The Catcher in the Rye

The Catcher in the Rye : Struggles of Adolescence

Introduction

Perhaps it is because "Holden Caulfield is a reflection of the sociocultural conditions of his age " HYPERLINK "http /www .questia .com /PM .qst ?a o d (Pinsker and Pinsker xv that J .D . Salinger 's The Catcher in the Rye has remained such an appealing and influential piece of literature . The main character Holden Caulfield , is making the transition from adolescence to adulthood and the transition is awkward , painful , and fraught with self-doubt This transition is fraught with self-doubt because of the substantial

br difference between the way that Holden believes the world should be and way in which it actually functions . He is cynical , suspicious of relationships with nearly everyone , wary of intimacy , and he perceives himself to be extraordinarily lonely . This will examine the complicated and nuanced manner in which Holden experiences the painfulness of growing up more specifically , this will discuss this painfulness in terms of Holden 's loneliness , the nature of his relationships , intimacy , and sexuality

Loneliness

As an initial matter , when examining the painfulness of growing up as it is manifest through Holden Caulfield , it is necessary to more closely examine Holden 's perception of himself as lonely and how this isolating self-perception actually exacerbates the severity of his pain . His notion of loneliness is very similar to a type of emptiness in which he is struggling to discover how he relates to other individuals , how he relates to people sexually , and how he...