Preview

Catcher In The Rye Critical Lens Analysis

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1010 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Catcher In The Rye Critical Lens Analysis
December 4,2013 English 3

According to Martin Luther King Jr, “the ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.” This statement means that the best way to see that someone is a man is the way they handle themselves when they are in a problem. The critical lens is valid because this is true in life and literature. The book The Crucible by Arthur Miller and The Catcher In The Rye by J.D Salinger exemplifies the critical lens statement by Martin Luther King Jr. The literary elements that best support the interpretation is characterization and conflict. John Proctor in The Crucible exemplifies the critical lens statement by
…show more content…
Through the literary element of characterization, Salinger proves that Holden’s irresponsibility is relevant to the quotation that you are a true man by the way you handle a problem that comes to you. Holden is a lonely person and very compassionate. An example of Holden being irresponsible is when Holden was on the train with the fencing team and he had left the equipment on the train (3). An example of Holden being lonely is Holden’s attachment to ally; you see that Holden is still attached to ally because when phoebe asks Holden what he enjoys he tells her “I like Ally” (171). This mainly shows that Holden still relies on his brother even though he is dead, so Holden’s attachment to ally makes him lonely. An example of Holden being compassionate is when he is at pencey prep still and he says he needs to go say goodbye to Mr. Spencer because he has the grippe and he figured he wouldn’t be able to see him again until Christmas vacation (3). The examples are relevant to the critical lens statement because in all the examples you can see how Holden is turning into a man from childhood. The actions of Holden validate that the best way to see that someone is becoming grown is the way they handle themselves when they are in a

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    In J.D Salinger’s book The Catcher in the Rye, the protaginist Holden Caulfied, struggles with life, one of the factors being his unstable state of mind due to the death of his brother. After his brothers death his perspective on life was shaken, culminating to his use of anger and trivial decisions to mask his emotions. We see his rapid choice of judgment evidently when he destroyed his parents garage windows. Holden holds his brother dear to his heart, because of his authenticity and humbleness; traits that arent seen anywhere else in his life.…

    • 399 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Following the attack on Pearl Harbor, Salinger was drafted into the army, serving from 1942-'44. His short military career saw him land at Utah Beach in France during the Normandy Invasion and be a part of the action at the Battle of the Bulge. Salinger continued to write, assembling chapters for a new novel whose main character was a deeply unsatisfied young man named Holden Caulfield. Salinger did not escape the war without some trauma, and when it ended he was hospitalized after suffering a nervous breakdown…

    • 450 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Holden Caulfield is a teenager who is struggling to fit into adult society. This is evident from very early on in the book when Salinger immediately characterises Holden as a very judgmental and cynical person. Examples from the very first page include when Holden refers to his brother D.B as a prostitute because he writes scripts for movies. He then continues “I there’s one thing I hate, it’s the movies. Don't even mention them to me”. He doesn’t even give his brother the benefit of the doubt over his occupation, and it is through phrases like this where Salinger creates the characterisation of Holden as a judgmental and stubborn personality. This is further continued throughout the novel where Holden continually uses the phrase “phony”, to refer to other people. He perceives the world as superficial, whereas it is his views on society that are lacking depth. This immediate characterisation of Holden by Salinger…

    • 532 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In The Catcher and the Rye by J.D. Salinger, the protagonist Holden Caulfield experiences myriad personal difficulties originating from the tragic event of his brother's death from cancer. Subsequently, his perspective towards the whole world has deteriorated into a pessimistic attitude, derived from his own personal sense of inferiority. As a result, Holden feels isolated and alone. In his desire to feel connected to someone, he travels home to visit his sister, Phoebe, hoping to receive emotional support. Instead, Phoebe criticizes his pessimistic attitude towards life, much to his own surprise. However, the criticism that Holden receives from his sister motivates him to improve his perspective towards life, by having become more optimistic, and leading to rapid and significant maturity within his personal development.…

    • 646 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Holden purposely alienates himself from others and doesn’t hold many close relationships. He displays lack of interest in his education. It is not straight forward, but Holden believes he has no future, does he even want one? Detachment is also represented when he fails out of every school he is sent to. He rebels against those who wish for him to have a decent life. Mr. Antolini was one of those who cares and stated “ the mark of an immature man is that he wants to die nobly for a cause, while the mark of a mature man is that he wants to live humbly for one” which Holden takes advantage of . Holden is particularly introverted (Salinger 188). He wanders the city, passing hundreds of by standards, he is still all alone. Sure he wants to talk to people but he doesn’t know how to hold a proper conversation. He is a constant critic of others actions although his actions make him come off as an arrogant pest, therefore Holden isolates…

    • 1321 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    In The Catcher in the Rye,Holden Caulfield reveals the never changing tapestry that is a man’s personality. He begins as a contemptuous adolescent, critical of all those around him. Regarding everyone as a “phony”, Holden isolates himself from his surroundings. Continually dwelling in the past, Holden refuses to move forward. He is judgmental of those around him, beginning with his classmates and peers. As he progresses in the novel, his attitude toward life does not change. He regards his teachers as phony as well, claiming they only act like teachers. Holden reveals a highly superficial nature in his judgements toward others, for he disregards deeper judgments in favor of superficial ones. This is further highlighted in his social commentary, when he simply categorizes people. Holden sees himself as an adult, but he is merely an child in adult’s clothing, as throughout the novel, Holden does not realize his own superficiality, and this becomes one of his defining characteristics. Holden seeks out imperfections in others, rendering himself incapable of the slightest change. Holden ends his journey on the same note and with the same personality which he begins with: a quick to judge, superficial one.…

