magistrate sits in your heart” foregrounds for responders that Proctor must eventually forgive himself if he is to experience an enriched sense of self. Proctors hyperbolic retort: “Your justice would freeze beer;” reminds us that scarred human relationships can also negatively impact our sense of belonging.... ... middle of paper ... ...ndings are unfamiliar to him and profoundly limit his sense of self. the persons experience of settling into a new and unfamiliar world, effects his sense of identity and limits his ability to belong Proctor, Parris and Tans persona all struggle with finding a sense of belonging. Proctor; because of his past transgression has to grapple with his sense of self worth until he can ultimately feel like he belongs with Elizabeth. Parris; even though he’s leader of the church, his fear and paranoia limit his sense of belonging in Salem.

He does so because he understands that if he allows Phoebe to follow him westward, he will fail his dream of protecting her innocent; instead of preventing her terrible fall into adulthood, he will be as guilty of pushing her over the edge of childhood as the anonymous "pervert" who scribbles profanity on her elementary school walls. Thus, to save her, he must sacrifice his passionate disdain for adult phonies and submit to the indignity of their "asking me if I 'm going to apply myself ' (213)…” Holden Caulfield suggests that children should be respected and protected. He wants to be the catcher and the rye to protect children from “falling over”. As a result of Allie’s death, Holden feels guilty and loses faith in the adult world, and his own future. The baseball mitt represents Holden returns to the field where childhood still remain themselves, not entering the adulthood and Holden’s life is much simpler.

J.D. Salinger’s novel The Catcher in the Rye, stresses the importance of a father figure that can diminish fears of growing up and aid in the journey into adulthood. Protagonist Holden Caulfield fears entering into adulthood due to its phoniness and impurities, so he examines potential father figures he thinks can help to ease his anxieties and to assist him in his passage into the adult world. Carl Luce has the knowledge on matters of sexuality that Holden needs, but he refuses to aid him, so he rejects him as a father figure. Furthermore, Holden pursues Mr. Antolini for shelter and his wise advice; however, Mr. Antolini’s alcohol abuse causes him to act inappropriately with Holden and scares him out of his home.

Because of his early death, Holden felt his innocence had been stolen. In reaction to this Holden felt it was his responsibility to protect the innocence of all children. As a result he developed a job that he would like to have-- "a catcher in the rye." He would stand at the edge of a cliff and catch the kids who were about to fall off. This meant that if someone was about to lose their innocence, Holden would save them.

Augustine begins with the sin of his body and the craving for physical desires. He tries recalling his earliest memories, but settles with observing other infants and concludes that “none is pure before you [God], not even an infant of one day upon the earth” (9). He realizes that as an infant, he succumbed only to his external desires, trying to fulfill his most basic needs. He witnessed babies in tears “trying to obtain what it would have been harmful to get…and attempts to strike them [parents] and do as much injury as possible [with] never an obligation to be obedient” (9). Augustine reasons that since it is not acceptable performing those actions at his current age, it is not acceptable during infancy either.

In J.D. Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye, the main character Holden Caufield believes that innocence is corrupted by society. He exposes his self-inflicted emotional struggles as he is reminiscing the past. For Holden, teenage adolescence is a complicated time for him, his teenage mentality in allows him to transition from the teenage era to the reality of an adult in the real world. As he is struggling to find his own meaning of life, he cares less about others and worries about how he can be a hero not only to himself but also to the innocent youth.