“When the New York City police officers arrived at the scene, they discovered Chapman casually thumbing to J.D. Salingers ‘The Catcher in the Rye’” (Biography. Com).For some people the world stood still for a moment when John Lennon was killed by Mark David Chapman only a few hours after Lennon signed an autograph for Chapman. How Chapman was found by the police leads to the conclusion that the book “The Catcher in the Rye” meant more to him than to others. “Chapman would […] be only one of millions who felt that Salinger’s book was written especially for him” (Stashower). Several parallels can be found between Chapman, J.D. Salinger’s and Holden Caulfield, the main character of the book and also the main themes apply to Chapmans life and …show more content…
Holden´s struggle with the world around him especially with growing up but also his desire to preserve child´s innocence can be connected to Chapman. As stated above Chapman had mental problems that can be defined as a Depression. After he became Christian in High school (Graines) he pressured himself to do the best version of himself he could possibly be. He “avoided everything that brought him away from god, such as coke or playing guitar” (Graines) When he was in a relationship he tried even harder but eventually the relationship failed and the two broke up which lead him to the idea that he ”wasn´t enough of a Christian”(Graines). This leads o the conclusion that Chapman was already mentally hurt. AS well as Holden, Chapman tended to oversimplify his view on the world. Holden for example tries to explain his roommate’s behavior by comparing their suitcases, although Holden wants to make his former roommate feel better by hiding his suitcase and after that his roommate put his suitcase in Holden´s place that does not explain the negative feelings that he has towards Holden (Salinger 108f.). Chapman himself stated that he is in “a struggle between good and evil and right and wrong” (Graines) this illustrates under which Chapman put himself. Trying to be as good he could as a Christian, which was after all not working, and that view on the world was …show more content…
He either saw him as a threat to other people´s innocence or he wanted to beware John Lennon´s innocence. Firstly John Lennon was obsessed with the Beatles in his youth but apparently turned against them after he became Christian (Stashower). It was made even worse when John Lennon stated, that “Christianity will go. It will vanish and shrink. […] We´re more popular than Jesus now!” (Runtagh). Chapman felt deeply upset about that and so he turned his back on them. That might have been a reason for him to see them as a threat of other´s innocence. To make his position clear Chapman used the image of the Catcher in the Rye. The Catcher in the Rye who is there to save the children from falling down a cliff, so if Chapman is the Catcher in the Rye he might have also seen John Lennon as a child whose innocence has to be preserved. After the Beatles split up all of the former members started solo careers, but John Lennon stopped to raise his son. During his comeback, Lennon´s Album was rated bad by critics and the public (Stashower). Mark Chapman could have tried to prevent him to get in a worse situation, for example the one of Holden´s brother D.B. who makes money by writing film scripts in Hollywood for money, but Holden describes it as Prostitution (Salinger 2) Another thing to add is, that throughout the book, the only
As Eugene McNamara stated in his essay “Holden Caulfield as Novelist”, Holden, of J.D. Salinger’s novel Catcher in the Rye, had met with long strand of betrayals since he left Pencey Prep. These disappointments led him through the adult world with increasing feelings of depression and self-doubt, leading, finally to his mental breakdown.
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.
(44)" Holden and Mark David Chapman ‘s traumatizing childhoods may differ in content but affected both young men in an immense way. Both had trouble processing what had happened to them and it contributed to a major emotional downfall. Moreover, similar beliefs linked Chapman and Holden as well. "Holden Caulfield and Mark Chapman were faced with the same crisis: an assault on innocence. (249)" Holden and Chapman wanted to preserve innocence. Although, at the end of the book, Holden ends up giving up on this and is put into a psychiatric facility. Chapman killed John Lennon as his attempt to preserve the purity of society. Holden gives some insight on his beliefs claiming that "Certain things they should stay the way they are. You ought to be able to stick them in one of those big glass cases and just leave them alone. I know that's impossible, but it's too bad anyway. (136)" With this
The Catcher in the Rye is written by J.D. Salinger. This book in particular is closely based on the life of Salinger. The symbols in this book are very highly developed and have a lot to do with the development of Holden's character and also explain how he feels about certain things in his life. The three most important symbols in this book are ducks in the pond in Central Park, the speech and discussion about digression at Mr. Antolini's house, and, of course, the symbolism behind the title, the catcher in the rye. The following will be an in-depth analysis of the symbolism behind the book, the Catcher in the Rye.
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.
Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye follows the journey of a young boy, Holden Caulfield, from adolescence to adulthood. There are a number of symbols that Salinger uses to help to portray the various stages that Holden goes through as he matures into adulthood. The snowball incident, his sense of fulfillment when at the museum, and his run in with a pimp, are all representations of how Holden is deeply obsessed with innocence thoughts and how reluctant he is to give them up.
