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Why do you consider literary analysis
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There are many novels that are written with a purpose like “ the Catcher of The Rye, “ by J.D. Salinger. Salinger purpose was to show teens that stressing out over things is not the solution, it's okay to make mistakes. He started out with a character named Holden, who has been recently kicked out of Pencey Prep and slow introduces the anxiety he has of becoming an adult. Holden’s absence of adulthood cause him to do wrong decisions because he doesn't think of the effects it will do to his life. Salinger’s novel, The Catcher of The Rye approached his theme with symbolism which led to the theme of you can’t always be innocent to the world.
The title “ The Catcher of the Rye,” was created because later on in the story the words “Catcher”
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Holden does not have knowledge that in the process of growing up, there are always risks and obstacles. The author explains “She went and got on the carousel..watched her go around and around...All the kids kept trying to grab the gold ring...afraid she will fall off...they want to grab for the gold ring, you have to let them do it...they fall,they fall… bad if you say anything.” (211) Holden comes to a comprehension that his dream of being “ the catcher of the rye,” has a flaw of protecting the children. A carousel embodies a safe place and the happiness the children pride in. When Phoebe goes after the golden ring which represents hope, makes Holden notice that kids need to take risks in order to mature. Your parents will not always be there by your side to help you and protect you. Holden’s hatred toward adulthood is powerful enough that he was not able to see deep into it. Towards the end of the story Holden explains “..I felt so damn happy…the way she kept going around and around, in her blue coat and all.” (213) A carousel goes around and around meaning that life keeps repeating till you make a mistake that will take you off the route to triumph and if you fix, then you are successful. This carousel is an acceptable example of accomplishment because it keeps going around till a child falls and realizes their mistake, this leads to thinking outside the box to achieve. Holden
The carousel never changes, and continues to move in circles and always stays in the same speed; it stays the same while the children who ride it grow older. However, these children riding the carousel “kept trying to grab for the gold ring, and so was old Phoebe, and [Holden] was sort of afraid she’d fall off” (232). These children are teetering on the edge of innocence, close to falling from the safety of childhood into maturity. Holden, sitting on a bench watching these children on the edge of the cliff, cannot protect them from the fall. Holden explains this incapability as he admits, “if [children] want to grab for the gold 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” (232). Holden concludes that he cannot protect these children or himself from falling off the metaphorical cliff into adulthood; therefore, he abandons his dream of being the catcher in the rye and accepts his own transition into adulthood. Although Holden’s bold efforts proved incapable, the symbolism of cyclical objects conveys that Holden’s desire of endless innocence cannot transcend
Symbolism in The Catcher in the Rye J. D. Salinger's "The Catcher in the Rye", published in 1951, is his best piece of work. The story is about a sixteen-year-old young man by the name of Holden Caulfield. Holden is being expelled from Pency Prep and decides to leave three days early. He chooses not to go home, enabling his parents to receive the letter that his headmaster at Pency Prep wrote to his parents about his expulsion. He chooses to hang around in New York until Wednesday, when he is going to be able to return home.
good and got all the girls but in fact he was a slob. His razor that made him
The Catcher in the Rye Essay Through Salinger's use of symbolism, as a society, he depicts the importance of preserving innocence. We want to save our innocence. In court, people try to plead not guilty, meaning that they are innocent. Holden Caulfield tries to protect kids from becoming guilty. He wants to make people never become guilty.
An image he has created in his mind as someone who overlooks children playing in a rye in order to save them shall they fall off the cliff at the end of the rye. Holden’s only dream serves as a parallel of his life, showing his inability to strive for anything real as it simultaneously reveals his fear of falling from childhood or innocence. Childhood is associated with innocence in Holden’s eyes as he sees all things beyond it as something you need to be saved from. Holden believes he needs to save these children before they fall from their
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.”
In the end any reader could say that "The Catcher in the Rye" is Holden Caulfield, though this title opens up a door into understanding his deep personality, the books theme, while exploring the central paradox.
