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Catcher In The Rye And The Bell Jar Analysis

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Recommended: Use of symbolism in the catcher in the rye

In the two novels, The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger and The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath, the protagonists are similarly faced with deaths and being unable to accept the society in which they live in, which lead them to go a bleak journey to get a way from it all. I was attracted to these two works because of the controversies they struck. This essay aims will aim to explore the question: “Does Holden and Esther’s characters develop in The Catcher in the Rye and in The Bell Jar respectively?” This investigation first examines the theme of death in both novels to reveal the development characters achieve from it. The theme of death is explored as a means of rebirth and a means of escape from their realities. Then the symbols that are recurrent in their respective novels are explored to contrast the state of Esther and Holden at the beginning and the end. The bell jar of Esther and …show more content…

Holden is curious about death and often wonders what it felt to ‘commit suicide’(Salinger, 104) and how ‘Phoebe would feel’(156) if he had done so. He constantly injects the theme in his language, saying people ‘[killed] him.’(86) Critics argue that death to keep things how they are, to keep them constant, is what people get out of the novel, leading to murders like that of Lennon and Kennedy. The culprits were thought to have murdered these icons to preserve their image through death (Withfield, 174) There are definitely instances that could support this, the chief of which was Holden’s trip to the museum. He thought the best thing about it was that ‘everything always stayed right where it was.’(121) These were one of the few things that made him ‘happy’(120) when he thought about it because the ‘mummies’, ‘’Indians’ and ‘Eskimos’ were always behind ‘glass cases’(121) and nothing would be ‘different’. However, again the critics may only be scratching the

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In Chapter 9-14 Holden Caulfield leaves Penecy Prep and heads to New York City. Where he will stay for a couple days before winter vacation starts and he will head home. Delaying breaking the news to his family he got kicked out of school for as long as possible. These chapters are where Holden’s loneliness becomes abundantly clear. The reader is subjected to many long rants by Holden about the company he wants, though he attempts to settle several times.

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Rhetorical Précis 1: In his essay, “ Love and Death in The Catcher in the Rye” (1991), Peter Shaw claimed that Holden behavior and way of thinking is due to common abnormal behavior in a certain time for teenagers (par. 10). Shaw supported his assertion of the young Holden by comparing the literary culture of the 1950s and how Holden’s fictional character fits within the contemporary Americans novels as a, “ sensitive, psychological cripples but superior character” (par. 3). Shaw’s purpose was to show that Holden’s sensitive and psychological behavior is not abnormal, but such like stated by Mrs. Trilling that,” madness is a normal, even a better then normal way of life” (par 4). Peter Shaw’s tone assumed a highly educated audience who is

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The book The Catcher in the Rye is a story of internal conflicts and the shallowness of adulthood. The main character, Holden, is struggling to maintain his strong voice of innocence in a fight only involving himself. One of the many reasons for Holden’s emotional devastation is the death of his younger brother Allie. Allie passed away three years earlier from leukemia and this of course highly affected Holden’s mental state at the time even if he didn’t know it. Salinger’s tone held the most importance of this book.

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1308 Words | 6 Pages

Salinger also presents Holden in first person, which allows the reader to enter the fantasy world and suffering of which Holden is encountering. Salinger as the author, incorporates his own troubles into Holden's character, which connects the author and the protagonist. Salinger not only develops the story, but he also weaves in how Holden is different from most adolescents, especially through his behaviors. Yet, the novel includes how at an adolescent age, teens encounter much trouble and battles. Moreover, Salinger tries to show how if tragedies occur in your life, they can be very difficult to leave behind, but if you don’t move along, it can cause a mental disorder of depression and it further leads to an irreversible way of life, low self esteem, and self destructive

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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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1063 Words | 5 Pages

The book, The Catcher in the Rye, takes place in the years of the 1940s-1950s of New York City. Author J.D. Salinger expresses in the book about the struggles and the countless amount of stereotypes and establishments of the American society. Holden Caulfield, J.D Salinger’s protagonist, gives perspectives of society’s conflicts and facets of society. Holden addresses that would should not change, but should be preserved within a glass case at a museum. Now explore the varieties of encounters and how the give an example of the theme of conflict between control and independence that the protagonist confronts in the book, The Catcher in the Rye.

