Comparing The Catcher In The Rye And Ordinary People

According to the National Institute of Mental Health, 90% of teens who commit suicide have some type of mental health issue. Then why are emotions and mental health so difficult to talk about, and are not often seen as socially acceptable? Suicide is only preventable if an open environment exists where one can express their fears and feelings. Society often tends to brush off mental health problems, which has a negative impact on many teens who no longer can open up about their emotions. Both Ordinary People and The Catcher in the Rye demonstrate the issues society has with mental health and the problems one might develop with their health when they isolate themselves from the world and repress their grief. Although Ordinary People shows Conrad on his road to recovery and The Catcher in the Rye focuses on the downfall and mental deterioration of Holden, ultimately …show more content…
Whenever Calvin asks Conrad how his day is, he responds, "fine" no matter how his day actually went. Conrad says, "he returns to the ritual answer. It is not a lie, really; just the safest thing to say for now" (Guest 84). In order to feel safe or welcomed in society, there is pressure to lie about how one is feeling mentally, as well as to avoid making people uncomfortable. When talking about himself lying during small talk and conversations with others, Holden says, "If you want to stay alive, you have to stay that stuff, though" (Salinger 114). When talking with other people, Holden feels a constant pressure to lie and make up how he is feeling emotionally because he feels a need to fit in with the majority of people being phony in the adult world. Both Ordinary People and The Catcher in the Rye demonstrate that no matter how someone is feeling on the inside, they are forced to change and edit their words to fit an appropriate public