Salinger appropriately composed this tale by using aspects of his teenage life to create a familiarity with the surroundings of his protagonist, including the setting, and a sense of displacement driven by his failures in several prep schools. The Catcher in the Rye offers so many traits that different readers can relate to. Often it's audience can sympathise with Holden's angst and teenage rebellion, and in some cases pity this character's 'madman' phase, which links to the 'coming of age' theme in literature, or 'Bildingsroman'.
"I share Caufield's contempt for 'phonies' as well as his sense of being different and loneliness..." - Jonathon Yardley, Washington Post
I think an important feature to the novel is this character's opinions and perceptions of other people and himself; on the subject of adolescence, at 16, this boy's unveiling to society and the adult world is explored and developed, which typically to most children, increases their understanding of the world around them. But to Holden it seems, increasingly through his journey, he experiences confusion and is openly clueless towards why certain things happen; questioning about the ducks, and his change of character when he's faced with the harsh reality of the prostitute, suggesting his trouble with accepting these new thoughts and events.
This all relates to the pursuit of maturity and understanding; to seeking the unknown truth seen within the style of a monomyth. But strangely, Salinger doesn't intend to depict a typically structured monomyth, instead he strips this style apart to something rather different, which could be seen as just about a "spoiled rich kid kicked out of a fancy prep school..." - Yardley
"Some have argued that Salinger's tale of the Human Condition is fascinating and enlightening, yet incredibly depressing." - Eric Lomazolf
I feel the protagonist continually suffers from the Human Condition, due to him beginning the stage of life where one starts to question the issue of 'purpose'. This could involve having a certain insight to religion, and in chapter 14, he argues how 'after he committed suicide...Jesus never sent old Judas to Hell' whilst the 'Disciples would've', he may understand that without Judas forming the role of betrayer, Jesus wouldn't be a Messiah, therefore it would be unfair sending him to Hell. Although Holden claims he's an 'atheist', he still understands that Jesus is a forgiving person.
It's also interesting how he questions the morals of religious beliefs, but still respects it, shown by using capital letters for pronouns in his narration; 'Disciples', 'He' etc.
Other features like this in the novel display how Holden is looking for understanding, whilst other characters are just conforming to their role in society, with material perspective. And through Holden's curious nature and explorations - like the scene with the cab driver - Salinger forces the reader to ask questions about our own lives, social systems, and human behavior.
"I share Caufield's contempt for 'phonies' as well as his sense of being different and loneliness..." - Jonathon Yardley, Washington Post
I think an important feature to the novel is this character's opinions and perceptions of other people and himself; on the subject of adolescence, at 16, this boy's unveiling to society and the adult world is explored and developed, which typically to most children, increases their understanding of the world around them. But to Holden it seems, increasingly through his journey, he experiences confusion and is openly clueless towards why certain things happen; questioning about the ducks, and his change of character when he's faced with the harsh reality of the prostitute, suggesting his trouble with accepting these new thoughts and events.
This all relates to the pursuit of maturity and understanding; to seeking the unknown truth seen within the style of a monomyth. But strangely, Salinger doesn't intend to depict a typically structured monomyth, instead he strips this style apart to something rather different, which could be seen as just about a "spoiled rich kid kicked out of a fancy prep school..." - Yardley
"Some have argued that Salinger's tale of the Human Condition is fascinating and enlightening, yet incredibly depressing." - Eric Lomazolf
I feel the protagonist continually suffers from the Human Condition, due to him beginning the stage of life where one starts to question the issue of 'purpose'. This could involve having a certain insight to religion, and in chapter 14, he argues how 'after he committed suicide...Jesus never sent old Judas to Hell' whilst the 'Disciples would've', he may understand that without Judas forming the role of betrayer, Jesus wouldn't be a Messiah, therefore it would be unfair sending him to Hell. Although Holden claims he's an 'atheist', he still understands that Jesus is a forgiving person.
It's also interesting how he questions the morals of religious beliefs, but still respects it, shown by using capital letters for pronouns in his narration; 'Disciples', 'He' etc.
Other features like this in the novel display how Holden is looking for understanding, whilst other characters are just conforming to their role in society, with material perspective. And through Holden's curious nature and explorations - like the scene with the cab driver - Salinger forces the reader to ask questions about our own lives, social systems, and human behavior.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteWell done Jodie, you are the first person to post from our group and this is a lovely introduction to the text and some of the issues it throws up, as well as some of the techniques used. Two notes: be careful of comma splicing and quoting accurately (see first quote, there should be a 'his' before 'loneliness'). The two quotations work well, but I wanted you to open up more on the failure to fulfill a whole plot-line, or at least the argument that this is unfulfilled. I think the question over the Human Condition and narrative structure is an interesting one as, while the Human Condition can be questioned it cannot be answered happily, whilst a narrative structure can offer a resolution to questions. How far does Salinger truly reflect our dissatisfaction with the human experience?
ReplyDelete