Preview

What Is The Meaning Of Catcher In The Rye

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
445 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
What Is The Meaning Of Catcher In The Rye
What is The Meaning of This?

A sense of meaning is needed in humans or else we become discouraged and lost and can even end up looking for meaning in harmful ways. People who cannot find in meaning in their life are susceptible to cults and manipulation from others as well as depression.

In J.D. Salinger’s novel the catcher in the Rye, The main character (Holden) is having difficulty finding the meaning of life. Everyone is bound to spend some time in their life searching for meaning. Holden does not make an effort to do well in school nor does he make an effort to fit in with others. He looks at others as phonies merely trying to imitate each other and questions all social norms that
Continue Reading
View Writing Issues

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Catcher In The Rye Summary
    • 1259 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Catcher In The Rye Summary

    "The Catcher in the Rye" opens with Holden Caulfield at Pency Prep, his high school, where he has just been kicked out for failing almost all of his classes. Holden, as a lost and frustrated teen, goes to his room for his last night before planning to run away from Pency Prep for some "alone time" before telling his parent he was kicked out of another school.…

    • 1259 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Holden Caulfield Symbolism Essay
    • 1609 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Holden Caulfield Symbolism Essay

    J.D Salinger has a written a novel called catcher in the rye, about a teenage boy named Holden Caulfield who lives in New York City. Holden is not an ordinary teenage boy. His way of viewing life is different its extraordinary Holden is confused, lost, and depressed. His character is very complex to understand through the book Holden tries to reach out to a lot of people and he tries to build a relation but something is not letting Holden to do so, the fact that Holden wants to remain a child is keeping him away from growing up and becoming more understandable to himself and the people around him. He has no stable relation with his parents which has affected him to do poorly academically. Through the book J.D Salinger have used symbolism that shows Holden’s mental anguish. The symbolism explains everything that’s is going on with Holden…

    • 1609 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    Catcher In The Rye: A Literary Analysis
    • 1991 Words
    • 8 Pages

    Catcher In The Rye: A Literary Analysis

    He sees adults and friends who succumb to these norms, and he outwardly looks down upon them and call them phonies of society. As an author, J.D. Salinger created Holden Caulfield as a character to challenge the expected norms of this time period, and as a whole, the novel addresses the challenge of accepting societal norms and diverging from norms to create a different lifestyle. For Holden, although many other reasons attribute to his refusal to accept society, he mainly believes that the 1950’s American Dream culture valuing marriage, family and education is not one that he wishes to be associated with. It is also crucial to note that by the end of the novel, Holden ends up in a mental institution, the location from which he narrates Catcher in the Rye. This element of the novel is crucial to our understanding of Holden as a character; he seems to have rejected the values and views of the post-war era so intensely, he is literally unable to function and has been…

    • 1991 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Catcher In The Rye Holden Character Analysis
    • 810 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Catcher In The Rye Holden Character Analysis

    In the novel “The Catcher in the Rye”, J.D. Salinger challenges the nature of growing up through symbolism, point of view, and characterization. Holden, throughout the novel, expresses his loneliness and the difficulty of growing up because, like most teenagers, Holden is stressed out and depressed because of the expectations he has for himself…

    • 810 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Themes In Catcher In The Rye
    • 181 Words
    • 1 Page

    Themes In Catcher In The Rye

    The title, The Catcher in the Rye, directly indicates the reoccurring theme of the novel, to protect the innocence of the younger generations. The novel is structured on Holden’s desire to protect all the innocent children in the world from growing up because with age comes experiences that lead to corruption and the loss of innocence.…

    • 181 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Critical Lens Essay On Catcher In The Rye
    • 545 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Critical Lens Essay On Catcher In The Rye

    “Good people... are good because they’ve come to wisdom through failure”. This quote from William Saroyan means that wise people acquire their insight from experiences, especially unsuccessful ones. I agree with the quote and the idea of people being knowledgeable because of the hardships and journeys they had endured. The two novels Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston and The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger both support the idea of gaining wisdom through experience.…

    • 545 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Catcher In The Rye Character Analysis
    • 591 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Catcher In The Rye Character Analysis

    The main purpose of J.D. Salinger’s novel, The Catcher in the Rye, is to epitomize the importance of adolescence and illustrate the benefits of a social lifestyle. Salinger achieves this meaning in multiple ways. Primarily, he uses Holden, Catcher’s protagonist, as an example of a teenager who has failed to develop during the quintessential period of youth. Additionally, by characterizing him in this manner, Salinger utilizes Holden’s desire to act both older and younger than his age to convey the dangers that come with poor decision making, as well as their consequences. Lastly, he uses the characters of Mr. Spencer and Mr. Antolini to act as voices of reason to Holden, while also showing Holden’s missed opportunities in life when he does…

    • 591 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Holden Caulfield Character Development
    • 1855 Words
    • 8 Pages

