Assignment 02: Fiction, Literary Criticism and Drama:
(a) The Catcher in the Rye (J.D.Salinger)
Question asked:
The title of the novel is taken from a poem by Robert Burns. Read this passage carefully and write an essay in which you explain how this poem sums up Holden’s deepest desire, and how this theme is developed in the novel. Write between two and three pages.
Introduction:
Holden Caulfield a 17 year old teenager is the narrator of the book “The Catcher in the Rye” J.D Salinger illustrates in his book “The Catcher in the Rye” of a teenager's dramatic struggle against death and growing up. Holden Caulfield’s sister Phoebe is 9 years old; he has big respect for his younger siblings. Allie who is Holden’s younger brother died of leukaemia.
Essay:
Holden Caulfield is a 17 year old teenager, who is the narrator and protagonist in “The Catcher in the Rye” Holden is telling his story directly to the reader from a mental hospital in southern California. From the beginning we as the reader notice that Holden is not a traditional narrator. He gives details about his birth, his parents and all that David Copperfield kind of crap" (referring to Charles Dickens' novel by the same name).Holden’s favourite story “The Secret Goldfish” is written by his older brother D.B, whom he describes as a “terrific” short story writer. “The Secret Goldfish” is about a child who buys a goldfish and doesn’t allow other people to look at the fish, because het bought it with his own money. This foreshadows Holden’s passions for the innocence and authenticity of childhood.
In Chapter 3 Holden returns to his dorm room after being pestered by Ackley. Of all the places in the novel this is where Holden discusses his hat, the most famous and recognizabl...
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... is trying to catch Holden in the midst of a “fall.” But Mr. Antolini “fall” describes is very different from the one Holden had imagined. Holden desires an idyllic world of childhood innocence; But Mr. Antolini describes that Holden is giving up or disengaging himself from the real world, or that he would fall in a void that removes life around him. In both these cases, we see that Holden envisions himself as the protector rather than the one to be protected. Holden is the one who really needs to be “caught”. But Mr. Antolini thinks that Holden feels disconnected from his environment, and, his assessment is accurate. Holden wants to attempt to be his own saviour, but Mr. Antolini’s imagines Holden’s falling presents in a more accurate image of what awaits Holden on the other side of the “cliff.” This thus reveals the weaknesses of Holden’s romantic outlook.
In J.D. Salinger’s novel The Catcher in The Rye Salinger writes about the main character Holden Caulfield and his life. Holden is a teenager who comes from a wealthy family, he loves his family and lives very happy until the death of his brother Allie. After his brother died Holden becomes troubled, being kicked out of school again and again developing a negative view of the world. Holden throughout the book shows anger,denial, and acceptance over the loss of his brother.
...eir thought processes are flawed or not. But this unwillingness to conform was what caused James’ jump out the window. Although Holden does admire James’s integrity, he also realizes that if he does not change his ways, he could end up like James. But Holden would not have someone like Mr. Antolini to help him out and cover his body. Holden must find a driving force within himself that wants to make him change. He must find a new outlook on life, and he cannot be afraid of growing up. He must set an example for Phoebe, and show her that running away or flying away from her problems are not an option. Ducks can only fly for so long. And Holden must realize that he cannot progress when he is judging all of the phonies of the world. The Catcher in the Rye must find a balance between becoming an adult, and flying away.
Since Holden relies on his isolation to sustain his detachment from the world and to keep intact a level of self-protection, he frequently sabotages his own efforts to end his seclusion. When Mr. Spencer explains that “life is a game that one plays according to rules” Holden reveals that he feels imprisoned on the “other side of life” where there are no “hot-shots”. Here, Mr. Spencer is lecturing Holden on his failed attempts at schooling and illuminating key aspects of Holden’s character. After hearing this advice from Mr. Spencer, Holden immediately goes on the defensive and internalizes his thoughts of not belonging in this world. This event shows Holden’s failed attempts at trying to find his way in this “phony” world that he feels is against him and leaves him feeling alone and victimized.
In the novel The Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger develops Holden Caulfield as a morally ambiguous character. Throughout the book, Salinger speaks as Holden and introduces him as a callous and subjective individual. However, the author permits the reader to be within Holden’s mind, giving the audience an alternative perspective of Holden’s true character. Without the obscurity of Holden’s personality, the work would lack a crucial element. As the protagonist, Holden serves as an equivocal adolescent that is relatable for the reader.
Holden Caulfield, portrayed in the J.D. Salinger novel Catcher in the Rye as an adolescent struggling to find his own identity, possesses many characteristics that easily link him to the typical teenager living today. The fact that the book was written many years ago clearly exemplifies the timeless nature of this work. Holden's actions are those that any teenager can clearly relate with. The desire for independence, the sexually related encounters, and the questioning of ones religion are issues that almost all teens have had or will have to deal with in their adolescent years. The novel and its main character's experiences can easily be related to and will forever link Holden with every member of society, because everyone in the world was or will be a teen sometime in their life.
