length: 1129 words 3.2 double spaced pages child to adult in the catcher in the rye the catcher in the rye by j.d. It explores the obstacles we all face during our transition from child to adulthood. The tragedies and triumphs, the breakthroughs and setbacks, the happiness and heartache. As you follow the book's protagonist, holden, through his journey into adulthood, you learn about his life, but more importantly, you learn about your own. You grow to sympathize with the young rebel, and you begin to see traces of yourself in him.

This book appeals to the child in all of us because we can all remember a time we'd like to go back to a time when making our beds was our greatest responsibility and life was something we took for granted. No matter how badly you wish you could stop it, time advances and the world continues to turn. More importantly, though, we have come to understand and sympathize with holden's struggles, and we are sad to hear we have reached the point at which our paths part. Upon leaving, we can only hope that he is headed down the right road, and that destiny will run its course. Salinger's novel, catcher in the rye, but not the shock and awe вќ standard of a war or battle, but on more of a subdued level. The novel's protagonist, holden caulfield, is a confused teenager, lost in the world around him, unable to fit in. Holden's conflicts are mainly internal, more at war with himself, but his reactions are quite visible.

Most of his angst with the world is self induced and he seems truly perplexed by society. He doesn't effectively deal with his internal conflicts on a mature level, causing them to become external, and even adding more problems. Holden has a hard time dealing with everyday life, and feels that everyone around him is a phony or a fake. Holden is overly critical about everything around him, proving him to be a definite pessimist. He constantly dwells on the past, but he never accepts the fact that past conflicts are often his fault.

B a English B Essays

Holden often acts immaturely towards others and reacts inappropriately to many situations. For example, the first major conflict encountered in the novel is how holden will inform his parents that he has been expelled for yet another prep school. This conflict is clearly internal, and could have been taken care of quickly if he would have accepted responsibility for his actions.

essay/term paper: the catcher in the rye: unreachable dreams

essay, term paper, research paper: catcher in the rye

the catcher in the rye: unreachable dreams many people find that their dreams are unreachable. As holden tells his story, he recounts the events since leaving the pencey school to his psychiatrist. At first, holden sounds like a typical, misguided teenager, rebellious towards his parents, angry with his teachers, and flunking out of school. However, as his story progresses, it becomes clear that holden is indeed motivated, just not academically.

He has a purpose: to protect the young and innocent minds of young children from the horrors of adult society. After interacting with phoebe, his younger sister, holden realizes that this goal is quite unachievable. Holden wants to be the catcher in the rye, then realizes it is an unreachable ideal. Spencer and holden talk about his direction in life: do you feel absolutely no concern for your future, boy?' oh, i feel some concern for my future, all right. After leaving pencey, he checks into a hotel where he invites a prostitute up to his room. After taking her to the theater, holden formulates a crazy plan which entails running away with sally, getting married, and growing old together.

During his stay away from home, holden drinks and smokes, showing even more misdirection. However, when holden returns home and talks to his sister, phoebe, his direction becomes clear. Holden wants to be the catcher in the rye to protect children from the world in which he is forced to live. He responds saying: anyway, i keep picturing all these little kids playing some game in this big field of rye and all. What i have to do, i have to catch everybody if they start to go over the cliff i mean if they're running and they don't look where they're going i have to come out from somewhere and catch them.

I'd just be the catcher in the rye and all.' 173 holden wants to protect the innocence of his sister and every other innocent child in the world. Before holden meets sally for their date, he stops in front of the museum of natural history and begins to reminisce. He also tells that every time one visits the museum, he is changed in some way, but the figures in the exhibits always stay the same. He wants to be able to preserve some things in the glass: certain things they should stay the way they are. You ought to be able to stick them in one of those big glass cases and just leave them alone, 122. When he visits phoebe's school to give her a note, holden notices two instances of graffiti on the walls. It depresses holden to think that someday this kind of graffiti will spoil his sister phoebe and all of her companions.

College Essays on Community Service

Up to this point, keeping young children from his plight is holden's sole motive. He soon realizes that holden sees that becoming the catcher in the rye is an unattainable ideal. When he meets phoebe during her lunch break at school, he has made up his mind to leave and hitchhike out west. When the carousel starts holden notices phoebe trying to grab for the golden ring. He knows this is dangerous but must let phoebe do it: all the kids kept trying to grab for the gold ring, and so was old phoebe, and i was sort of afraid she'd fall off the goddam horse, but i didn't say anything or do anything.

Essays In The History of Canadian Law Vol 5

The thing with kids is, if they want to grab for the gold ring, you have to let them do it, and not say anything. He sees perfection in that moment, and he knows that she will soon change as the world influences her. Holden finally realizes that he will not be able to protect his sister or anyone from falling into the adult world.