The novel The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger describes the narrator, Holden Caulfield, as an adolescent with many interesting views on society. The narrator has a lot of misplaced rages. When Stradlater and Holden were talking about a girl, named Jane, Stradlater went on a date with, after hearing that his friend has certain relations with this girl he got up off the bed and tried to punch him (Salinger 43). When Holden was younger he had known Jane when he was younger there was no justifiable reason for Holden to attack Stradlater. Holden dealt with the situation in a violent manner because he had built up rage from that conversation.
Chapter 16: “It’s All About Sex…” Main Ideas: 1. Sex is disguised by other things such as objects or activities 2. Parts where sex is coded can actually be more intense than literal descriptions Connection: In The Catcher in the Rye, Holden describes his pastimes with Jane playing checkers. Although it doesn’t specifically say, Holden wanted to have sex with her.
In The Catcher in the Rye Holden Caulfield gets kicked out his school and is forced to go on a journey in New York searching for his purpose in life. Throughout the book he says many things he hates but later on he’s shown to like and enjoy them. In JD Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye, Holden can be described as a Hypocrite.
Some parts to my life can relate to Holden from catcher in the rye to well. In someways I can personally relate to Holden and in other ways Holden can relate to my brother. In the ways that I can relate to Holden are how he keeps all of his feelings bunched up and thrown deep so no one can find them. We both aren't people who wear our emotions on our shoulders like other people because if people find out the real way that we feel they might treat us different.
In the novel “The Catcher in the Rye”, the protagonist Holden Caulfield demonstrates his unusual behaviour. The narrator introduces the story of an emotionally damaged teenager whose suspicions and personal issues prevent him from being “normal” in a society full of phonies that he does not seem to get along with. It becomes clear that Holden has clouded judgement as he rides an emotional rollercoaster of mood swings with the people he likes, and dislikes. Therefore, it becomes obvious that some of his personal flaws include his distrust, depression, and unreasonable attitudes and thoughts are based on his underlying emotional problems. Holden Caulfield has a variety psychological problems, such as his skepticism, depressive behaviour, and
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.
When asked to pen a descriptive composition for a friend who has no time for classwork, Holden begrudgingly agrees, and immediately chooses to write about Allie’s baseball glove. The fact that his first choice of material to draw from was a possession of Allie’s shows how deep his love for his brother is. Holden reminisces about the mitt, saying, “The thing that was descriptive about it, though, was that he had poems written all over the fingers and the pocket and everywhere. In green ink. He wrote them on it so he’d have something to read when he was in the field and nobody was up at bat” (Salinger, 49).
Kris Cisek Sam Eberhardt Mr. Meyers Lit. and Comp. II 27 October 2015 Catcher in the Rye Literary Analysis
In the book Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, Holden Caulfield states that he wants to be a catcher in a field of rye. Holden wants to give kids the opportunity to stay innocent. He wants to give them the opportunity to be caught, to be saved from all the responsibilities that one acquires when becoming an adult. He wants to catch them and push them back into their youth, back to where they had someone to talk to, and when they had friends that they could talk to and have fun with. In Holden’s life, he has suffered an immense loss, the loss of his little brother Allie.
In The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, Mr. Antolini gives Holden Caulfield advice when he is at one of his lowest points. Already aware of Holden’s mental state and position on school, he quotes Wilhelm Stekel, a psychoanalyst, “The mark of the immature man is that he wants to die nobly for a cause, while the mark of the mature man is that he wants to live humbly for one.” (Salinger 188). Although Holden fails to grasp Mr. Antolini’s message, the quote applies directly to his life because of his relationship with death as a result of his younger brother, Allie’s, death. Mr. Antolini uses this quote specifically because he wants Holden take a step back and try to live for a noble cause instead of resorting to death.
Holden Caulfield, the main protagonist in The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, embodies the classic teenager in the process of discovering himself, and how the world works. But, regardless of Holden 's rich, prep school lifestyle, the series of events that have mapped out his life up to this point have utterly affected his emotional well being and perception of the world. Many traumatic events such as the death of holds brother Allie, the death of a class mate, and countless numbers of awkward incidents with adults have all added up to affects Holden 's well-being and detach him from reality. The death of Holden 's younger brother Allie has caused him to confuse his perception of reality and to alienate himself.
“The Catcher in the Rye has been recurrently banned by public libraries, schools, and book stores due to its presumed profanity, sexual subject matter, and rejection of some traditional American values” (CLC 56:317). The history of the reception of The Catcher in the Rye by various institutions and segments of society is equally as contentious as the odyssey of its rebellious protagonist, Holden Caulfield. A novel which is a period piece about life in post-World War II America, The Catcher in the Rye has been branded as anti-religious, unpatriotic, and immoral and obscene in its treatment of sexual themes and its use of profane and slang language. The antidote for this “perceived” menace would be censorship and, accordingly, shortly after its publication in 1951, The Catcher in the Rye met with vehement opposition by certain social organizations and special interest groups in the United States. What follows is a brief overview of a few of the more salient instances in the novel 's struggle to gain acceptance and, indeed, permission, to be read and discussed in schools, libraries and other public
From the outset, I have to say that “The Catcher in the Rye” by J.D. Salinger has been one of the most important and influential pieces of literature I have ever read. At its core, the book is a superb coming of age novel which discusses several extremely powerful themes such as the difficulties of growing up, teenage angst and alienation and the superficiality, hypocrisy and pretension of the adult world. These themes resonated deeply with me and were portrayed excellently through the use of powerful symbolism and the creation of highly relatable and likable characters. One such character is Holden Caulfield whom the story both revolves around and is narrated by.
To be honest I don’t really know where this essay is going to start or end up but here are some thoughts that I endured while reading this book. I read this book once in 7th grade which was apparently a much too early time to read it. I probably thought it looked impressive to adults or something by having that book with me. But I really didn’t understand what it was about until finishing it again in your class. This time I enjoyed it a lot more and felt embarrassingly more proud of myself for having read The Catcher In The Rye.
Motifs are recurring structures, contrasts, and literary devices that can help develop and inform the text 's major themes. One of the recurring themes in the novel The Catcher in the Rye is the omnipresent theme of death. It could be argued that the novel is not only full of references to death in the literal sense, physical disappearance, but also in the metaphorical, taking the form of spiritual disappearance, something which Holden often focuses on, along with the actual theme of mortality. It is possible that this occurs because of his reluctance to interact with the living world. As his means of escaping from the reality he despises, his mundane thoughts and the “phoniness” that he is surrounded by.
