The Catcher In The Rye and The Concept of Communication
"If
you really want to hear about it," protagonist Holden Caulfield opens,
with his signature drawl, "the first thing you'll probably want to know is
where I was born . . . and all that David Copperfield kind of crap (Salinger,
1)."
Already,
his voice is distinct and unbearably sarcastic, showing incredible disdain in
so few words. A first-time reader of the classic novel may be surprised at his
crassness and tone, and undoubtedly this was the general reaction when the
famed Catcher In The Rye was first
published in 1951. However, over time, the infamous novel by the reclusive J.D.
Salinger has garnered almost universal praise, and is now one of the most
widely taught novels in the United States (Aubry, n.p.).
The
story concerns Holden Caulfield, a smart but troubled kid who, after being
expelled from his boarding school in December 1949, spends his time wandering
New York City, mourning for the loss of innocence in children, and failing to
understand the people that surround him (TV Tropes, n.p.). Despite the
seemingly poetic nature the above summary describes it, in reality most of the
novel involves Holden and his misadventures with an ensemble of characters
which barely hold any importance at all.
While
Catcher In The Rye is acclaimed to be
one of the best novels of all time, it could be argued that the title is
undeserved. It barely has any plot, nor much of literary technique, and the
entire novel is bleak, depressing, and negative – perhaps as an effect of its
bleak, depressing, and negative protagonist.
Holden
makes it no secret that he has a deeply felt contempt against most of the
people he meets; as he labels them as "phonies" almost on sight. No
matter what Freudian excuse he may use – being kicked out of school again, the
death of his brother, being the witness to a suicide, or simple teenage angst –
the fact still stands that he is erratic and unreliable, as he possesses many
of the middle-class values that he claims to reject (Lomazoff, n.p.). Many
criticisms against the novel cite the unlikable character as his most grievous
fault, and that one would expect something more with a writer of Salinger's
undeniable talent (Goodman, 20).
Orville
Prescott writes, “Rarely if ever in literary history has a handful of stories
aroused so much discussion, controversy, praise, denunciation, mystification
and interpretation,” about another Salinger work, Raise High the Roof Beam,
Carpenters and Seymour: An Introduction, but it could also be easily
applied to Catcher. Until now,
Holden’s strength as a character is still in heavy debate, as his character is,
as a narrator as well as a main character, ambiguous (Skwirk, n.p.). The
truth is that Holden is constantly perplexing writers and critics because
nobody really knows what to make of him. On one hand, he's the symbol of
teenage angst in Cold War America, and on another, he's just another whiny kid.
He starts Catcher as a cynical high
school dropout but by the end of the novel, he's this well-meaning but
incredibly pessimistic guy that just wants to save what little innocence is
left in the world. He's simultaneously the product of Salinger's post-war
mentality, the picture of adolescent alienation, America's most sullen
protagonist, and an all-around hypocrite.
Holden changes with each reader’s
perspective, and arguably, the entire novel is about Holden's perspective on
things - which is not entirely true, biased, and so incredibly layered. There
are little contradictions in every page, a lot of small nods to Holden's innate
goodness and sense of unbelonging, which stand in counterpoint to his bigger,
more noticeable facade of rude, judgmental dismission.
However,
more recent critiques are apt to say that Holden’s hypocrisy and his subsequent
pessimism are not weaknesses but the product of literary genius. In fact, both
modern works Perks of Being A Wallflower
by Stephen Chbosky and Looking For Alaska
by John Green have been praised for its likeness to the novel. While Perks’ protagonist, Charlie, seemed to
echo Catcher with its simplistic,
conversational writing style, Holden Caulfield seemed to find a modern
equivalent in Miles “Pudge” Halter of Green’s award-winning book. In all three
novels, the plot is secondary to the characters and their interactions with
each other. However, while both Charlie and Pudge exist on equal standing with
their friends in terms of importance, in Catcher
all other characters are minor when compared to Holden. Since Salinger shines
the spotlight directly on him alone, Holden’s faults are magnified
considerably. As an effect, so are his strengths.
According
to Patrick Welsh, the secret magic of the novel lies in the authenticity of
Holden’s voice; “the hilarious, cynical, sometimes tender tone is timeless,” he
writes, “not only for teenagers but for anyone who gets occasionally fed up
with the ways of the world.” Holden’s slangy, colloquial tone set it apart from
the other novels published in the 1950’s - its sympathetic understanding of
adolescence and its fierce if alienated sense of morality and distrust of the
adult world struck a nerve in Cold War America and quickly attained cult
status, especially among the young (McGrath, n.p.). This is because Catcher sounds more like a real
seventeen-year-old talking than an accomplished adult author (Shmoop Editorial
Team, n.p.).
