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Similarities Between Catcher In The Rye And The Bell Jar

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There’s an innumerable number of things that can drive a person mad. For Holden Caulfield and Esther Greenwood the state of being caught between two worlds proved to be a deciding factor in their spiral of sanity. The Bell Jar and Catcher in the Rye follow the dismal lives of Esther Greenwood and Holden Caulfield. Although the struggle of being caught between two worlds was not the only reason both Esther and Holden become in a sense insane and progress toward a suicidal nature, it was certainly a contributing factor. Both The Bell Jar and Catcher in the Rye thoroughly develop how being torn between two worlds can have a significant toll on a person, which may eventually lead to depression. Both The Bell Jar and Catcher in the Rye are coming of age novels. Throughout Catcher in …show more content…

Holden’s physical appearance serves as an outward amplification of his struggle within. Salinger illustrates Holden as having half gray hair, which he’s had since he was a kid, and half an unspecified other color on the other side. Holden’s actions are often childish, such as his tendency to lie all the time. Yet on other occasions he acts very adult like, such as smoking and trying to pick up older women. Esther Greenwood experiences similar difficulties in The Bell Jar. Esther is caught between living a conventional life and one in which she could be free, independent, and adventurous. The Bell Jar is set in the 1950s, a period filled with conventional standards and expectations for women. During the 1950s a woman was considered a good wife if she obeyed her husband’s wishes, bore children, and agreed with him on all matters. Esther feels alienated and out of touch from this demanding society. She does not fully share the same rebelliousness as Doreen nor the perkiness and conformity of Betsy. Doreen, Esther’s friend while in NYC, has a nonchalant attitude and a rebellious side.

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The Catcher in the Rye and The Things They Carried Comparison The two novels, The Catcher in the Rye and The Things They Carried both have main characters that carry emotional baggage. In The Catcher in the Rye the main character, Holden Caulfield, is teen going to a prep school in New York. He is a pretty lonely person and doesn’t make personal connections with anyone. He goes through life visualizing many things in a negative way although truly he’s a caring person.

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1002 Words | 5 Pages

In the book Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger and movie Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer, each told the same story. Two boys ran away from home with a couple of things on there back. The quote A relates to both stories, “This fall I think you’re riding for--it’s a special kind of fall, a horrible kind. The man falling isn't permitted to feel or hear himself hit bottom.

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1493 Words | 6 Pages

In the paradoxical personality of Holden we discover something much deeper. As Holden makes himself out to be tougher than what he actually is, Salinger introduces stubbornness. Holden’s true nature of gentleness and sensitivity offered throughout the book often brings bedlam into his life, though Salinger brings into

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561 Words | 3 Pages

The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger has been a “banned” book several times, which means that a book has removed from the shelves. This story takes place in Agerstown, Pennsylvania. Pencey is Holden Caulfield’s fourth school. He has formerly expelled out of three others, so he is planning on leaving this one as well, but he isn’t planning to return home to Manhattan until Wednesday. The cruelty that’s in the real world makes him unbearable to others, and through his sarcasm he tries to shield himself from all the pain, responsibility, and disappointment of the adult world.

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346 Words | 2 Pages

In many ways The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger and “The Perks of being a Wallflower” movie face similar circumstances coping with the loss of innocence. Main characters Holden and Charlie both emerge the hardship of dealing with maturity as well as irresistible growth to adulthood. However, they have unlike perspectives on their innocence, disparate relationships with the society, and their process of moving from ignorance to knowledge. Although “Catcher in the rye” and “The perks of being a wallflower” both emphasize the importance of loss innocence, there are still very little in common. Both with an age of sixteen, Holden and Charlie come to a stage of dealing with maturity in different perspectives.

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1456 Words | 6 Pages

Holden Caufield, the protagonist of J.D. Salinger's The Catcher in the Rye, and the narrator of ZZ Packer's Brownies story share several similarities in their coming of age stories. Both characters are at a turning point in their lives, navigating the complexities of growing up and trying to find their place in the world. Both Holden and the narrator of Brownies are struggling with their identities, feeling out of place and disconnected from those around them. Both characters are also struggling with feelings of alienation and a sense of not belonging. Additionally, both Holden and the narrator of Brownies are on a journey of self discovery, as they attempt to come to terms with their experiences and emotions.

