Theme Of Innocence In Catcher In The Rye

Corruption of innocence occurs as one reaches a certain age in their lifetime, usually between the stages of adulthood and childhood. This stage can often be a fearful time for teenagers, but sooner or later they must understand the concept that growing up is inevitable. J.D. Salinger emphasizes on Holden and his innocence, in the novel Catcher in the Rye. Throughout the novel, his perceptions of the world around him gradually changes as he realizes that one cannot avoid the loss of purity. He has the desire to be the catcher in the rye, not only for the benefits of his little sister Phoebe and generations to come, but because of his own fear to fall from childhood to adulthood himself. Holden holds a narrow-minded perspective of the adult

Holden uses his hunting hat for his own form of expressing his uniqueness towards his surroundings. Having an object that makes Holden stand out from the rest of the crowd means a lot to him because of his desire to be different from the phonies in the world. The hunting hat is a protection shield for Holden, but only for when he is outside surrounded by others because he “ [doesn’t] give a damn on how [he] [looks]” (53) when he is by himself. This illustrates the idea that he only cares about what other people view of him because of the desire to be different from everybody around him. Holden has a repeating tendency to put on the hat when he feels anxious as a way of comforting himself in uncomfortable situations, which symbolizes his still-existing innocence and childish side. This shows that Holden keeps going back and forth from childhood to adulthood, but his hat has a positive effect towards him on how it comforts him in negative situations. Holden seems to always isolate himself from crowds, revealing his distinctiveness and how his impulse to stand out from everyone else. When Holden goes to watch the biggest football game of the year at Pency Prep, he knows that it is a big deal for the entire school, but he still decides to watch it by himself. Instead of standing in the bleachers among all the other students, he decides to “[stand] way… up on top of Thomsen Hill” (4). The main reason for his action is because he left all the fencing team’s equipment on the subway, so he doesn’t want to deal with people getting upset with him. Like most teenagers, Holden is afraid of being judged by others and would much rather play it safe and be alone. Standing by himself not only shows his uniqueness on how he sticks out from the rest of the crowd, but also his fears of being apart of negative