In The Catcher in the Rye, the carousel circles round and round, representing a stagnation in childhood. It remains the same as the children who ride it continue to grow older. When on the carousel, the goal is to reach for the gold ring with passed on the horse. If obtained, the rider could get a free ride. Holden says, “The thing with kids is, if they want to grab for the gold ring, you have to let them do it. If they fall off, they fall off…” (Salinger 114). He may be admitting to himself that growing up and taking chances is necessary. He realizes by watching Phoebe and not riding the carousel himself that he has to let Phoebe experience her own failures. If she falls, then she falls, but he has to let her and he cannot protect her forever. Similarly, he has to face the idea that every child will eventually “fall” out of innocence and into adulthood. Holden cannot prevent this or save himself from becoming an adult; which scares him and as everyone around him hides from the rain, Holden stays watching the merry-go-round go round and round, and begins to cry. The phoniness of adulthood is unavoidable. The symbol of the merry-go-round in The Catcher in the Rye emulates the loss of innocence throughout a lifetime; and that people have to be able to fall to learn from themselves. In The Merry-Go-Round by Rainer Maria Rilke, the speaker is observing the merry-go-round and all aspects of life surrounding it. The ride itself represents life and how it continuously keeps turning no matter who is on it. The ride is too short – but the experiences that are made out of it define who someone is. Throughout the entirety of the poem, there is a conceit for life. Similar to Holden, Rilke writes, “A boy in white leans on the lion’s mane… as the lion shows its fearsome teeth and bite. And now and then an elephant, all white” (Rilke). The white elephant
The title of the novel The Catcher In The Rye, by JD Salinger, has a
Each year in the United States depression affects over 17 million people of all ages, races, and economic backgrounds. One in every eight teens are affected by depression (“Understanding Depression”). Depression can be defined as a mental illness where the person affected feels very sad and melancholy. Most people have passed through a stage or a short period of time where they have felt downhearted. In The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, Holden Caulfield, a 16-year old boy, can be viewed as insane in the eyes of many readers because of his behavior and actions. Despite this common belief, Holden most likely suffered from depression. Some symptoms which convey Holden was depressed was his mood, lack of sleep, and his suicidal
...atcher in the rye is due to his rebellion against all the phonies in the world that he constantly complains about. Holden constantly criticizes people of being phony, when ironically he, too, is phony. By believing that the world around him is not genuine, and that he is one of the few truly genuine people, Caulfield feels protected and safe. But as a result, he forces himself into alienation.
D. Salinger's "The Catcher in the Rye", Holden Caulfield describes his lucid imagination to his younger sister, Phoebe. Holden describes a song he had heard as he walked through the streets of New York and tells Phoebe what he thinks the song is telling him. This quote implies what Holden believes to be his true purpose in life. Holden uses descriptive language in order to help Phoebe, as well as the reader, visualize his imagination. Holden states," ...all these little kids playing some game in this big field of rye... I'm standing on the edge of some crazy cliff." Holden uses imagery in order to illustrate the situation of his fantasy. Along with this imagery, Holden states what he believes his role is in this field of rye. Holden describes," I have to catch everybody [little kids] if they start to go over the cliff.. That's all I'd do all day." Holden uses his fantasy as a huge metaphor for his life. He implies that the catcher in the rye is the savior of these little kids, who will never grow up because they are not allowed to "go over the cliff." Holden describes himself as the catcher, and believes his true purpose in life is to save the little kids from going over "the edge of some crazy cliff" because he believes the adult world is phony and that innocence must be kept for as long as possible. He believes in this metaphor so strongly that he could "do [it] all
At first, Phoebe denies wanting to go for a ride on the carousel, but after Holden convinces her too, she goes on it willfully, while he stays back and just watches. This is because while Phoebe is still well into her youthful years, Holden is finally recognizing his adulthood. I believe that the carousel is a perfect example of something that never ages. Although time goes by, the carousel always does the same thing, and that never changes. The people that ride the carousel will eventually grow up and change, but the ride itself and what it stands for, that will never change. This perspective of change can be seen in the following quote said by Holden “All the kids kept trying to grab for the gold ring, and so was old Phoebe . . . but I didn’t say anything . . . if they want to grab the gold ring, you have to let them do it . . . If they fall off, they fall off.” (Salinger 211). When holden says that children will eventually fall off, he is referring to them falling out of childhood and into adulthood, falling out of their innocence and into the harsh reality of the world. In the end, the carousel is an object that full portrays Holden’s view of life, and how everyone starts off innocent but eventually falls out of it and into
In the Catcher in the Rye, Salinger uses imagery and symbolism to show Holden’s movement from a naive, immature and idealistic teenager to a more experienced and mature adult. By looking at specific symbols such as; the snowball incident, meeting with Mr. Antolini, and sitting on the bench at the carousel, Holden’s journey to adulthood and attitude change is shown.
This story, The Catcher in The Rye is about a main character named Holden who goes through some very tough times as a child. The first big idea/ theme the book is about is Holden not wanting to grow up and have to deal with reality. He wants to stay a kid. He does not take change well at all, and is very stubborn. He still wants to be that little child who is innocent and has no worries in the world. An example of this is when Holden calls himself, “ the catcher in the rye,” and then explains a bunch of children that he is trying to save and not let them run off of a cliff. This is significant because all throughout the story he is trying to find himself