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1027 Words | 5 Pages

Not many people realise that people come from different backgrounds and experiences, and therefore, people act stubborn. Many people fail to think through things and also fail to think through the possibilities. In the book, The Catcher in the Rye, it is heavily enclosed on regarding a 16-year-old boy, Holden Caulfield. The book goes through the memories he has, as many things are revealed about him and how he critiques, specifically, society. Holden is not an easy character to understand, which forces the reader to use clues and moments throughout the book to open up Holden.

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1532 Words | 7 Pages

Both The Catcher in the Rye and "Brownies" explore society and the human experience through similar themes, despite their differing backgrounds. The protagonists in both stories offer insight through their unique experiences and encounters. Throughout the stories, the protagonists learn more about themselves through their struggle to fit into society, autism, depression and discrimination based on race or social class. The use of these three elements helps reveal things the characters use to make assumptions about the culture of people in society. The first similarity discussed will be the theme of youth culture and struggling to fit in.

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1142 Words | 5 Pages

The beginning of Holden’s journey starts with the innocence and naivety of childhood. Childhood is the stage that ignorance is bliss with no care in the world. Holden goes to a prestigious boarding school for boys and he believes that everyone in that school is a phony in some way. Holden is an observant character as he stays in the background, but he can also cause the most trouble. Like a child, he asks many questions and he is very curious to the point that he can be annoying.

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764 Words | 4 Pages

Esther is a person who will not acclimatize the stereotypes of society. It was unnatural for women of this time period to hold any high working positions besides shorthand and other domestic roles. Trying to break free of this world of systematic oppression, she clings on to the people that inspire her to take action. In the beginning of the novel, the reader is introduced to Doreen, a parallel character to Esther in the fact that she is willing to be sexual. From Esther’s standpoint, there are only “two kinds of people, virgin and not virgin.”

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776 Words | 4 Pages

Throughout Tennessee William’s ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’ and Sylvia Plath’s ‘The Bell Jar’ feminine ideals of appearance are associates with ablutions and bathing. This is due to the view of water having renewing properties, the mental health associations of bathing within both texts, and the patriarchal view of feminine appearances. In William’s and Plath’s literary works, water is depicted as having renewal properties in the central feminine characters of both plots. In the character of Blanche DuBois this is most notable when she exclaims, “Oh, I feel so goof after my long, hot bath, I feel so good and cool and – rested!”. Blanche’s frequent baths, along with the excessive amount of time spent in the bathroom within the play, exemplify her attempts at purifying herself from the events of past and present.

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837 Words | 4 Pages

In The Catcher in the Rye, Holden demonstrates the struggle of transitioning between childhood and adulthood by revealing his hassle to grow up. Maturity comes through being an adult and growing up is all about becoming more mature. Throughout the book, Holden goes through numerous conflicts and problems. In the beginning of the book, Holden is gives information about himself.

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1198 Words | 5 Pages

In his 1951 novel, The Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger used different diction subsets. Important diction subsets to pay attention to are slang, cursing, and connotation. Without the use of slang, cursing, and connotation, the novel would not have been well recognized. The theme of the book is to be protected from adulthood and to keep the innocence while growing up, but the profound language of the novel does something in the theme that could not be done without it. The diction of the book can offend young adults, religion, and some adults feel that it is inappropriate for children to read because of violence and sexuality.

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693 Words | 3 Pages

Although Holden is a very intelligent character he finds the hypocrisy and ugliness in the world around him and quickly associates it with the adult world. Holden is a very introverted character who hesitates throughout the book to share information about his life . J.D Salinger makes sure to portray Holden that way to

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1804 Words | 8 Pages

In the novel, The Bell Jar, the protagonist Esther Greenwood, struggles to reach her own personal goals in a male-dominant society. The main character, Esther was expected to marry a man to become a housewife that will clean the house, support him, and nurture him. Esther has always nurtured her goals of her own and has never wanted to simply help a husband. In the novel, The Bell Jar, Mrs. Willard educates his son Buddy the way society views femininity and the roles of women. As Mrs. Willard explains to Buddy, “What a man is is an arrow into the future, and what a woman is the place the arrow shoots off from” (Plath 67).

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