The Catcher in the Rye is a short story belonging to the Modernist age of literature and written by J. D. Salinger in 1951. In the novel, the author sheds light on the series of events in the disturbed life of a confused, aggravated adolescent, whose despises “phoniness” and all the adult evils prevalent in the society. Holden Caulfield is portrayed to be an impressionable teenager who is exceedingly sensitive to the evils prevailing in the society. He believes that all the lying, deceit, hypocrisy and moral degeneracy that the adults of the society practice as common behavior is the reason which completely obliterates the innocence and beauty of the external world. Holden in deeply affected by his encounters with hypocrisy and phoniness, and …show more content…
The Catcher in the Rye, a recurrent symbol as well as the title of the novel, refers to Holden's wish to save innocent children from falling into the deep abyss of experience and maturity and adopting the evils and vices that come with age. The personal traits of the character of the protagonist, Holden Caulfield, make up the basic groundwork for his interest in becoming the Catcher in the Rye.
He is a sixteen year old adolescent, who is seen to be extremely sensitive to all the minor and major immoralities that have taken hold of the present day social behavior. The readers notice his annoyance and exasperation at each and every flaw that he notices in people; from Mr. Spencer's attempt to pick his nose while pretending he was only scratching it, to the naming of his dormitory wing after Ossenburger because he gave the school “a pile of dough”, and to his Headmaster's hypocrisy at shaking hands with “corny-looking parents”. He even introduces his brother, D.B. in an insulting manner; “Now he's out in Hollywood, D.B., being a prostitute...” (Salinger) for selling his writing skills to the will of the movie makers rather than indulging his own …show more content…
creativity. His reflections and observations all reveal his sheer sensitivity and attentiveness to all that is immoral or deceitful or “phony” in any way. So much so that it becomes the reason behind his instability and failure at every school he has been to. He is unable to tolerate even the slightest bit of hypocrisy and phoniness, as he tells his professor, Mr. Spencer, that “One of the biggest reasons I left Elkton Hills was because I was surrounded by phonies” (Salinger). It would not be difficult to conclude, therefore, that Holden was so annoyed by phoniness that he would do anything to avoid it, even if it meant quitting the school. In the perception of Holden Caulfield, children are the only innocent beings.
It is their childish innocence that is the reason behind whatever goodness and virtue there is left in the world. It is evident from the fact that children are the only ones with whom Holden appears to find no fault. The first child introduced in the novel is the one Holden comes across, coming out from the church with his parents, and humming the Robert Burns song, “Comin Thro' The Rye.” The manner in which he describes the child is in stark contrast to how he describes his other acquaintances, “The kid was swell” (Salinger). Furthermore, the readers understand that he is very much in love with his ten year old sister Phoebe, whom he describes fondly in chapter ten. According to Holden, “You should see her. You never saw a little kid so pretty and smart in your whole life” (Salinger). His extreme sensitivity towards preserving the beauty and innocence of children is further evident in chapter twenty five, in the incident where he visits Phoebe's school and finds swear words chalked on multiple walls around the school. “It drove me damn near crazy,” says Holden as he sees the words on the walls, and worries what the little innocent minds would think they mean after reading them. He was so infuriated that he “I kept wanting to kill whoever'd written it” (Salinger). As James Bryan rightly puts it, “he is hypersensitive to the exploitations and insensitivity of the post pubescent world and to the
fragile innocence of children” (Bryan 1065). This deep inherent wish to safeguard the innocence of little children against the harsh realities of the immoral world is the main reason behind Holden's misreading the song by Robert Burns. Instead of saying the words as “If a body meet a body coming through the rye...” while talking to Phoebe in chapter twenty two, he inadvertently says, “If a body catch a body comin' through the rye” which shows the picture that his imagination has drawn in reference to the song. He imagines himself as the Catcher of all those children, who, while, innocently playing in the field of rye, fall off the cliff of innocence into the deep abyss of maturity and experience, and in turn fall prey to the evils and vices he thinks are associated with age. Therefore, when Phoebe questions him about what he would like to be when he grew up, his reply is, “...I'm standing on the edge of some crazy cliff. What I have to do, I have to catch everybody if they start to go over the cliff … I'd just be the catcher in the rye...” (Salinger). As Leysen comments in her article, “Holden wants children to stay young and believes his guidance will prevent them from ever feeling the weight of the world on their shoulders (as he does)...” (Leysen). The novel, The Catcher in the Rye, reveals the thoughts and observations of an over-sensitive adolescent boy, who cannot ignore the hypocrisy and phoniness that invades the society, no matter how minuscule the level. He diligently observes the meanness and deceit in the behaviors of his acquaintances and considers the world a dark, evil place. Not only does he make constant attempts to avoid and abandon the evilness, but also harbors a wish to save the little, innocent children from the same filth, who have not yet crossed over to the threshold of maturity. Therefore, Holden's idea of being a Catcher in the Rye, is a misread reference to the song of Robert Burns that he overhears a boy singing in the street, and is borne from the innate desire to prevent the innocent children from falling into the deep, abyss of evil and vice, which in his perception, comes from age and experience.