Perhaps
therein lies Catcher’s mysterious
appeal. Holden Caulfield sounds real.
All the literary weaknesses that critics accuse Salinger of – Holden’s hypocrisy,
cynicism, depressing line of thought – is only a byproduct of both Holden’s
fictional past and Salinger’s very real one. Both Salinger and Holden share a
misunderstood nature, a desire to hide away, and traumas to haunt them forever.
In a way, Holden is both Salinger and the direct manifestation of Salinger’s
thoughts, beliefs, and experiences. And over the years, the famous Holden has
become the reclusive Salinger’s voice, speaking out with Catcher’s most poignant theme: innocence, and the preservation of
it.
But
with the use of a voice, comes the need to be heard. Throughout the novel,
Holden tries to reach out to people who might tell him that adulthood, the loss
of his innocence, will be okay – friends, old teachers, a prostitute, a nun,
cab drivers – but he can never quite find a way to ask these questions
directly, and no one ever listens to him. It is only in the end that Holden
finally gets listened to, and that is when his sister Phoebe agrees to go on a
walk with him. This is especially important because, until that moment, Holden
has never felt like he was being heard. (Green, n.p.)
It
is ironic then that, within two weeks of its 1951 release, Catcher In The Rye rocketed to No. 1 on the New York Times best-seller list (Time
Staff, n.p.). Even now, Salinger’s novel enjoys incredible popularity,
with about ten million sales worldwide annually (Yardley, n.p.). More than
fifty years after its publishing, Holden’s story is still being published and
read and remembered. The story of the boy who never thought he’d be listened to
is the same story that has enraptured millions.
Catcher isn't about the characters or
the plot. It's about the narrative. This is from the point of view of a kid who
failed all his classes because he didn't see the use of learning it. This is
from the point of view of a kid who feels like his questions don't matter. This
is from the point of view of a kid who grew up in a world full of people
playing nice and saying things that they don't even mean. This is from the point
of view of a kid who just wants to save all the other kids when they fall,
because he doesn't think they have to see how it's all so crumby and full of
phonies out there. This is from the point of view of a kid who sees all the bad
things and still wants to do good things anyway.
Is he still whiny and
annoying? Yes.
Is he still a bit of a
hypocrite? Yes.
Is the book still named
Catcher In The Rye because of
Holden's ridiculous idea of being able to save kids from falling, a ridiculous
metaphor for protecting innocence from being destroyed by the cruelties of the
world? Yes.
Ultimately, the novel
became popular because of, and not in spite of, Holden Caulfield. People don’t
much remember the book, the plot, or even Holden himself. But until now his
voice, depressing and cynical but real,
is distinct – along with the narrative that makes it so.
Literature
Cited
Aubry, Timothy. “The Catcher in the Rye: The Voice
of Alienation.” The Gilder Lehrman
Institute
of American History. Web. 21 Nov. 2015.
Goodman, Anne. "Mad about Children." Rev.
of The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger. The
New Republic, Vol. 125,
No. 3, 16 July 1951, 20-1. Print.
Green, John. “Holden, JD, and the Red Cap - The Catcher in the Rye Part 2: Crash Course
English Literature #7.” Online video clip. YouTube. YouTube, 17
Jan. 2013. Web. 21
Nov. 2015.
Lomazoff, Eric. “The Praises and Criticisms of J.D.
Salinger’s The Catcher In The Rye.” Levity.
Web. 18 Nov. 2015.
McGrath, Timothy. “J.D. Salinger, Literary Recluse,
Dies at 91.” The New York Times. 28
Jan.
2010. Web. 21 Nov.
2015.
Prescott, Orville. “Books of the Times.” The New York Times. 28 Jan 1963. Web. 21
Nov. 2015.
Salinger, Jerome David. The Catcher in the Rye. Boston: Little, Brown, and Company, 1951.
Print.
Shmoop Editorial Team. "The Catcher in the Rye
Tone." Shmoop. Shmoop University, Inc., 11
Nov. 2008. Web. 21 Nov.
2015.
“Structural analysis and Holden Caulfield.” Skwirk. Web. 21 Nov. 2015.
“The Catcher In The Rye.” TV Tropes. Web. 21 Nov. 2015.
26 Sept. 2008. Web. 21
Nov. 2015.
Welsh, Patrick. “A Timeless Voice.” The New York Times. 29 Jan. 2010. Web.
21 Nov. 2015.
Yardley, Jonathan. “J.D. Salinger’s Holden
Caulfield, Aging Gracelessly.” The
Washington Post.
19 Oct. 2004. Web. 21
Nov. 2015.
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