    Holden Caulfield Character Development

    Many adolescents often suffer from a lack of direction. Not knowing what they are doing or where they are headed, faced with the many obstacles of both life and adult society as they struggle to find direction in the world. Many long for acceptance and love that they do not receive. This description perfectly suits the situation befalling Holden Caulfield, the controversial protagonist and main character of J. D Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye. In the novel, after being expelled from his fourth school, Pencey Prep, Holden goes on a journey of self discovery through New York. He becomes increasingly unstable in a world in which he feels he does not belong, with the company of people he deems "phonies". Holden, not unlike a typical teenager, is also on his own quest in order to find himself, yet he re­sorts to ignoring his problems as a way of dealing with them. Holden tells his story from the confines of a psychiatric hospital, having been there to recover from a neurotic breakdown caused by his outlandish and often over the top actions. Holden Caulfield’s unachievable dreams, delusional fantasies, and erratic behaviour all lead to the breakdown of his character throughout the course of the novel Catcher in the Rye.…

    • 1855 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Isolation In Catcher In The Rye
    • 119 Words
    • 1 Page

    Isolation In Catcher In The Rye

    In J D Salinger's Catcher in the Rye, the story is told from a cantankerous adolescent boy named Holden Caulfield. At this point, he is looking for something, but is still unaware of what it is. He feels somewhat alienated, looking in. He immensely feels his constant state isolation and, although he does reveal a sort of self-awareness, his uncertainty about his place--or anyone else’s--in the world, is intensified by his critically pretentious assessments of not only the people in his life but also himself. The dilemma of being expelled from prep school is what sets the foundation for the story where he faces two options of either returning home to his parents or starting afresh on his own.…

    • 119 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    What Is The Other Side Of Holden's Life
    • 316 Words
    • 2 Pages

    What Is The Other Side Of Holden's Life

    In the novel “Catcher in the Rye” by J. D. Salinger, we are given this protagonist by the name of Holden Caulfield who feels like he’s trapped on “the other side” of life. Throughout the novel, we read into why Holden is the way he is.…

    • 316 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Literary Analysis Of Catcher In The Rye
    • 481 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Literary Analysis Of Catcher In The Rye

    Salinger’s novel, The Catcher in Rye speaks to core of being an outsider, but beyond the anti-hero, anti-establishment persona that Holden reflects, Salinger wrote a portrait of a boy deeply troubled by the end of simplicity. Past the cynical nature and the reclusion from people, Holden is a little boy saddened by the death of his brother. Holden was never able to get closure over Allie’s death and because of this he has never been able to move on. To remember his brother and a simpler time Holden treasures innocence and has remained a child himself in many ways. Through the uses of metaphorical landscapes, a relatable anti-hero, and the setting of a repressed post-war American society Salinger depicts the journey of a young boy fighting, resisting the transition from childhood to adulthood. Holden Caulfield’s cynicism and reclusion are his defense mechanism, they warn of phony and slobs alike, but leave him lonely. He is both a figure for the youth and old alike, because Holden’s disdain of hypocrisy, longing for innocence, and his need for acceptance transcend age groups, these are human emotions that bother any age group. At the end of the novel, Holden says “Don’t ever tell anybody anything. If you do you start missing everybody” (Salinger 214). There are times when Holden comes off as neurotic, but in this case he meant that you will the way life used to be if you remember it. At the end Holden realizes that Allie’s death and his longing to go back to his childhood were holding him back, keeping him from applying himself. Many readers come away from that last line and feel that there is no happy ending for Holden, but the negative tone of the comment is less of a warning and more of a new being for Holden, meaning that Holden’s dream of being the catcher in the rye can can…

    • 481 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Holden Caulfield Adulthood
    • 1573 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Holden Caulfield Adulthood

    Many things in the world shape who people become. Everyone makes mistakes, they try to learn from them and try to move on and not dwell on the past. One’s mistakes and the experiences that people go through in life shape the person that they become. In the Catcher in the Rye written by J.D. Salinger shows, various characters, events and symbols that illustrate Holden Caulfield’s struggles to accept his inevitable transition into adulthood. Multiple people in the novel show and explain to Holden that there is more to life than being a child. The events in Holden’s life have made it challenging to let go of the past. The various symbols displayed in the novel demonstrate Holden’s fight against becoming an adult. His lifestyle choices create…

    • 1573 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Catcher In The Rye Love
    • 457 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Catcher In The Rye Love

    “Nothing can bring a sense of security into the home except true love.” (Billy Graham). In the book The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, Holden, the main character, is looking for something. He is very depressed and always feels insecure about almost everything he does in the novel. Throughout the novel, Holden is looking for companionship, friendship and acceptance from others.…

    • 457 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Theme Of Catcher In The Rye
    • 891 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Theme Of Catcher In The Rye

    “When I really worry about something, I don't just fool around. I even have to go to the bathroom when I worry about something. Only, I don´t go. I'm too worried to go. I don't want to interrupt my worrying to go.” Holden caulfield is a sixteen year old boy that worries a lot about the future. In this novel he struggles with growing up. The book catcher in the rye by J.D Salinger is a fiction novel. The Catcher in the rye is relevant to teenagers now a days. The emotions that holden goes through and the actions he make can be relevant today in many ways.…

    • 891 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Symbolism And Imagery In The Catcher In The Rye
    • 668 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Symbolism And Imagery In The Catcher In The Rye

    Salinger’s novel, The Catcher in the Rye, is the story of a teenager who doesn’t “fit in society’s mold.” After getting kicked out of his prestigious school, he headed to New York City to live an independent life for a while, which ends up being an emotional roller coaster full of depression, isolation and alcohol abuse. The passage in pages 154-155 prove, using symbolism and imagery that the protagonist is both transitioning from a child into an adult and obsessed with death.…

    • 668 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More

Related Topics