Catcher and the Rye

Every citizen how the rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Those are the statements given to us by the Declaration of Independence. Out of these words, people believed that an ideal lifestyle can be found in America, dubbed the American dream. This concept provides the belief of prosperity and happiness, in which can be achieved with hard work and determination. The Catcher in the Rye and Shawshank Redemption conflicts prevent the protagonists from acquiring the standards of what the American dream is all about, a fair and peaceful world. Although they run into obstacles within their lives, they continuously strive for their American dream. The Catcher in the Rye and The Shawshank Redemption both revolve around the ideal of the American dream because they both signify the value of freedom, the goal of starting new lives with better opportunities, and finding happiness in their lives. The American Dream can not exsist without freedom. Freedom is the most quintessential trait that the dream promises to all citizens. In both of the works, the protagonists are confined in a place where they feel they do not belong in. Pencey is to Holden as Shawshank is to Andy. As a result, they attempt to escape their institution and follow their natural instinct. "All of a sudden, I decided what I'd really do, I'd get the hell out of Pencey right that same night and all...I yelled at the top of my goddamn voice 'Sleep tight, ya morons' I'll bet that I woke up every bastard on the whole floor. Then I got the hell out"(Salinger 28,29). Holden is frustrated with Pencey and decides to leave to a place in which he will find much more suitable. He considers the school as an elaborate trap in which he is caught within a society of phoniness. Andy, on the otherhand, spends nearly two entire decades digging a tunnel every night that will lead to him out of Shawshank state prison. His patience and determination eventually leads to his success. When he steps out of