... Holden what he wants to do with his life, Holden responds with his image that reveals his fantasy of idealistic childhood and of his role as the protector of innocence. Holden tells Phoebe, "I keep picturing all these little kids playing some game in this big field of rye and all What I have to do, I have to catch everybody if they start to go over the ... and Phoebe, in high esteem because they are innocent. Allie was "the nicest, in lots of ways. He never got mad at anybody." (p.50) He died at a very young age and Holden never saw Allie grow up into the "phony" adult world. To Holden,...

• Word Count: 925
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... be courteous in the way society expects to get along in this world. Those who do not conform to the expectations and standards of the majority are more often than not rejected and ostracized. Holden admires people who are diverse and act like themselves despite the wrath they ... bench by the subway station because they did not conform at all, rather stuck to what they believed in and didn't care what others thought of it. Salinger describes children as the non-phonies, distinctive, and unique humans because they have their own identity and haven't learned to conform to ... emotional, f...

• Word Count: 955
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... the time we reach puberty, when we abandon our childish innocence and open our minds and bodies to knowledge of the world and each other. We learn that there are shades of gray. We realize that living is not easy; survival of the fittest comes into practice. We clash with the older ... , and that in itself is a very powerful thing. Deep down, our crudest feelings are love and hate, flip sides of a coin, with no barrier between them. When we reach this tender age, feeling inside us start to boil, we truly search for a mate, through which we can not only satisfy ourselves sexually ... , b...

• Word Count: 1125
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

... school students and college students abroad. In The Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger portrays numerous aspects of modernism through no developing themes. Through countless experiences various characters begin to realize the perceptions of themselves and the world around them are changing, in compilation with the loss of innocence shown very evidently. For example, Holden erases a sign on the stairs that says "#&@$ You". Holden witnessing ... that was very depressing to him because not only was there that one, but more and more and more that he located around the museum as well, these r...

• Word Count: 772
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... so high, the children cannot see over it. This elucidates the novel's metaphoric title, as the children cannot see beyond the boundaries of childhood and out of innocence. "Standing on the precipice that separates the rye field of childhood from the cliff of adulthood, Holden wants to protect childhood innocence from the fall into disillusionment that necessarily accompanies childhood" (Phillips). Holden's preoccupation with childhood and youth ... from her pain, and to keep her from falling over the cliff by the rye field before her time- (Phillips). Another theme in the novel is Holde...

• Word Count: 1079
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... he is only a teenager. As a result, he faces a self-identity struggle and is uncertain of his beliefs. Salinger portrays the difficulties that go along with the "coming of age" through Holden Caulfield's point of view. In The Catcher and the Rye, J.D. Salinger expresses through Holden Caulfield's first person point ... of view on how a teenager struggles with the rules of society, growing up, and forgetting about the past. Holden's background history is the leading cause of his struggles ... from him. The reader can now realize that Holden has took upon the responsibility to save the in...

• Word Count: 930
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... choose it because I heard it is about a boy who is around my age. In this book, the main character, Holden Caulfield, tells us a story about what happened during his Christmas vacation. Holden is a sixteen-year-old boy who has flunked out of a private prep school. Because he is afraid that his parents would find ... to rejoin his family and because he realizes there are many things that he cannot solve by himself. The theme of this novel is how innocence is corrupted by society. Holden thinks everybody who is grown up is a phony because their behavior and advice are all false. The ... ...

• Word Count: 859
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... off his chair."(pg. 38, ch. 5) When Holden was 13, Allie died of leukemia. The night he died, Holden broke all the windows in the garage in a fit of uncontrollable grief. The night Allie passed away, a part of Holden died with him, his innocence and a clear sense of who he was as a person. After Allie's death, Holden never seemed to ... to the carousel and Phoebe went on. Holden began to cry as he watched Phoebe going around and around. He cried because he saw his innocence that he had lost, in Phoebe, wanted to have it back. Since Allie's death, Holden's life changed. Experiencing a loss...

• Word Count: 1137
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

... Catcher In The Rye is not a story to easily be forgotten. Expelled from boarding school Holden goes out into the world in search of non-phoniness, truth, and innocence. Holden was a very hypocritical character in the book. Believing that all his thoughts and beliefs were true and every one that differed ... you want to know the truth." This not only makes you feel like he is talking to you, but also gives you a feel for Haden's language, age, and attitude. Salinger leaves you wondering if maybe some occurrences within the story are personal memories that occurred throughout his childhood...

• Word Count: 628
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... wants to see his sister Phoebe and his old girlfriend Jan Gallagher, but instead he spends his time with Sally Hayes, a shallow person Holden's age, and Carl Luce, a pretentious Columbia student Holden treats as a source of sexual knowledge. Increasingly lonely, Holden finally decides to sneak back to his parents' apartment to talk to Phoebe. He borrows some money from her, ... to her. Phoebe is intelligent, neat, and a wonderful dancer. Her childish innocence is one of Holden's only consistent sources of happiness throughout the novel. Allie - Holden's younger brother, who died of leuk...

• Word Count: 1065
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... sanity on the same basis. People complain it is a natural thing to do. Complaining has been proven to help with anger management. Holden is just one of those people that have to complain about something all the time. There is nothing wrong with that. "Ackley was a very nosy bastard." (33) So, ... a sane man in a sane world. Holden is just like every other person who walks on the face of planet Earth. He is just a little immature, which is nothing usual for boys that age. A good number of high school aged boys act like they are still in junior high. It is not something to judge sanity ....

• Word Count: 901
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... in another with the hope that at least no one will know him in a new place is constantly recurring. On the surface this may show his fear of growing up and "facing facts"and his hope of retaining innocence. Although this is a valid interpretation, it seems that, more than running away from his childhood, Holden is caught in a muddled search for the experiences ... a way, but (he still) got soaked" in the end and all that is left now is the drying up.(213) Salinger's, The Catcher in The Rye, is obviously a classic coming of age novel which is exemplified throughout. One would expect the ...

• Word Count: 1227
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

In the book Catcher in the Rye the main character is Holden Caulfield. He is a teen- age boy who goes through some major changes. His life is taken over by isolation and depression. This is all caused by his attitude towards others, his failure ... misses him and this leads him to not want to face the adult world, but to go back to the innocence of his childhood. His problems begin at school. He was sent away to school and then he flunks out of school after school. He refuses to do his work or try. He is not liked by anyone and has no ... he runs away from boarding school because he faces so...

• Word Count: 811
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... a teenager who is having trouble relating to people as his idealism is caught between childhood and the adult world. He has the very mature side of liking honesty and disliking lying and things which are fake or put on just for a show. But he is also quite childish thinking things like ... he can be "The Catcher in the rye", protect all the kids, in this case their childhood innocence. This made it very hard for him to fit in anywhere, even with peers his own age. This is made worse because Holden as a character really likes attention, therefore leading Holden to desperately trying ... ...

• Word Count: 565
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

... adult-world, and he preferred the simplicity and honesty of childhood. Although Holden grew up physically after his brother passed, his emotional growth was somewhat stunted. He did seem to have any friends or to socialize well with people his own age. Allie's death contributed to Holden's cynical views on life. Holden ... . It seems as if Holden didn't think there was anything out there for him, or if he did, he did not want to be a part of it. Holden's mental breakdown probably would have been a suicide attempt. In chapter 14, he talked about how he didn't believe people would really ...

• Word Count: 930
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School