This reveals Holden’s fantasy of an idealistic childhood and his role as the guardian of innocence. Preventing children from “going over the cliff” and losing their innocence is his way of vicariously protecting himself from growing up as well. Holden acknowledges that this is “crazy,” yet he cannot come up with a different lifestyle because he struggles to see the world for how it truly is, and fears not knowing what might happen next. Holden’s “catcher in the rye” fantasy reflects his innocence, his belief in a pure, uncorrupted youth, and his desire to protect it. This fantasy also represents his disconnection from reality, as he thinks he can stop the process of growing up, yet
Ultimately, Holden Caulfield’s decisions were incredibly based on his yearning for innocence in life when it is slowly fading away from the world. The audience feels sympathy towards Holden because they know Holden’s past years have been traumatizing with his brother’s death and his moving of schools. The audience knows now that Holden’s alienation is because he does not want to lose his or anyone’s innocence. Thus, the overall lesson is that one cannot prevent another person to do what they want to do, and if they fall, let them.
In the novel “Catcher in the Rye” the reader is able to better understand Holden by the characters in his remembrances. Mr. Antolini, a person who shows affection for Holden, shows the reader that Holden makes quick assumptions and judgments with characters in the novel. Phoebe, Holden’s younger sister, makes it evident to the reader that Holden does not want to grow up, mature, and have a future as an adult. Jane Gallagher’s character also helps the reader better understand Holden by making it evident that he does not want to let go of his childhood innocence. Although Holden’s character is the main focus of the novel, his remembrances of other key characters help define him and give the reader a better understanding of who he is.
In 1950 J.D. Salenger captures one of society’s tragedies, the breakdown of a teenager, when he wrote The Catcher In The Rye. Holden Caulfield, a fickle “man” is not even a man at all. His unnecessary urge to lie to avoid confrontation defeats manhood. Holden has not matured and is unable to deal with the responsibility of living on his owe. He childishly uses a hunter’s hat to disguise him self from others. The truth of his life is sad and soon leads to his being institutionalized. He tries to escape the truth with his criticisms. Knowing he will never meet his parents’ expectations, his only true friend is his eight-year-old sister Phoebe, to whom Holden tells that he really wants to be ‘the catcher in the rye”. Holden admits his only truth and shows that Phoebe is his only friend. Another form of escape for Holden is his acting, which he uses to excuse the past. Holden has tried to lie, hide, and blame his way through life; when he finds that it is not the answer he collapses.
Mr. Antolini brings to our attentions another image of falling when he talks with Holden about his behavior. He tells Holden that Holden is due to fall. “This fall I think you’re riding for—it’s a special kind of fall, a horrible kind. The man isn’t permitted to feel or hear himself hit bottom.” (Pg. 187) Mr. Antolini brings to our attention the fact that Holden is going to “fall” or loose his innocence soon if he already hasn’t. During the book when Holden is going mad it sure seems like he keeps falling and falling but he can’t feel himself fall or hit bottom. He drinks constantly to escape the problems he has with his life. He tries to find people and things to make him happy, but he can’t anymore. Allie made him happy, but now Allie is dead.
Holden’s love life distinctly reflects that of Salinger’s, as he strays from the orthodox motivations of society and hopelessly seeks a steadfast relationship. After physically fighting with Stradlater over his impulsive actions toward Jane, Holden ponders the sincerity of his intentions in having intercourse with her. He disapproves of Stradlater’s careless motives and discovers his personal desire for a long-lasting romantic bond as he states, “I just kept laying there on Ely's bed, thinking about Jane and all. It just drove me stark staring mad when I thought about her and Stradlater parked somewhere in that fat-assed Ed Banky's car. Every time I thought about it, I felt like jumping out the window” (Salinger 26-27). Using a reflective tone, Holden recognizes his desire for a sincere relationship through his shock and
Some people feel all alone in this world, with no direction to follow but their empty loneliness. The Catcher in the Rye written by J.D Salinger, follows a sixteen-year-old boy, Holden Caulfield, who despises society and calls everyone a “phony.” Holden can be seen as a delinquent who smokes tobacco, drinks alcohol, and gets expelled from a prestigious boarding school. This coming-of-age book follows the themes of isolation, innocence, and corrupted maturity which is influenced from the author's life and modernism, and is shown through the setting, symbolism, and diction.
Holden Caulfield, a charismatic teenager from New York City, recounts his excursion in the novel, The Catcher in the Rye. After fleeing from Pencey Prep boarding school as a result of his expulsion, Holden commences his lonely three-day journey into New York City. Holden’s brother and best friend, Allie, died of leukemia in the Caulfield’s summer home in Maine. This heartrending event emotionally obliterates Holden at a young age. Because he feels adulthood taints purity and leads to death, Holden becomes the catcher in the rye, saving all children from the cruelness of adulthood. “A point central to the novel is that Holden is the innocent youth in a world of cruel and hypocritical adults” (Bloom 21). To aspire to stay young forever renders
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.
In this novel the main character, Holden’s life is narrated. It talks about his everyday life like not getting along with his roomates at his school, meeting up with old friends he used to know, and visiting his younger sister phoebe. At one point in the book you learn that Holden’s brother Allie has passed away due to cancer. Throughout the book Holden acts like a child, but also goes to the bar, drinks, and smokes. In Catcher in the Rye, Salinger expresses that grieving the loss of a loved one simultaneously makes one mature, but also creates a period of time where one is unable to move on and grow up.