What was it like to grow up? What would you change? Would you want to be a kid again? In the novel “The Catcher in The Rye” by J.D. Salinger, the character Holden Caulfield is trying to stop the way others grow up because to him the world of adulthood is corrupt. Ultimately the author sends a message that childhood innocence cannot be protected forever because everyone grows up.
John Winston Lennon was born on October 9, 1940 in Liverpool, England. John briefly lived with his biological parents and spent most of his childhood living with his aunt and uncle. Both his aunt and uncle treated him with sincere love, but the absence of his parents would leave a huge wound on Lennon’s upbringing. John was intelligent person, but most of the time used it to create havoc on the establishment. He received his first guitar when he was sixteen. He attended the Liverpool Arts School and it was there where he was introduced to his first true friend, Stuart. John was a musician at the time and Stuart was a promising artist. John gained valuable insights from Stuart and was deeply influenced by his surrealist paintings. It was at that moment in time that John realized he could express his emotions through music.
The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger shows the transition of a young teenager who struggles to find himself in the adult world. Holden Caulfield encounters many different elements that he had been influenced by the world around him. He views the world full of “perverts” and “phonies”. As a result of his views, Holden withdraws from society because he believes society is “broken” and very flawed. Holden’s view of society is developed based on his experiences such as the death of his brother, flunking out of many schools, an unrealistic dream of becoming the catcher and the rye. He becomes very judgmental of others which are his way of feeling better about himself by looking at things cursorily and His approach is to dismiss thinking deeply
In a world filled with hate, suffering, and disadvantages, it has come into my curiosity what the world would be like if all were still patient, kind, and filled with innocence. In the book, Catcher In the Rye, JD Salinger produces the theme, loss of innocence, through the main character, Holden, who is eager yet patient about losing his innocence in multiple examples. Holden has a very strong personality and is very independent. With these characteristics, he can determine what he should or shouldn’t do in his life, however, he is very troubled and misunderstood. In the book, Catcher In the Rye, Holden focuses much of his time, energy, and thoughts on his innocence, and the innocence of the children around him. He is very opinionated and tries with all of his being to change things back to their prime innocence. Holden lives in a dream world within his mind and battles through reality as his thoughts become known throughout this story, Catcher In The Rye.
The book, Catcher in the Rye, has been steeped in controversy since it was banned in America after its first publication. John Lennon’s assassin Mark Chapman, asked the former Beatle to sign a copy of the book earlier in the morning of the day he murdered Lennon. Police found the book in his possession upon apprehending the psychologically disturbed Chapman. However, the book itself contains nothing that might have lead Chapman to act as he did. It could have been just any book that he was reading the day he decided to kill John Lennon and as a result, it was the Catcher in the Rye, a book describing a nervous breakdown, that caused the media to speculate widely about the possible connection. This gave the book even more recognition. The character Holden Caulfield ponders the thoughts of death, accuses ordinary people of being phonies, and expresses his love for his sister through out the novel. So what is the book Catcher in the Rye really about?
Lies, failure, depression, and loneliness are only some of the aspects that Holden Caulfield goes through in the novel The Catcher in the Rye written by J.D. Salinger. Salinger reflects Holden’s character through his own childhood experiences. Salinger admitted in a 1953 interview that "My boyhood was very much the same as that of the boy in the book.… [I]t was a great relief telling people about it” (Wikipedia). Thus, the book is somewhat the life story of J.D. Salinger as a reckless seventeen-year-old who lives in New York City and goes through awful hardships after his expulsion and departure from an elite prep school. Holden, the protagonist in this novel, is created as a depressed, cynical, and isolated character and he expresses this attitude through his dialogue, tone, and diction.
Throughout the novel, J.D, Salinger develops Holden’s character with numerous situations. Holden makes the reader question his rectitude through his perspective of those around him, his sexual desires, his general attitude, and his chronic lying. Because Salinger permits the audience to know how situations proceed from Holden’s perspective, the audience has an alternative side of Holden available to evaluate. Without the varying traits Holden presents, The Catcher in the Rye would not thoroughly depict Holden as a suffering individual. Thus, Holden’s character is morally ambiguous and crucial to the overall development of the novel.
The Catcher In The Rye, by J.D. Salinger, portrays many different ideas in an everyday society. These ideas and thoughts are expressed through the protagonist in the novel, Holden Morrissey. Holden views many things in society as fake or “phony” at an idealistic point-of-view. This contributes to many conflicts and biased thoughts throughout the novel.
Third estate rep: From this day we shall be known as the National Assembly! We shall fight for those whose voices have been silenced! We will make sure a new constitution for France will be made for those who struggle!