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If the book is read solely on its surface level, it just seems like a book about an annoying teenager who just complains about everything, but the messages it carries are actually profound. For example, near the end of the story Holden is upset by some profane graffiti on the wall at a museum that says “F*** you” (Salinger 224). He is upset by it because he is worried some little kids will see it and wonder what it means, and then be curious enough to find out adn have their innocence stolen. He finds the graffiti multiple times in the museum. The profane graffiti, if looked at beyond the surface level, symbolises the fact that Holden can not do anything to stop little kids from losing their innocence.

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The Catcher in the Rye Thematic Essay Imagine living a lonesome life, full of fear and little hope of better days to come. Imagine the toll this would take on a person’s life and how they develop as a person. For Holden Caulfield, the main character of J.D Salinger’s classic The Catcher in the Rye this, is his reality. Holden is a sixteen year old troubled boy suffering through major mental issues and living a rather a depressing life for a teenager. Throughout the novel he goes through many hardships that only worsen his depression making him feel hatred towards his seemingly hellish world.

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1308 Words | 6 Pages

Holden Caulfield lives his life as an outsider to his society, because of this any we (as a reader) find normal is a phony to him. Basically, every breathing thing in The Catcher in the Rye is a phony expect a select few, like Jane Gallagher. What is a phony to Holden and why is he obsessed with them? A phony is anyone who Holden feels is that living their authentic life, like D.B. (his older brother). Or simply anyone who fits into society norms, for example, Sally Hayes.

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In The Catcher in the Rye, it is observed that the novel is about grief. There are 5 stages of grief: denial, anger, depression, bargaining, and finally acceptance. The Catcher in the Rye shows how Holden goes through the grieving process. By the end of the novel it shows how Holden has reached closure or a way to let go.

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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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Text Analysis Practicum Course Instructor: Dr. Lorelei Caraman Dimişcă Bianca-Melania Russian - English Childhood vs. adulthood in J.D. Salinger’s “The Catcher in the Rye” “The Catcher in the Rye” is a novel written by J.D. Salinger in 1951. The book is one of the most controversial books ever written and its popularity comes from the author’s rough attitude towards society from the perspective of a teenager. “The Catcher in the Rye” is thought to be J.D. Salinger’s masterpiece and it is listed as one of the best novels of the 20th century. In 2009 Finlo Rohrer affirmed that even 58 years later after the book has been published it is still considerate “the defining work on what it is like to be a teenager”. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Catcher_in_the_Rye)

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Throughout the novel, the topic of death is reoccurring in Holden 's mind. Whether he 's in school, doing homework, or aimlessly walking around New York City, Allie 's presence or lack thereof is always looming. It escalates to the point that Holden is always thinking about his own death, but more more specifically he 's fear of being forgotten: "Every time I came to the end of a block and stepped off the goddamn curb, I had this feeling that I 'd never get to the other side of the street. I thought I 'd just go down, down, down and nobody 'd ever see me again. Boy did it scare me"(256).

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1120 Words | 5 Pages

This scene is exceptionally important, as it sets the entire tone for how Holden perceives adults and their attitude towards death, as something insignificant that doesn’t deserve closer inspection. Holden feels that death is being cheapened by who he deems to be the “phonies”. Another allusion to death is Holden’s frequent thoughts about the ducks in central park. He wants to know what happens to them during winter, asking the cab drivers in chapters 9 and 12. When Holden locates the lagoon and realizes that the ducks aren’t there, he starts thinking about suicide.

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1230 Words | 5 Pages

A. Allie’s death causes Holden to become obsessed with death and this obsession makes him believe that growing up and becoming a “phonie” is like dying; this belief that is planted inside Holden’s head when Allie died is what sends him on a quest to preserve children’s innocence and save them from the “death” of growing up. B. Salinger includes the traumatic story of Allies death that happened years in advance to provide an explanation for Holden’s obsession with death and how he sees loss of innocence as equivalent to dying. Allie died with his innocence still intact, so Holden does not want other children to grow up and have their innocence “die”. C. Holden even admits to being mentally unstable after his brother’s traumatic death when he says, “I was only 13, and they were going to have me psychoanalyzed and all, because I broke all

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