Loneliness and Uniqueness in The Catcher in the Rye - Research Paper Example

?Jarom D. Salinger is the most famous among the representatives of New York literary school of 40-60-ies of the XX-th century. The creative activity of the writer brings the reader into the specific world which is full of emotions and feelings. The works of the writer are unique because of their reflectiveness. One of the main themes of the creative activity is that everyone is lonely and unique in this world. This theme is successfully described in the most famous novel by Jarom D.Salinger “The Catcher in the Rye”. It should be mentioned that many authors of that time paid much attention to the problem of world civilizations but Salinger considered that the problem is inside every human and should be solved individually. Salinger paid a great attention to the factors of personality formation. The novel “The Catcher in the Rye” is considered to be Bible for many generations. Nowadays this work can seem even to be naive but at the previous century it was sensation which caused a great wave of different emotions and was officially censored. Very often reading a book the readers try to guess the content from the very beginning judging from the title. Some authors give the mysterious titles to their works in order do some kind of riddle. Into the title of his novel Salinger placed the whole philosophy, symbolism which was an integral part of the novel. This gives an excellent opportunity to the reader to interpret the novel in their own manner and discourse. The main point of this novel is that everyone can see themselves in this work. The features of the main character are sincere and impress with their honest depicting. Though it should be mentioned that this novel is not about a lazy young man who is so simple and easy from the first sight but the author calls the reader o look deep inside the complicated mechanism if Holden’s soul. The character is opening step by step, every page of the novel helps to understand the character. Salinger wants to tell everything about his hero. The psychological portrait of Salinger’s hero is contradictory and complex. The behavior of Holden often makes an impression of a painful start. He is not just shy, touchy, and sometimes not polite, like almost everyone is prone to introspection, teenager of so-called introverted type. As it is evident from the confessions of the hero of the novel, and from the details Holden is childish for his age “unwillingness to resemble the adults in Holden's first emotionally more than consciously, feeling ahead of his mind and he's ready to be finished in one fell swoop with their offenders among which not everyone deserve a severe sentence”. However, on the other hand the young minimalism of Holden Caulfield is understandable thirst for justice and transparency in human relations. The fact that most depresses Holden and what he judges is quite "grown-up" is the feeling of hopelessness, impending doom of all his attempts to arrange his life in this world. Peering into the future, he sees nothing, except the gray routine that has become the lot of the vast majority of his countrymen. Salinger's hero fails to interest Sally enough, however, who does not really believe in life in the hut by the stream (Slawenski, 2011). Formulaic Hollywood movies with the triumph of virtue and indispensable quirks in the final scenes cause attack of revulsion in Holden’s mind. Holden lives in the cruel soulless world, which like a machine tends either to break their victim, or reshape them into their own image. Holden is endowed with "absolute moral hearing" - he immediately discerns hypocrisy, and his hypersensitivity is a special kind of radar that catches it, and then quietly passes by other history of American literature. This is his youthful impatience and attracts the readers' hearts. Not surprisingly, Holden eagerly looking for at least some outlet craves human warmth, involvement and understanding. So the question arises, what he wants, as he thinks in about the future, the question is even more important because we know very well what kind of things he does not like. It turns out that nothing really positive can not imagined by Holden. Hence, a naive dream of a simple mechanical operation, making it possible to maintain a quiet life with a deaf-mute wife. Holden would like to pretend to be deaf to the extent possible, to break all ties with the world in which life is so uncomfortable. The unreality of such a plan is clear. He can only find a symbolic expression of the aspirations. He imagines a vast field of rye where there is a children playground. Holden is the only adult in this field. He is the only one who can rescue and save the children from falling into the abyss. By the end of the novel it becomes especially clear that the big world can be opposed only to the world of children, which, moreover, should be guarded by adults. Children are the subject of special attention of Salinger in many other creative works. They are not yet spoiled. But almost every wall contains a very real (and at the same time symbolic) obscene inscription, and Holden (and Salinger) eager to