Jerome David Salinger is an odd character with a colorful background. He was a young man unable to complete college and obtain a degree, yet he was made very popular due to his writing abilities. “Despite his slim body of work and reclusive lifestyle, ‘Salinger’ was one of the more influential twentieth century American writers.” states Biography.com, “His landmark novel, Catcher in the Rye, set a new course for literature in post World War II America.”
The Catcher in the Rye told a story of Holden Caulfield and his struggle to find something pure in a world filled with “phonies” (Biography). It is arguable that some of Holden’s experiences could be comparitively autobiographical to Salinger’s real life. Much like J.D. Salinger, Holden Caulfield is a reserved character, attending Pencey Prep (Salinger, J.D.). Both Holden and Salinger were born and raised in Manhattan, and went to private schools in Pennsylvania. Another seemingly important characteristic between the two is that they were kicked out of numerous schools because of grades.
J.D. Salinger was born on January 1, 1919 in New York City, New York, as the youngest of two children ( Biography). He was the son of Solomon, who ran a successful ham and Kosher cheese import, and his wife Miriam Salinger (Liukkonen). The family lived in Manhattan, New York on Park Avenue which was what Liukkonen calls, “The fashionable apartment district” much like his character, Holden Caulfield. Salinger was born into a mixed family, where his father was of Jewish, and his mother was Scotch-Irish (Notable Biographies). His parents marriage was frowned upon because his mother was non-Jewish, so his mother learned to hide her religion from everyone including Salinger. Fo...
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...itnessing the circumstances Holden is put in, it is apparent that The Catcher in the Rye is somewhat an autobiography. Salinger shares many of his character’s outstanding characteristics, like his reclusive nature and his discontentment. Because Salinger was so private, it is safe to say The Catcher in the Rye is probably the most accurate story on this famous American the public will ever read.
Works Cited
"J.D. Salinger Biography." Biography.com. Web. 25 Mar. 2011. .
"J.D. Salinger Biography." Encyclopedia of World Biography. Web. 23 Mar. 2011. .
Liukkonen, Petri. "J. D. Salinger." Www.kirjasto.sci.fi. Web. 25 Mar. 2011. .
Salinger, J. D. The Catcher in the Rye. Boston: Little, Brown, 1951.
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.
The Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger's novel set in the 1950s, told the story of sixteen-year-old Holden Caulfield. Deciding that he's had enough of Pencey, his fourth school that he'd failed, he goes to Manhattan three days before his scheduled return to home, not wanting to inform his parents that he'd been expelled and sent back. He explores the city, calls up some old friends, gets nicked by the elevator operator, and gradually becomes bitter about the world and people. He then visited his sister Phoebe. After fleeing from the house of Mr. Antolini, his former English teacher, because of mistaking his actions for a homosexual overture, Holden went to Phoebe's school and sent her a note telling her he was leaving home and to meet him at the museum. When Phoebe arrived, Holden angrily refused her request to take her with him and she ignored to speak to him. He then took her across the park to a carousel, bought her a ticket and watched her ride. Holden ended his narrative here, telling the reader that he was not going to tell the story of how he went home and got "sick". He planned to go to a new school in the fall and was cautiously optimistic about his future.
Salinger went through many of the experiences Holden went though. Salinger much like Holden had a sister that he loved very much, in the novel Phoebe is the only person that Holden speaks highly of; both men also spent time in a mental institution; Holden is telling the story from inside a institution; they were both kicked out of prep school and most importantly they were both a recluse from society. This is why Salinger uses Holden as his persona all though out the book. The ‘catcher in they Rye’ is almost like an autobiography for Salinger. He is using Holden as his persona to let us, the reader, dive into his thought pattern and find out some of the thoughts that he kept locked up in there.
In the novel, Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger, Holden Caulfield is an example of a prosaic rich adolescent boy,with a pedestrian set of problems, but a psychoanalysis reveals that Holden has a plethora of atypical internal conflicts. Internal conflicts that other students at Pencey, such as Stradlater and Ackley, would not normally experience.
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.
At first glance, J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye simply tells the story of Holden Caulfield, who is often characterized as annoying and whiny by the people around him. The anti-hero frequently speaks on impulse, making quick and often inaccurate observations of others. Holden’s immature and overly critical attitude turns off those he encounters, who are displeased with how callow he is. However, what these characters fail to understand is that there is actually a sort of sophistication behind Holden’s reasoning. In fact, throughout the novel, Holden disguises his maturity through outward displays of childishness.
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.
For example, Holden gets kicked out of multiple schools throughout his life because of his grades before being sent to Pencey Prep in Agerstown, Pennsylvania and grew up in New York. According to “Biography”, “After flunking out of the McBurney School near his home in New York 's Upper West Side, he was shipped off by his parents to Valley Forge Military Academy in Wayne, Pennsylvania.” Obviously, Salinger was trying to make his connections to Holden clear to his audience by relating his real life events to his work of fiction.
The Catcher in the Rye is a novel by J.D. Salinger that is told from the point of view of Holden Caulfield. Holden is a young man struggling with growing up and facing the adult world. As a misunderstood teenager, Holden learns to deal with the deception of the adult world and the consequences of his choices.
The Catcher in the Rye - J.D. Salinger as Holden Caulfield. & nbsp; & nbsp; & nbsp; The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger, is home to the protagonist Holden Caulfield. There is no coincidence that he holds a striking resemblance to the author of the novel himself. Salinger seemed to have a similar childhood as Holden describes in The Catcher in the Rye. Both men also seemed to have a certain fascination with younger children, especially younger women. J.D. Salinger based one of his most famous characters, Holden Caulfield, on personal experience. & nbsp; Holden's story in The Catcher in the Rye begins with Holden at his school, Pencey Preparatory, which is a boarding school. He was sent there by his parents, who seemed to be withdrawn from his life. Similarly, Salinger's parents sent him to Valley Forge Military School, where he had a neighbor who always seemed to be barging in, showing a resemblance to Salinger was also born in New York to upper-class parents. It seems as though Holden Caulfield's childhood is an identical match to that of J.D. Salinger's. The. & nbsp; Salinger had a deep love and fascination with young children, especially young women. In the 1970s, Salinger maintained a close connection with an eighteen year-old girl, Joyce Maynard, who eventually moved in with the author. J.D. Salinger continued to have many relations with younger women, much like this one. His fascination with young women is reflected in Holden, who has a similar mind-set. Even as a seventeen year-old, Holden is infatuated with his perception of Jane Gallagher as a little girl. It is this picture of innocence that Holden is in love with, and not what Jane is like now. The concept of, "the catcher in the rye," the cliff. Salinger used Holden to vent his love, and passion for children. & nbsp; Holden is almost an identical representation of what J.D. Salinger is truly like. His adoration for young women is shown in Holden's love for Jane, and in the concept of, "the catcher in the rye. " Both show similarities in their childhoods, from growing up wealthy in New York, to being sent away for school. J.D. Salinger used Holden Caulfield to expose his personal life, and possibly his personal feelings. & nbsp; & nbsp;
Jerome David Salinger was born on January 1, 1919 in Manhattan, New York City. His father, Sol, a Polish Jew, and his mother, Marie, an Irish Catholic, owned a meat and cheese importing business. Salinger attended public schools until the age of thirteen, were he was enrolled in the prestigious McBurney School in Manhattan, but he was dismissed with failing grades after a year. He then attended and grad...
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.
By the end of the book, The Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger’s purpose was clear. He wanted to create a novel with the main character characterized as an outcast, rather than a popular or strong protagonist. J.D. Salinger gave the story a different perspective, hoping to make readers look at life with a different perspective also. After reading this novel, readers will be able to view adulthood and childhood at different angles, giving life a whole new approach.
J.D. Salinger's The Catcher in the Rye is a remarkable book that gives readers a unique and perhaps gloomy perspective of the 1950's through Holden Caulfield, a cynical and peculiar teenager. Through The Catcher in the Rye Salinger describes important aspects of the 1950's. Salinger emphasizes several key characteristics of the 50's and criticizes them through Holden. In addition, Holden Caulfield is a very interesting character with several traits that put him at odds with society.