What is the true meaning of a hypocrite? A hypocrite is someone who opposes their own view by not acting upon what they are saying. For example, in J.D Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield, the protagonist, is a hypocrite because of how he contradicts his words with his actions. Holden's hypocrisy towards everyone around him is a result of being isolated from his family, continuing to cope with the death of his brother Allie, and not being able to accept hypocrisy in general.
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.
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.
J. D. Salinger’s novel, Catcher in the Rye explores the ambiguity of the adult world Holden must eventually learn to accept. Throughout the novel, Holden resists the society grownups represent, coloring his childlike dreams with innocence and naivety. He only wants to protect those he loves, but he cannot do it the way he desires. As he watches Phoebe on the carousel, he begins to understand certain aspects of truth. He writes:
Catcher in the Rye is one of the most famous books in American literature. Written by J. D. Salinger, it captures the epitome of adolescence through Salinger’s infamous anti-hero, Holden Caulfield. Holden Caulfield learns about himself and his negative tendencies, and realizes that if he does not do something to change his perspective, he may end up like his acquaintance James Castle whom he met at Elkton Hills. Holden tries to find help to mend his outlook on life through Mr. Antolini so he does not end up like James, who did not want to face the problems he created for himself. This is proven by the similarities between James Castle and Holden, Mr. Antolini’s willingness to try and help Holden, and Holden’s future being forecasted by James.
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.
Small children are the most prominent minor characters that help Holden in the novel. They cheer him up and make him feel like he can help people and make their lives better. “God I love it when a kid’s nice and polite when you tighten their skate for them or something. Most kids are nice they really are.” (119) In this passage it is readily apparent that Holden enjoys helping the child and its puts him
We see during the novel that Holden wants to be able to protect innocence in the world, however by the end of the story he lets go of that desire. This is a point of growth for Holden. He finds that it is impossible and unnecessary to keep all the innocence in the world. While with Phoebe Holden says, “I keep picturing all these little kids playing some game in this big field of rye...I’m standing on the edge of some crazy cliff. What I have to do, I have to catch everybody if they start to go over the cliff...That’s all I’d do all day. I’d just be the catcher in the rye” (173). In this moment Holden wants to be able to preserve all the youth and innocence in the world. He doesn’t accept that kids have to grow and change and that they can’t stay innocent forever. Later on in the story when Holden is with Phoebe at a carousel again he thinks, “The thing with kids is, if they want to grab for the golden ring, you have to let them do it, and not say anything. If they fall off, they fall off, but it’s bad if you say anything to them.” At the end of the novel Holden realizes and comes to terms with the fact that kids grow and lose their innocence. He moves from his want to be the “catcher in the rye” to...
