Catcher In The Rye Maturity

Making decisions is a pattern in one’s life. It can be a simple decision or a difficult one. However, maturity is needed in order to make the correct decision. Holden from J.D Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye and Baby from Heather O’Neill’s Lullabies for Little Criminals are two people who struggle with their maturity. Although written in the first person, each novel features a protagonist that has grown in a different environment. Holden is a boy who struggles to transition into the adult world, while Baby is a young girl who has the adult world forced upon her. Both characters have difficulties maintaining relationships, transitioning into the adult world and dealing with innocence. The Catcher in the Rye and Lullabies for Little Criminals
Holden believes in keeping children innocent while Baby has been exposed to the loss of innocence at an early age. For instance, Holden becomes frustrated when he sees graffiti at Phoebe’s elementary school: “... I saw something that drove me crazy. Somebody’d written “F*** you” on the wall. It drove me damn near crazy. I thought how Phoebe and all the other little kids would see it, and how they’d wonder what the hell it meant, and then finally some dirty kid would tell them…”(Salinger 201). It irritates him and causes him to rub it off so no one would see it. This demonstrates how protective he is over children, in his desire to keep their innocence. When he visits Phoebe, he reveals to her his dream of being the catcher in the rye:“.. I have to catch everyone if they start to go over the cliff-- I mean if they’re running and they don’t look where they’re going I have to come out from somewhere and catch them. That’s all I have to do all day. I’d just be the catcher in the rye and all” (Salinger 173). Holden wants to “catch” children before they lose their innocence. He wants them to stay in their childhood forever. However, Baby’s situation is quite different as she loses her innocence at a very early age. Due to the fact that, Jules has been a drug addict since before she was born, Baby has learned all about it. She knows that ‘chocolate milk’ is code for heroin and she knows
Holden and Baby show their similarities and differences when they both have trouble maintaining relationships, transitioning into the adult world, and dealing with innocence. Maturity may take time to develop, and everyone has to learn how to become mature in their own way. Maturity can be taught, but has to be adapted in one’s life to fully be used. Maturity does not lead one to make the correct decision in all cases, but a decision that may solve their problem in that time. It can change how one views their