Preview

Archetype Analysis in The Catcher in The Rye and Cool Hand Luke

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
980 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Archetype Analysis in The Catcher in The Rye and Cool Hand Luke
Archetype Feature Analysis Timed Essay Archetypes were first described by Carl Young because he saw similarities between pieces of literature. There are several archetypes in most stories and many stories may have some of the same archetypes. This is evidently true in the movie Cool Hand Luke and also in the book “The Catcher in the Rye”. Luke, in Cool Hand Luke, and Holden, in The Catcher in the Rye, exhibit similar archetypal features such as the Christ-Figure, the Anti-hero and their experience of the road of trails. Luke and Holden can both be compared to the Archetype “Christ-Figure” because of their characteristics. First of all, neither Luke nor Holden had a strong father figure in their life. The audience learns that Luke’s father left when he was very young, during his interaction with his mother. Holden, on the other hand did not have a good relationship with his father because his father was “a big-shot phony” who was only disappointed with his son because he kept flunking out of school. Both Holden and Luke had some type of follower or disciple. Holden’s “follower”, even if he didn’t realize it, was Phoebe. Phoebe found a friend in Holden and always wanted to emulate him. The perfect example of Phoebe attempting to follow Holden was when Holden attempted to run away and Phoebe tried her best to go with him. She had her suitcase packed and ready to go when she met up with him for what he thought was saying goodbye. Luke also had followers of his own. Luke’s followers consisted of the prisoners, including Dragline. Luke habitually tries to run away from prison and is always caught. Luke teaches the prisoners to keep fighting even when you know you have lost the fight. The prisoners use this motto when they are working on the side of the road and they decide to increase their pace so that they will get done faster. Also, at the end of the movie, Dragline throws a punch at one of the officers after they have both been captured. This

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Powerful Essays

    Archetypes are defined as universally understood symbols, terms, or behaviors. They are often used in stories to define characters and influence the reader. In David Lindenfeld’s article, “Jungian Archetypes and the Discourse of History,” Carl Jung is accredited with saying that archetypes are like plastic sets of dispositions whose specific manifestations are shaped by culture and situation (217). In Much Ado about Nothing, three types of archetypes can be clearly seen. These are symbolic, characteristic, and situational.…

    • 1100 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    “theorized that the archetype originates in…the shared experiences of a race or culture, such as birth, death, love, family life, and struggles to survive and grow up” (“Literary Terms and Conditions”), meaning that the archetypes commonly found in literature are often used to relate people to the characters, which can create a relationship and connection between the audience the characters in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof by Tennessee Williams.…

    • 1466 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    An archetype is defined as a universally understood pattern of behavior or a prototype upon which others are copied or patterned. Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain was and still is the basis for which authors use for their characters in their writing.…

    • 434 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    In chapter 3 Holden tells how he feels about the guest speaker, it reads, “He started telling us how he was never ashamed, when he was in some kind of trouble or something, to get right down on his knees and pray to God. He told us we should always pray to God - talk to Him and all - wherever we were. He told us we ought to think of Jesus as our buddy and all. He said he talked to Jesus all the time; Even when he was driving in his car. That killed me. I can just see the big phony bastard shifting into first gear and asking Jesus to send him a few more stiffs.” This symbolizes how people rub off on Holden. Holden tends to judge before he actually knows the full, in-depth description of the person. Rebellion for Holden is a way for him to conceal his true feelings. Holden is a teenager who hasn’t seemed to have found where he should be in life, and what his true purpose is. Holden also shows rebellion through all of the negative things he says. In chapter 12, he states, “People always clap for the wrong things.” Again, as you can see, nothing seems good…

    • 520 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Cinderella Archetypes

    • 521 Words
    • 2 Pages

    A repetitive pattern in many different literary stories is widely known to many but actually recognized by few. This type of pattern is referred to as an archetype. An archetype is a complex literary term that can be found and understood by examining literature.…

    • 521 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    What do you think are the most important aspects of the human psyche? What do you think gives us the will to live? To J.D. Salinger, author of “The Catcher in the Rye”the three most important aspects are individuality, protection and connections to humanity. These aspects represent three important aspects of a person's humanity, which are knowing that you are important to the world around you, that you have protection from the world, and that you have a reason to live in society. These needs, which appear in Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs are considered necessary for a will to live. In “The Catcher in the Rye” by J.D. Salinger, Holden and his relationship with his hat represents his individuality, protection and connection…

