The Theme Of Innocence In Catcher In The Rye

In literature, loss of innocence refers to an adolescent character who experiences an event that leads to a greater awareness of pain and suffering which profoundly reshapes their life. The loss of a loved one at a young age can cause disruption and irreparable damage to the innocent mind. After a tragedy of losing a loved one, the naïve mind is ill-equipped to deal with the loss, which can cause it to spiral out of control. Esther and Holden are two fictional characters who are both unfortunate enough to experience this trauma during their adolescence and both suffer the negative mental consequences. Throughout The Bell Jar and The Catcher in the Rye, Plath and Salinger use their protagonists’ to demonstrate the motif of loss of innocence, caused by tragic events in their youth, to teach the reader that buried childhood trauma can have a negative impact on mental health.

Holden prefers to stay as a kid rather than “grow up”. When Holden talks about phonies they were most of the time adults and never kids. He dislikes the idea of growing up and becoming a phony himself. He even says this when he talks about his cabin, “ I might come home when I was about thirty-five.”(pg.213) He decides that he might be able to accept to grow up by the time he is thirty-five. He doesn’t believe that he will be able to let go of the concept of innocence any sooner than that. Holden explains his thoughts at the end of the book, “ I mean how do you know what you’re going to do till you do it? The answer is, you don’t. I think I am, but how do I know? I swear it’s a stupid question.”(pg.213) He is pretty much confused on whether he should let go the feeling of innocence. His statement at the end tells us that he is tired of being questioned about his maturity, he admits that he doesn’t know when he will be able to

The Catcher in the Rye, Jerome D. Salinger’s one and only full novel, was written in 1951. Since then, it has sold more than 65 million copies and translated into most of the world’s major languages. This book tells the story of Holden Caulfield, a 16 year old who can’t seem to be able to stay at one school and despises the “phoniness” of adult-life. One day, he must grow up, but Salinger is there to lead him throughout the book. Salinger uses symbolism to convey a maturation theme in his work. Some of these symbols include Holden’s hat, the Museum of Natural History. and the carousel. All of these symbols contribute to the maturation of Holden and lead him to the path of accepting adulthood.

“Innocence is always unsuspicious”- Joseph Joubert The loss of innocence isn’t some big celebration when you hit a certain age, or have a certain experience, it is something that comes when you aren’t looking. J.D. Salinger was a man who kept to himself, didn’t offer many interviews, and wanted to make a difference. In this novel, he has woven the story of Holden Caulfield a sixteen year old, who has an adventure in New York City before going home and taking responsibility for his actions that fall.Throughout his time in the city, he matures and learns to look at the big picture. In the novel The Catcher in the Rye, there are three specific examples that support the idea that maturation and the loss of innocence are inevitable. They include: Allie’s baseball mitt, the ducks in the Central Park pond, and Holden’s red hunting cap.

In the Catcher in the Rye, Salinger depicts the immature mentality of typical teenagers through Holden’s childish curiosity. Teens experience

In The Catcher in the Rye, the author J.D. Salinger, introduces the protagonist; Holden Caulfield. Holden feels the sense that he cannot choose between the two worlds. For example, he makes it seem as both of them are complete opposites from each other. In the book, Holden wants to keep his innocence, but he also wants to grow up and toss that innocence away. He still keeps his childhood personality by constantly obsessing over things that shouldn’t matter. In The Catcher in the Rye, Holden demonstrates the struggle of transitioning between childhood and adulthood by revealing his hassle to grow up.

In J.D Salinger’s novel, The Catcher in the Rye, the protagonist Holden Caulfield portrays the role of a teenage boy that struggles to come in terms with the reality of growing up. As he goes around New York searching for the answers to his problems, he encounters various people that either add to his struggles or help him. It is seen, though, that most of those he encounters add to his complexity with the adult world. This aids him in alienating himself to protect what childhood innocence he has left. Out of those he meets, the ones that had him distance himself most are Sally Hayes, a girl that Holden dates from time to time, and Mr. Antolini, one of Holden’s former teachers. Through the portrayal of the secondary characters Sally Hayes and

J.D. Salinger’s novel The Catcher in the Rye tells the heart-wrenching story of a young teenager’s battle to fit in with the world around him. Although Holden Caufield’s privileged life at home and at Pency Prep, is seemingly ideal, he struggles to find meaning. He travels throughout New York City, witnessing human behavior that depresses him. Some of the issues that most trouble Holden are adult phoniness, religion’s phoniness, and school’s phoniness. Because of Holden’s brother’s death, and his own acute intelligence, Holden is better able to see societal flaws. However, he never truly forgives society for its flaws, he only forgives the people he sees as genuine: his sister, Phoebe Caufield, older adults, and young kids. Holden has personal

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.

In J.D. Salinger’s novel, The Catcher in the Rye, the ongoing tension between maturity and innocence helps show the simultaneous presence of youth’s purity and adulthood’s corruption in Holden’s mind. In his bildungsroman, Salinger illustrates the all necessary struggle of adolescence that strives to balance purity and corruption as Holden comes to terms with the indefinite nature growing up.

Allie, Holden 's younger brother who dies as just a child, is a major symbol throughout the story, which represents the innocence in childhood that Holden strives to save. Allie’s death creates a lot of turbulence in Holden’s life especially because Holden looks up to Allie as a role model. When Holden remembers incidents from his past involving Allie, his attitude changes, such as when he writes the composition about Allie 's baseball glove or when Holden breaks his hand after punching all of the windows after Allie dies. This change in attitude is basically going from happiness to upright anger because the one person that Holden likes, dies and there is nothing he can do to bring him back. Allie makes Holden a better person, and when

Many people harbour a desire to accomplish something specific in life. Sometimes this desire stems from the background of a person, and sometimes desires are developed over time and with age. “The Catcher in the Rye” narrated by Holden Caulfield, who is an overly disturbed teenager, is about the change from childhood to adulthood. Holden, like many, has a burning desire to protect the innocence of children; this desire is tied to the themes of relationships, intimacy and sexuality which are carried throughout the novel. In a stroke of genius, the author, J.D. Salinger, sums up this desire in the title, which is taken from a poem by Robert Burns: Comin ' thro ' the Rye ( 1796).

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 challenges Holden prevails overemphasize his diligence and highlight the committed route he embarks on as a hero. Salinger utilizes Holden’s hardships to portray the struggle he encounters while battling against his adverse odds during his escapade. Through Salinger’s interpretation of a hero, he depicts Holden as a character who persists to pass the obstacles that confront him; to illustrate, Holden’s constant feeling of loneliness consumes him along with his demoralizing background, providing an unstable foundation for Holden to grow and mature: "…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…I 'd make believe I was talking to my brother

Usually considered a controversial novel The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger can often express the feelings of being an outcast and the desire to find a meaning in the world. Holden Caulfield, the protagonist of the novel, though often complains of the phoniness of the world around him, has a way of creating a deeper meaning within the readers. While the truth may be that Salinger purposely set the story in such a way that the readers will be able to connect with Holden, not often do readers find it easy to do so. While Holden believes that everything around him are wicked and phony, there is part of him trying to protect the innocence of those not corrupted by such phoniness. Although Holden wants to protect and save the innocence of children, can he really do so if cannot protect himself and trust those around him. Though Holden believes the world around him is phony and wicked, and while he wants to be the catcher in the rye, catching those who will fall over cliff; Holden does not only want to save those children but he also wants to save himself.