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 …show more content…
As the book starts Holden describes his childhood and how he has been kicked out of several school and once more again from his currently school, giving a sense of irresponsibility and no care in the world. Holden later on mentioned slowly the loss of his brother due to leukemia and how he reacted outrageously by breaking the windows of his garage home. As a reader one would view that behavior as abnormal, but Peter Shaw descried it as a normal behavior for a fictional character in the 1950s and by mentioning that Holden, “is presenting in a somewhat different manner than are the sentimentalized young people in other novels if his period” (par. 3), admitting that Holden was somewhat of an outcast of a character even for its time he is still considered normal. Shaw also challenged the reader’s view of Holden by emphasizing that Holden is not a real person, but a fiction character developed in the 1950s and in fact a mad psychological character is normal and made the reading rather more interesting and acceptable during that time. As readers someone may come across as understanding Holden’s behavior due to a loss and everyone mourns differently and as Shaw said, “ the one period of life in which abnormal behavior is common rather than exceptional” (par.
J.D. Salinger uses varying diction and syntax in “The Catcher in the Rye” to create mood and tone throughout the novel. The specific choice of words (diction) that the author uses contributes to the characterization of Holden Caulfield. The use of profane and jargon-like word choice encapsulates the voice of the teenage narrator Holden. Holden’s informal diction emphasizes his immaturity and allows the reader to learn more about Holden’s character. Holden often uses the word “and” in a repetitive manner which gives the reader a child-like impression of Holden.
Isabella Tejeda “Certain things, they should stay the way they are. You ought to be able to stick them in one of those big glass cases and just leave them alone.” (Salinger 66) In between many of the themes found in the Catcher in the Rye, youth seems to be one that is mentioned in every chapter. Holden Caulfield is a seventeen year old boy who is obsessed with his youth, where he wants things to always stay the same.
When Holden ventures to find his life’s purpose along with searching for a new perspective of humanity, he gains insight and becomes a figure of erudition mounting to his potential of a hero. With the objective to show that all protagonists are not merely brave and benevolent but also have astute assets, Salinger designs Holden in the role of a new kind of hero, in which he realizes the meaning of life and maturity. In detail, while Holden observes his little sister, Phoebe, riding the carousel in Central Park, he begins to understand the significance of growing up and the value of life-impacting his view of humankind: “All the kids kept trying to grab for the gold ring, and so was old Phoebe, and I was sort of afraid she 'd fall off the goddam horse, but I didn 't say anything or do anything. The thing with kids is, if they want to grab the gold ring, you have to let them do it, and not say anything. If they fall off they fall off, but it 's bad if you say anything to them” (Salinger 211).
It is clear that Holden is at odds with the mainstream, as he controversially identifies as an atheist and a pacifist. In many ways, Holden was before his time. His prevalent profanity, lying, and drinking contrast with our traditional view as of the 1950s as a paradigm of virtue. Perhaps the best representation of this “man against society” struggle is the tragic case of James Castle. Castle, a relatively minor character, is one of the few people other than Holden who speaks out against the status quo by calling a well-to-do fellow student “a very conceited guy” (Salinger 188).
With depth and compassion of a mind, Holden is this one’s topic. Foremost a child mentality that Holden has is what stops him from growing further in life. As Leon Lewis presented, “Holden is at a pivotal point in his life at which the pleasures of a privileged childhood are being
Furthermore, Holden starts to hate all the adults or loses faith in them, calls them phony. Holden has a second thought of becoming an adult he loses hope in his future and it seems to him nothing in the world matters to him anymore. We can see that throughout the book. He smokes, gets drunk, and does daring acts like getting a prostitute in his room. He also tries to escape all this guilt and grief by wasting time with unnecessary people he calls phony.
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
You’re a Big Fat Phony!: Corruption in The House of the Seven Gables Appearances can be everything. In today’s society, especially, appearances are a major factor in how society views and values individuals. However, while one can appear to be high-principled and faithful, he or she can easily be deceiving the public in order to maintain his or her reputation. In The House of the Seven Gables, Nathaniel Hawthorne, through a collection of oxymoron, syntax, tone, rhetorical question, connotation, details, metaphor, and direct characterization, reveals the corrupt nature of Judge Pyncheon.
“What are we? Humans? Or animals? Or savages? (79)”, this quote is from the book, Lord of the Flies by William Golding.
Often, a main character’s apparent madness and irrational behavior plays a crucial role in the development of the plot. In J.D. Salinger’s novel, The Catcher in the rye, central character Holden Caulfield reasonably exhibits eccentric, impulsive and erratic behavior as a reaction to the “phoniness” of everyone around him, the self-alienation he faces and, as a standard coping mechanism for the changes in his life. Holden acts almost solely on impulse. He is often knowingly riling up other characters in the story just because he feels justified in doing so.
Holden struggles with growing up and facing reality. There are many examples of Holden’s immaturity that are displayed in many forms such as facing responsibilities, his speech, his actions, and etc. Holden’s outlook on adult life is that it is superficial and brimming with phonies, but childhood was all about looking pleasing and innocent. He wants everything to stay the same and for time to stop. As Holden progresses in age, he will discover more about becoming mature in the
A: There are two important traumatic experiences that have made Holden into who he is today. Those are the death of his 11-year-old brother Allie and the suicide of his classmate James Castle who was wearing Holden’s sweater. Holden has become a very judgmental person. He is very judgmental and is seen lying several times throughout the story. I think these tragedies have made him this way so he can distance himself and not be hurt or “depressed” anymore.
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.
In the beginning of the book Holden hints that he went through unfortunate events in this life. It can be foreshadowed that something bad has happened around Christmas and that Holden is getting help from some sort of institution. Holden came off to me as laid back and irresponsible, he was the fencing team captain but left all the equipment’s in the subway. Holden also did not seem to care about anything. I noticed that he thinks something in his head but does the opposite.
Attending school in the 1950s, Holden is a victim of a conformist American society. In a historical context, postwar America is characterized by a booming economy, industrialization and the creation of uniform suburban communities throughout the country. There was also a call for a united America, with the tensions of the Cold War taking hold and a need to fight communism. This attitude of uniformity could be seen in the American education system at the same time, where students were expected to fit the mould of the ideal American child. This child was idealized as being obedient, respectful and subordinate to their superiors.