    • 1075 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    An Archetypal Point of View An archetype can be found in a book, short story, or a movie, but it must contain specific elements. Most archetypal works contain a general "fight, flight, learn, return" pattern apparent physically or emotionally. Symbolic people, places, and objects can be found in an archetypal works also. Gladiator fulfills all of these requirements; therefore, it is an excellent example of an archetypal movie.…

    • 653 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Being different is difficult, especially when you’re a teenager. It’s not easy being singled out and feeling like the bad apple. Standing apart from others can be hard and takes courage. Society does not appreciate misfits, especially trouble makers who don’t make any effort to succeed. There is nothing wrong with being different and standing up for what you believe in but Holden goes about it in an arrogant way. It’s as if he sets himself apart from his peers on purpose because he does not want to be phony, just like them. Holden sees a major part of the people in his life as phony, which he tries to isolate himself from, this in turn makes him quite antisocial in every aspect of his life.…

    • 1051 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Archetypes In Society

    • 1257 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Since the introduction of writing, characters all seem to fall into archetypical structures that the author then expands on. Over the last few centuries, archetypes have evolved and are beginning to depart from what they once were. Society has discovered new ideological beliefs that have in effect changed the elemental design of characters. From Homer’s The Odyssey in the early 8th century B.C., to the documentary Remember the Titans in the 21st century, the perception of The Tragic Hero has changed to match cultural beliefs.…

    • 1257 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Holden has many depressing episodes and shows them to the readers by constantly announcing his suicidal thoughts. He often lets his depression show by talking about other people like Stradlater but in reality he is reflecting on himself. He only calls out people on the things he thinks are phony or stupid but later in the novel he did the same thing. For example he constantly makes it clear that he can’t stand the movies but later on when he had some free time on his hands he went and watched a movie. It is evident that the only reason he says he hates so many things is because he's depressed making him hate everything that moves.…

    • 1867 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Archetype In Literature

    • 756 Words
    • 4 Pages

    In fairy tales and literature, they all have a common archetype which is setting. Every fairytale has a different setting, but in Cinderella, Snow White, and Sleeping Beauty they all have a common setting. The common setting of these fairy tales are the forest and the castle. In “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” when the Queen tries to kill Snow White. “...she ordered one of her huntsmen to take Snow White into the forest and kill her...…

    • 756 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    One night my brother Holden and I were watching lightning as it stormed. He started talking about the future and where he wants to be in four years when he graduates from college. Then he told me to always work hard and follow my dreams. He also told me to have a positive outlook on things. Holden has always had a positive influence on my life because he has showed me what reality is like, he has always supported me through things, and he’s a hard worker.…

    • 446 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The novella The Old Man and The Sea by Ernest Hemingway is filled with examples of archetypes or "universal representations". The story is clearly the quest plot type with Santiago as the Hero and Manolin the sidekick. As the hero Santiago encounters a temptress and a villain with the end result being a kind of great success. "The Quest", one of the basic plot lines, is evident in The Old Man and The Sea.…

    • 645 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The quote comes from J.D. Salinger's THE CATCHER IN THE RYE when Holden runs away from Pencey Prep and attends a bar where he tries to flirt with three older women, who fail to take him seriously. Through subtext, Salinger describes society lashing out at the people they desire to connect with because they ignored them, much like how the three women, full grown adults, ignore Holden's advances, who is a child in their eyes. When Holden notices that he is being ignored, it hurts his feelings, as can be inferred through the use of names he refers to the women; he calls them witches and morons.…

    • 313 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Teenagers are especially complex, because they have many hormones running through them, pushing them through a growth in maturity that they do not understand themselves. This sudden, misunderstood growth can lead to many shorter-term character traits, one of them being extra judgmental against others. It’s often considered an important part of growth- the movement from being judgmental, to realizing that one is being judgmental, to making oneself a better person from that. In child psychology, this is a basic and important concept, realization of oneself, helping form a stronger self-identity, without judgement of others. In the book The Catcher in The Rye, by J. D. Salinger, Holden’s judgmental attitude to others exemplifies how one’s views…

    • 156 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays