Examples Of Socialism In Catcher In The Rye

Annie Besant once said, “socialism is the ideal state, but it can never be achieved while man is so selfish.” This quote illustrates that an ideal society can never be achieved if each individual begin to focus on themselves. Similarly, the narrator of JD Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield, feels society has become dysfunctional due to self-absorbance. Holden believes the majority of people around him are “phonies”, which means they are engulfed in society’s cruel ways. Throughout the novel, he meets people, yet shows disgust towards them for their selfishness and self-absorbance. Teenage life is known to be filled with people finding their path to a life they enjoy, although Holden has quite the opposite experience. Holden’s sadness roots in the lack of authenticity in people’s morals. Shortly …show more content…
There, he notices “phonies”, and begins to feel sickened by their selfishness. His brother’s ex-girlfriend, Lillian Simmons, greets him while he is there, and he introduces her boyfriend as “the navy guy [...] Commander Blop or something” to his readers (97). Holden describes him as “one of those guys that think they’re in a pansy if they don’t break forty of your fingers”(97). He believes the navy officer intends to boast his strength in the greeting, exposing his conformity to society’s belief that muscular men should be praised more than weak men. Ironically, the purpose of greetings are to express welcome and show kindness towards others, not to boast about one's strength. Holden recognizes that society warps this meaning into a competition for dominance. The navy officer’s acceptance of these values shows his self-absorbance due to his