    • 374 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Holden Character Essay

    • 555 Words
    • 3 Pages

    The first trait that Holden possesses is sensitiveness. Holden is definitely sensitive, and be very emotional at times. The first example that shows that he is sensitive is when he breaks all the windows in his garage, as a result of his Brother Allie's death, ''I broke all the goddam windows just for the hell of it''. Salinger characterizes Holden as sensitive, in order to accord with the novel’s theme that depression can be a quarantined disease. Holden being sensitive contributed to the decision of him writing the composition about Allie, because of how he remembered breaking the windows in the garage, after Allie died. Another example that shows his sensitiveness is when he leaves Mr. Antollini's house as a result of him petting his forehead and waking up ''I was embarrassed as hell.'' Holden’s sensitive state of mind provokes him into acting faster on things, without thinking of it first. This act that happened contributed to the depreciation of his health.…

    • 555 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    He sees adults and friends who succumb to these norms, and he outwardly looks down upon them and call them phonies of society. As an author, J.D. Salinger created Holden Caulfield as a character to challenge the expected norms of this time period, and as a whole, the novel addresses the challenge of accepting societal norms and diverging from norms to create a different lifestyle. For Holden, although many other reasons attribute to his refusal to accept society, he mainly believes that the 1950’s American Dream culture valuing marriage, family and education is not one that he wishes to be associated with. It is also crucial to note that by the end of the novel, Holden ends up in a mental institution, the location from which he narrates Catcher in the Rye. This element of the novel is crucial to our understanding of Holden as a character; he seems to have rejected the values and views of the post-war era so intensely, he is literally unable to function and has been…

    • 1991 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Holden Caulfield becomes frustrated during social interactions because he does not achieve the level of conversation or understanding that he wishes. Salinger showcases a problem in society through Holden, effectively conveying the anger and feeling of isolation that comes from not being…

    • 491 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The song “All I Want” by Kodaline refers to Holden’s feelings toward Phoebe near the end of the book. For example, when Holden is delusional, he thinks he is going to die of pneumonia and says, “...so finally what I figured I’d do, I figured I’d better sneak home and see her, in case I died and all” (Salinger 156). Holden’s one wish before he dies (or so he thinks) was to go see his kid sister Phoebe. Holden has a very close relationship with his sister, and they are both very fond of the other. This mindset is displayed by the members of Kodaline when they sing “‘cause if I could see your face once more/ I could die a happy man I’m sure” (Kodaline). While “All I Want” is admittedly about a romantic relationship and not one of a sibling nature,…

    • 1192 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The years following the second Great War are know as a period of culture consensus. The 1950s were characterized as a time of prosperity, due to the number of Americans who moved to the newly developed suburbs while under the comfort of a growing economy. As well, America's national identity began to change from an isolationist outlook on the world to a hard-line Cold War advict. This change made many writers and intellects switch to a writing style that focused on defending the United States and the freedoms it stood for. At the same time, a growing number of critics found the widespread conformity to be an evil to America’s health as a nation. From the expansion of the consumer economy, uniform communities, and corporate bureaucrats,…

    • 1231 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    John Q/ Antigone

    • 570 Words
    • 3 Pages

    According to Martin Luther King Jr “ The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy. In other words, that you could only judge a person if he/she is good or not at something when they’re in a hard time or non-easy.…

    • 570 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Everyone has had a dream job since they were small, it might have changed over time but it was always something they loved. In “The Catcher in the Rye” by J.D. Salinger we meet Holden whose dream job is to be a catcher in the rye. Holden states that in his dream job he would “catch everyone if they start to go over the cliff- I mean if they’re running and they don’t see where they’re going I have to come out of somewhere and catch them.” (Salinger, 173)…

    • 529 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    critcal lens essay

    • 599 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Martin Luther King, JR once said “The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in the moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.” This quote means that we only see people’s true color when they are faced with trouble or problems. I agree with this quote because you never know the people’s feelings until you know the problem they are faced with or are facing. Monster by Walter Dean Myers and Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson used theme and setting to prove the critical lens. The main characters in both these novels overcome challenging situations by taking advantage of the opportunities presented to them. In their struggle to make the best of their circumstances, the main character Melinda in Speak and Steve in Monster illustrate the critical lens.…

    • 599 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Three seconds remain in the tied basketball game. The point guard shoots and scores right before the buzzer sounds off. I bet for a long time, that player worked hard in the gym to practice and perfect his shooting for game time situations like that. It just goes to show that nothing great can ever be achieved without hard work. Holden Caulfield from The Catcher In The Rye, however, does not quite understand this saying. In the story, Holden does not apply himself to his education at Pencey Prep, which results in his expulsion from school. Throughout the story, Holden, as well as a few other characters, represent the terms expressed in Freud’s Theory of Personality known as the id, superego, and ego.…

    • 774 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays