The Catcher in the Rye, by J. D. Salinger, is a prime example of coming-of-age fiction. The novel was published in 1951 by Little Brown and Company. Within its 214 pages, Salinger draws readers into the world of Holden Caulfield, a troubled adolescent searching for his purpose in life. As the novel unfolds, the reader is brought back to a 1950’s time frame.
The main character and protagonist, Holden Caulfield, is introduced. Holden is a student who has just been kicked out of Prep School in Pennsylvania and decides to go back home to New York for the holiday weekend. Once there, he embarks on random journeys throughout the city: meeting new friends, catching up with old ones, and accounting it all within the novel. Throughout The Catcher in the Rye, the point of view remains first person. In the exposition, the reader gains insight into the mind of Holden. At Pencey Prep School, it is clear that there is a definite difference between him and his superficial peers.
Holden has a sharp wit, detailed observation skills, and sarcastic humor to underlie it all. He feels a general discontent with his life at that moment, and decides to leave school, in favor of returning home to New York City. Rising actions occur as Holden tells of his unusual encounters with NYC’s general public, including a hotel operator turned bouncer named Maurice who tries to beat him up and take his money, and Holden’s former teacher, Mr. Antolini, who tries to make a pass at him. Throughout all this, Holden essentially shuts off the world, passing immediate judgments on people and expressing his extreme dissatisfaction with his life thus far. A climax is reached when Holden spends the day with his younger sister and he finally takes a moment to look at his surroundings.
The Homework on High School Life 5
High school is a place where young teens learn to become mature and responsible. It is a place where students get trained to take on bigger challenges in life. Obstacles such as college. From my own personal experiences, high school didn’t seem that way. Students were more concerned about getting a passing grade then about what they were taught. They would even cheat their way out of high ...
He realizes that regardless of the obstacles he encounters and the fact that he’s constantly changing, one thing remains constant: his family. His family, especially his sister, remains the solitary thing that can truly make him happy in his world of internal despair. Holden narrates his realization in the last chapter of the novel as he watches his little sister Phoebe ride a carousel: “I felt so damn happy all of a sudden, the way old Phoebe kept going around and around. I was damn near bawling. I felt so damn happy, if you want to know the truth. I didn’t know why.
It was just that she looked so damn nice, the way she kept going around and around, in her blue coat and all. God, I wish you could ” ve been there.” In The Catcher in the Rye, the critical decision was made by Holden when he decided to leave Pencey Prep and go home to New York. His decision to finally get away from Pencey and all the superficiality that it represented got him started on the path to independence and individuality, which fueled the rest of the book. It was only after that choice was made was Holden able to start his life over again in NYC, free from the restrains of Pencey and all of its shallow influences.
