Lily Zheng
Mr. Bowne
AP English 3 Period 6-8
19 October 2015
“J. D. Salinger.” Newsmakers. Vol 1. Detroit: Gale, 2011. Biography in Context. Web. 18 October 2015.
J. D. Salinger was the author of The Catcher in the Rye, which had impressive success in the early 1950s. Born on January 1st, 1919 in New York City, Salinger attended both public and prestigious private schools and was described as his school officials as intelligent but lacking in motivation. These qualities and schools Salinger attended parallel the experiences and characteristics of Holden Caulfield from the novel. He dropped out of the famous McBurney School and was then sent to Valley Forge Military Academy. Then, Salinger became a soldier in the army in 1942 but …show more content…
For the majority of his life after the success of his book, Salinger stayed out of the public’s view while Holden was remote from his family for the majority of the book. Holden only closely interacted with his sister, Phoebe, the one family member he truly believes is untainted by the corruption of society. The alienation from his parents resulted in dysfunction in the family life, which was a prominent theme of the novel. Even today, family issues arise from either children or parents being aloof, which may cause tension. Holden classified many elders as well as adulthood as “phony” because he was appalled by the fickle personalities people displayed in different situations. Seclusion in Salinger’s life is clearly conveyed through Holden’s disgust of …show more content…
Holden is often compared to Huckleberry Finn from Mark Twain’s novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn because both boys want to run away from society and use humor to show the harsh reality of the world. In fact, Holden is often referred to as the modern-day Huck Finn since both characters display the need to escape the corruption of civilization. Another view of Holden is that he is quintessential teenager since he often uses profanity, is extremely cynical, and thinks about sex often. Also, Holden is viewed as a typical adolescent because he is trying to obtain an identity separate from family and struggles with the need to go home. Rholetter clearly displays that Holden is the embodiment of many American teenagers since many are challenged with self-identity and would connect easily to the coming-of-age
Mr. Bowne
AP English 3 Period 6-8
19 October 2015
“J. D. Salinger.” Newsmakers. Vol 1. Detroit: Gale, 2011. Biography in Context. Web. 18 October 2015.
J. D. Salinger was the author of The Catcher in the Rye, which had impressive success in the early 1950s. Born on January 1st, 1919 in New York City, Salinger attended both public and prestigious private schools and was described as his school officials as intelligent but lacking in motivation. These qualities and schools Salinger attended parallel the experiences and characteristics of Holden Caulfield from the novel. He dropped out of the famous McBurney School and was then sent to Valley Forge Military Academy. Then, Salinger became a soldier in the army in 1942 but …show more content…
For the majority of his life after the success of his book, Salinger stayed out of the public’s view while Holden was remote from his family for the majority of the book. Holden only closely interacted with his sister, Phoebe, the one family member he truly believes is untainted by the corruption of society. The alienation from his parents resulted in dysfunction in the family life, which was a prominent theme of the novel. Even today, family issues arise from either children or parents being aloof, which may cause tension. Holden classified many elders as well as adulthood as “phony” because he was appalled by the fickle personalities people displayed in different situations. Seclusion in Salinger’s life is clearly conveyed through Holden’s disgust of …show more content…
Holden is often compared to Huckleberry Finn from Mark Twain’s novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn because both boys want to run away from society and use humor to show the harsh reality of the world. In fact, Holden is often referred to as the modern-day Huck Finn since both characters display the need to escape the corruption of civilization. Another view of Holden is that he is quintessential teenager since he often uses profanity, is extremely cynical, and thinks about sex often. Also, Holden is viewed as a typical adolescent because he is trying to obtain an identity separate from family and struggles with the need to go home. Rholetter clearly displays that Holden is the embodiment of many American teenagers since many are challenged with self-identity and would connect easily to the coming-of-age