Into the Wild vs. Catcher in the Rye

WHY HAPPINESS IS ESSENTIAL TO LIFE: “Happiness is not something already made. It comes from your actions” –Dalai Lama J.D. Salinger’s world-renowned book The Catcher in the Rye and director Sean Penn’s dramatic feature film Into the Wild both give us a unique perspective of society through a collection of descriptive imagery and riveting plot development. Both materials present us with protagonists Holden Caulfield and Chris McCandless, whom are deeply encompassed by self-introspection and who seem to be on a quest to find true happiness and meaning to their bland, corrupt lives. A recurring theme in both works is the process of discovering one’s true identity, which can only be achieved through a journey of spiritual self-discovery. In doing so, J.D. Salinger and Sean Penn effectively use their protagonists, their journeys and the relationships they build to express one simple statement; happiness is the most important and essential thing in our lives. Firstly, the pervasive theme of alienation and isolation in both The Catcher in the Rye and Into the Wild shall be examined. Both protagonists are extremely discontent with the way society functions and this is expressed in a plenitude of examples: Chris disagrees with the boring conventions of life in which humans are born, get an education, work long hours and continue on the cycle of life. He states that human beings live a passionless life in the absence of the pursuit of our deepest desires. As he graduates from university en route to law school, Chris has a bright future laid in front of him; however his strong belief that society has been infected by materialism, inevitably leads to his isolation from society. As a result, Chris chooses to take a long adventure of discovery spanning the country, eventually ending up in Alaskan wilderness. Holden, on the other hand, does not criticize life itself, but rather the people that live in it. Holden philosophizes that people live boring, hypocritical lives,