What was wrong with Holden, the main character in The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D.Salinger, was his moral revulsion against anything that was ugly, evil, cruel, or what he called "phoney" and his acute responsiveness to beauty and innocence, especially the innocence of the very young, in whom he saw reflected his own lost childhood. There is something wrong or lacking in the novels of despair and frustration of many writers. The sour note of bitterness and the recurring theme of sadism have become almost a convention, never thoroughly explained by the author's dependence on a psychoanalytical interpretation of a major character. The boys who are spoiled or turned into budding homosexuals by their mothers and a loveless home life are as familiar to us today as stalwart and dependable young heroes such as John Wayne were to an earlier generation. We have accepted this interpretation of the restlessness and bewilderment of our young men and boys because no one had anything better to offer. It is tragic to hear the anguished cry of parents: "What have we done to harm him? Why doesn't he care about anything? He is a bright boy, but why does he fail to pass his examinations? Why won't he talk to us?"
Innocence lies within everyone in at least one point in their lives, but as reality consumes them, that purity begins to vanish slowly as they learn new experiences. In the coming of age novel set in the nineteen-forties, J.D Salinger writes about a sixteen-year-old boy named Holden Caulfield who stands between a road that separates childhood from adulthood and is confused about which path to take. On a three-day trip in New York away from his family and fellow peers at school, Holden encounters many situations in which lead him to think twice about who he wants to become and how he wants to guide others who are in the same situation he is in. In The Catcher in the Rye, J.D Salinger utilizes symbolism, vivid imagery, and slangy diction to expose Holden’s struggle to preserve the innocence of the people that he loves while alienating himself from the adult world he calls “phony.”
The Catcher in the Rye by J.D Salinger is a coming-of-age novel set in New York during the 1940’s. Holden Caulfield, the protagonist of the story, is a detached seventeen-year old boy harboring feelings of isolation and disillusionment. He emphasizes a general dislike for society, referring to people as “phonies.” His lack of will to socialize prompts him to find nearly everything depressing. He’s alone most of the time and it’s apparent that he is very reclusive. This often leads him to pondering about his own death and other personal issues that plague him without immediate resolution. Holden possesses a strong deficit of affection – platonic and sexual – that hinders and cripples his views toward people, his attitude, and his ability to progressively solve his problems without inflicting pain on himself. The absence of significant figures in his life revert him to a childlike dependency and initiate his morbid fascination with sexuality. In this novel, Salinger uses Sunny, Sally Hayes, and Carl Luce to incorporate the hardships of discovering sexual identity and how these events affect adolescents as they try to understand their own sexuality.
Holden shows a particular liking towards children over adults. He values the innocence and authenticity of children and he tries to protect them from the phoniness and evil of the world. When he goes back to his old school at the end of the novel to give a note to Phoebe, he sees an obscenity on the wall that infuriates him. He says, "Somebody'd written `F*** you' on the wall. It drove me near damn crazy. I thought how Phoebe and all the other little kids would see it, and then finally some dirty kid would tell them-all cockeyed, about it and maybe even worry about it for a couple of days. I kept wanting to kill whoever'd written it" (201). When Holden's sister Phoebe demands that he tell her one thing that he really likes, Holden's responds saying, "I like Allie...And I like doing what I'm doing right now. Sitting here with you, and talking and thinking about stuff..." (171), showing that he's most content in the simple and innocent world of his childhood.
Holden cannot accept the loss of innocence as a step into the growing up process. The ones that he loves most, are those who are younger to him, they are innocent, and untouched by society’s truths. Holden says, “…I keep picturing all these little kids playing some game in this big field of rye and all. Thousands of little kids, and nobody’s around-nobody big. I mean – except me.
In J.D. Salinger’s controversial 1951 novel The Catcher in the Rye, the main character is Holden Caulfield. When the story begins Holden at age sixteen, due to his poor grades is kicked out of Pencey Prep, a boys’ school in Pennsylvania. This being the third school he has been expelled from, he is in no hurry to face his parents. Holden travels to New York for several days to cope with his disappointments. As James Lundquist explains, “Holden is so full of despair and loneliness that he is literally nauseated most of the time.” In this novel, Holden, a lonely and confused teenager, attempts to find love and direction in his life. Holden’s story is realistic because many adolescent’s face similar challenges.
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.