erase those labels. So, Holden can not deal with the world abhorrent to him. Holden is brittle and weak. He is part of the world that he denies. Holden does not even try to solve the problem. He can not start this. The young man had not yet become a young man. Everything is ahead for Holden Caulfield, and he is like a living creature (and not as a character (fighter, rebel, etc.). does not deserve any applause or threatening epithets. The emotional state of a teenager who entangled in life is given accurately and objectively. The author does not miss a chance ironically to reduce the 'heroic pathos of Holden, highlighting the gap between what he is, in word and in deed. In words, in the realm of fantasy, he is indeed a hero, but in reality he is opposite. But Salinger managed to create a terrifying picture of a critical report and artistically express such problems, which can not leave the reader calm. This explains the huge success of the novel what is perceived as a call to action(Slawenski, 2011). The story of Holden is a confession of a man who can not and does not want to change the world, and can only with the utmost sincerity see and show the world that his disgust is obvious for the reader. Holden’s rebellion movement is like the dream movements: spasmodic attempts to run, to hit and complete inability to do something, a feeling of bitterness and powerlessness. Amazingly accurate is the linguistic characteristics of Holden. He uses the school slang, constantly uses vulgar expressions. But purity, delicacy, and light, vulnerability are hidden behind the external roughness. Depending on what is told, the language of Holden is changing, increases or decreases the amount of jargon and slang, which allows not only to deepen the portrait of the narrator, but also the linguistic means to characterize a certain way of what is happening. A special attention should be paid to the movement of the novel - a slow release from being too superficial attitude to life. In place of irritation for any reason, there are judgments to come peace, the desire to look at what was happening around and do not hurry up with estimates. The main charge, which is thrown by Holden to the world, is the accusation of hypocrisy, conscious hypocrisy, and showing-off. The monologue of the hero is a mixture of despair, tragedy and desperate buffoonery of teenage bravado, feigned cynicism. The author introduces the hero to the reader at the time of acute moral crisis, when a collision with the world for the hero seems unbearable(Slawenski, 2011). Salinger's hero does not become a fighter with the system, his denial sounds more convincing than a statement, and the hero is just looking for shelter where he can escape from the total hypocrisy. Holden himself often gives reasons for difficult relations: it is touchy, not polite, and often simply crude, adheres to the mocking, patronizing tone in communicating with peers, observation of his is unpleasant. But his surrounding is filled with false: they lie in a privileged school, claiming that they bring up brave and noble, actually - conceited and cynical. Teacher Spencer is also lying, assuring Holden that “life is a game equal for all”. For the hero the sports become a symbol of division of society between “strong” and “weak”. More than anything, the hero is afraid of becoming like all the adults to adapt to the environment of lies and showing off, falling into "the abyss". In accordance with the psychology of adolescence, the hero is concerned with gender issues. He is not positive about one’s easy relations, which is the subject of boasting for his peers, he is unconsciously drawn to another, dreaming about one single girl. The story of the hero of the novel "The Catcher in the Rye" is a kind of confession of a man who can not and does not want to change the world, and can only with utmost sincerity to talk about his problems, the hero knocks at every door, looking for answers from taxi drivers, fellow traveler, the comrades at the school, the neighbors of a restaurant, a telephone call. Living in a big city, in the human turmoil, he feels infinitely lonely, only affection to the little sister Phoebe protects the dream of vulgarity and depravity, from falling "into the abyss" of other children keep it in a civilized world, and rescue from despair. The events of a few days become for a hero as a kind of initiation, he learns important lessons, meeting with the world of violence, crime, and with good and charming people. Holden's judgments are not as peremptory, not as single-line, the mood is replaced by the total rejection of the understanding that the cold can kindle a warm relationship of love, his rebellion takes the logical conclusion, the hero is convinced that “it is always easier to flee than to stay”. Works cited Cooper Michael . Use of Language in The Catcher in the Rye – Salinger - Literature http://ezinearticles.com/?Use-of-Language-in-The- Catcher-in-the-Rye---Salinger---Literature&id=90692 Salinger J. D. The Catcher in the Rye. Back Bay Books; Reissue edition. 2001. Print. Slawenski Kenneth . J. D. Salinger: A Life. Random House; 1St Edition edition . 2011. Print. Read More