Holden Caulfield Conformity

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As World War II reaches its end, Americans began to seek for modifications. They see this as a time to success, and hoped to achieve the American Dream in which everything is perfect. An ideal 1950s family had considered, “dad brought home the paycheck, mom did the cooking and cleaning, and the kids were respectful and well-behaved. In reality, life in the 1950s wasn't quite as good as Father Knows Best would like us to believe...”(Lisa's Nostalgia Cafe Members). People was not able to receive a pleasant results even though expectations were set to guide them. Furthermore, during this time period, J.D. Salinger, a author, had published a very popular and influential novel titled, ‘ The Catcher in the Rye’. Through his novel, J.D. Salinger …show more content…

Enclosed in a society in which conformity was very common, Holden Caulfield was presented as a character who rejected all values of conformity. Holden wanted to prevent himself and the people he love from conforming by stopping time (Salinger 155-158). Salinger’s criticize toward the idea of conformity make Holden Caulfield the new voice of the younger generations. Holden does not wanted to be unique and striking out on his own. To both Salinger and Holden, total conformities are not the desirable routes toward perfection and …show more content…

It is stated, ““Teenagers who were moved by The Catcher in the Rye not only felt they could relate to Holden, but felt that they could identify with him.” (Stevenson). Holden’s experience as a sixteen years old are connectable with others. Life is unpredictable, and everyone have their own issues to solve. One of Holden’s issue is the death of James Castle. According to the class discussion on “The Catcher in the Rye”, Holden had the ability to prevent James Castles death. However, he had displayed no effort in doing so which leads to Castle’s death. Later, he regretted his selfishness and hoped to save the life of others (220-222). Holden does not have the power nor strength of a superhero in fact, he is sort of a criminal. However, Holden is still classified as a hero, because he treats people with what’ deeply within them and care for the ones that’s in need. He hoped to protect the people who he loved and cae for.
As a result, the ‘Catcher in the Rye,’ is a very influential and popular novel, because the experience within it can be sensed by one another. Teens were able to find similarities between Holden and them-self. Moreover, the author J. D. Salinger, had used Holden to criticize total conformities. People should not just follow the lead of the

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