The Catcher In The Rye By J. D. Salinger: Holden As An Icon Of The Adolescent Rebellion
Holden, I don’t give a damn. As many may ask, “Why has The Catcher in the Rye sustained readership over decades after the novel was first published?”. This is due to the fact that Holden has “become an icon of the adolescent rebellion”. Holden’s character reflects the typical dilemmas of teenager – social and academic anxieties, and a lack of parental guidance.
In a child’s time at home, character, morals, and ethics are developed and that sibling society of the prep school environment, each adolescent manifests the character traits when he encounters them. Between childhood and adulthood, balancing between being suspended between from a list of prep schools and an upper-middle class New York lifestyle, Holden is “cast adrift amid peers every bit as adrift as he is”. Parents are commonly the “most significant adults in the lives of adolescents, ” followed by siblings and non-related significant adults, such as teachers. Holden has a lack of authority figure in his life and does not know how to”properly” act in the adult world. There are not always authority figures in the world and it is Holden and Sallinger’s tragedy, the loss of innocence is impossible to cure. Holden is not so much rebelling against his mentors, he is hunting for one. Through his experiences, he learns how the adult world is corrupt. For example, Sunny came along Holden’s journey - a young women with questionable morals - who in which Holden becomes somewhat intrigued by. But, after Holden realizes that she’s not the best communicator, he's realizes he was not into this after all. Her truth is shown when she bolts off after trying to beg for money. Instead of acting like an adult figure, ”Holden is forced to to see her as an individual rather than a prostitute” . This represents how Holden’s insecurities and struggles are coming from, much like others in the general population. By accepting peer guidance from what amounts to a society composed of siblings, “young men come of age without the guidance of strong male role models”.
With both Holden’s father and D. B. unavailable as a role models during Holden’s life, he must turn elsewhere for guidance. Despite how Holden’s “sense of alienation is almost complete — from parents, from friends, from society in general as represented by the prep school”, his relief comes from Phoebe. Phoebe is unlike any character in the novel, she is always willing to give back and be supportive of Holden. Phoebe shows her love for her him as she packed her suitcase and declared that she is going to go away with Holden. She was not running away because she is unhappy — she thought that Holden needs someone to care for him.
In Salinger's writings, there is a recurring theme of a young character, often full of innocence. In the short story, “Of Esme and Squalor”, Esme’s younger brother, Charles, also came to Esme’s rescue as her dad was slain in the war. Charles is quite buoyant, possibly because Esmé and their adult figures made sure that he's sheltered from the more terrible aspects of life. This character is opposite of Holden, he is “in a state of total innocence and blissful ignorance” and “he embodies the kind of carefree joy of childhood”. The Narrator of this short story appreciates the sense of innocence; after he accidentally ends Charles's game by ruining the punch line of his riddle, the Narrator is truly concerned about the little boy's feelings. Each setback teaches a lesson on how to improve your performance in the future.
Everyone faces adversity in their lifetime, and how one deals their hardships is what differs us apart from each other. In The Catcher in the Rye, Holden faces an array of issues. Holden faces feelings of superiority; this is shown by everyone a “phony” or by how he judges everyone. These ideas led Holden to a understandable hatred for the world. Although Holden can pick out the flaws in just about everything and everyone, he cannot do that with younger sister, as she automatically sees the good in him, beyond any nonsense.
