The Catcher in the Rye

The Catcher in the Rye is one of the most controversial novels that have ever been written. It was written by J. D. Salinger in 1951, who died in 2010, and was based loosely of off of his teenage years. It took him a decade to write it Many people think that it is one of the greatest books that have ever been written, where as others find it be pointless, and to lack any real plot. Despite all of the controversy The Catcher in the Rye was on the New York Times Bestsellers list for twenty nine years. Despite it’s popularity, The Catcher in the Rye has not been made into  a movie because J. D. Salinger did not sell the movie rights.

The Catcher in the Rye is very controversial book. Many people, tried and are still trying to ban the book, and it’s not kept in some book stores and libraries. Many schools consider the book to inappropriate for students. This is due to the fact that the book consists of a lot of bad language, and profanity. It deals with some suggestive themes, such as under age smoking and alcoholism, sex, sexual harassment, and prostitution. When the book was published in 1951 these themes were seen as inappropriate to put in a novel. Times have changed, but the book is still very controversial. Personally I think think that the book is’t that inappropriate and it should not be banned. 

Holden Caulfield is an upper class sixteen year old boy from New York, growing up in the 1940’s. He is cynical, unhappy, and confused, and doesn’t have a lot of direction in life. He doesn’t like many people because he finds them to be “phony”. 

He attends Pencey Prep school in Agerstown Pennsylvania, and he doesn’t like going there because he thinks that it’s full of phonies. He is expelled due to his poor academic performance, and he runs away to New York City.

He stays in New York for two days. During those two days, he basically goes around the city. He goes to bars and clubs, where he drinks, smokes, and meets women. He meets people lots of other people too. The mother of a boy whom he went to school with, a cab driver who argues with him about where the ducks in Central Park go when the lagoon freezes over, and a prostitute. He also runs into people he already new, like a former male english teacher who flirts with him, a girl friend who annoys him, ad his little sister Phoebe who he likes. Holden doesn’t really like most people. The conflict in the book is basically Holden Vs. the world. His character is very interesting, but he’s so cynical and whiney that I don’t really like his character that much. My favorite character would have to be Phoebe because she’s nice, and caring, and she cares about Holden and understands him. Throughout these two days Holden has an opportunity to reflect on his life. He reflects on his past, his future, and the rest of the world. 

It is difficult to summarize the plot of The Catcher in the Rye because there really isn’t one. It’s sort of a personal Journey of teenager growing up and finding his place in the world. Holden is alone in the world, and reader should take away that it is ok to feel alone sometimes, and that everybody does. 

I think I can relate to Holden because I am also  a teenager, and going through the same awkward stage in my life. I’m still trying to find my place inn the world. I hate a lot of people. I find many of them to be obnoxious jerks. I also sometimes feel alone in the world. 

I would say that I liked the book. It really made me think. It kind of shows what it’s like to be a teenager, and what it’s like to be alone and hate everybody. J. D. Salinger has some interesting thoughts and ideas that about the world that he shows in this book. It’s a very unique kind of story. It doesn’t really have much of  a plot, but maybe thats how the story is met to be. I might be nice if there was some sort of bigger climax, but maybe that would ruin its appeal. 

I would highly recommend this book. It  makes you think about the way the worlds is. I would especially recommend it to teenagers, because it deals with the awkward teenage experience. It is very relatable for teenagers. I think that it’s relatable to all people, because in some way or another we all felt that sense of being alone, and against the world that Holden Caulfield felt in The Catcher in the Rye. 

Here's a link to my creative portion. It a collection of poems write from the pint of view of Holden Caulfield, based on events that occur in the book " The Catcher in the Rye"
It does contain some profanity, but any profanity used in the poems is from things he says in the book