What Is Holden's Attitude Toward The American Dream

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For most, the American Dream is relatively simple and plain; the idea that all citizens should have equal opportunity to attain success, prosperity, and well-being through determination and hard work. But for those like Holden Caulfield, who narrates his story while undergoing treatment at an unspecified mental hospital, the theory of the American Dream is despised and rather ignored. In the novel Catcher in the Rye, written by author J.D. Salinger, Holden clearly demonstrates hatred towards the idea of the post World War II American Dream. He delivers a numerous amount of comments throughout the novel that show refusal to the American Dream’s needs such as the necessity for education, cars, stable jobs and other things of the sort. During

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