The Catcher in the Rye, by JD Salinger, objects the academic and social norms of the time period. Salinger expresses his disapproval through Holden Caulfield, a reckless teenager, who feels a strong sense of hatred for adult society in the book. Holden Caulfield was also supposed to give an insight of what he thought were the right methods of dealing with children being rushed into the corrupted adult world. Holden poses as an excellent example of how children can be disturbed by the unethical effects of adults. There are some things that he believes are satisfactory with the world, and he backs up his beliefs during the book. Salinger argues for the preservation of the purity in children, the escaping of problems by running away, and the need
…show more content…
When the author states, “It 's full of phonies, and all you do is study so that you can learn enough to be smart enough to be able to buy a goddam Cadillac some day, and you have to keep making believe you give a damn if the football team loses, and all you do is talk about girls and liquor and sex all day, and everybody sticks together in these dirty little goddam cliques (pg. 131),” he is trying to share with his readers the corruption of the adult world. He argues that children are so guiltless and unknowing of all the immoral values that the more mature society holds for them that he feels a need to protect them. The name of the book derives from his metaphor of the catcher in the rye, who protects the children from falling off the cliff into the phoniness of the adult world. This is evident when teenagers are being arrested for drunk driving and young female children are becoming pregnant at the age of 13. When children see adults doing these types of activities, they believe that it is acceptable for them to take on the same traits at a premature age. This kind of adult corruption has landed children in jail, in their grave, or in a position to make the same mistakes all over again until something goes amiss. The pureness of children is stripped from them at such a young age because adults cannot protect children from what is eventually going to be found out by children. Salinger would argue otherwise, that maintaining the purity in children is an essential part of his
When the author states, “It 's full of phonies, and all you do is study so that you can learn enough to be smart enough to be able to buy a goddam Cadillac some day, and you have to keep making believe you give a damn if the football team loses, and all you do is talk about girls and liquor and sex all day, and everybody sticks together in these dirty little goddam cliques (pg. 131),” he is trying to share with his readers the corruption of the adult world. He argues that children are so guiltless and unknowing of all the immoral values that the more mature society holds for them that he feels a need to protect them. The name of the book derives from his metaphor of the catcher in the rye, who protects the children from falling off the cliff into the phoniness of the adult world. This is evident when teenagers are being arrested for drunk driving and young female children are becoming pregnant at the age of 13. When children see adults doing these types of activities, they believe that it is acceptable for them to take on the same traits at a premature age. This kind of adult corruption has landed children in jail, in their grave, or in a position to make the same mistakes all over again until something goes amiss. The pureness of children is stripped from them at such a young age because adults cannot protect children from what is eventually going to be found out by children. Salinger would argue otherwise, that maintaining the purity in children is an essential part of his