"The Catcher in the Rye"

After some time I have finally managed to finish my reading of”The Catcher in the Rye” by J.D. Salinger. This book has fascinated and touched millions of readers. It has become one of the classics and many people hold this as their favourite peace of literature. “The Catcher in the Rye” is told from the narrator Holden Caulfield’s point of view. The book begins with Holden being kicked out of Pencey Prep. High school a few days before they break up for Christmas. He cannot go home because his family are not expecting him until a few days later. He decides to spend those days in between in New York. The whole book spins a tale around these few days. During these days, Holden is a bit of an emotional wreck. He goes from place to place, meets with strangers as well as some of his old friends. He spends his money on taxi rides, restaurants and drinks. “The Catcher in the Rye” conveys a story about self-evolvement and self-perspective. It is mainly about Holden’s thoughts about the people he meets.

What hit me the most when I read “The Catcher in the Rye,” was Salinger’s success in portraying Holden’s character. A lot of the writing conveys Holden’s thoughts directly. This is a very brave way of writing considering how hard it is to make a character appear realistic. With Holden, however, it feels exactly like you know him, even if you have only read a few chapters. I believe everyone can see a bit of themselves or a bit of someone they know in Holden. Due to Salinger’s brilliant work, it is hard and sad to think about the fact that Holden is only a fictional character. This is supported by the rough language and the slang Salinger uses. Words like “sonuvabitch,” “buzz” and “hellya” are examples of words Holden says all the time. There language resembles the one of a typical teenager with little variation and few advanced words.

This way of writing, makes Holden appear as a typical teenager. He is a bit on top of his head, but at the same time very immature and fragile. He seems very pessimistic and is annoyed easily. “It killed me” and “That depressed me” are phrases he uses a lot when small incidents happen that he does not like. Most people would never bother about these incidents or even consider them annoying. It seems like absolutely anything could bother Holden in some way, like for instance in this excerpt: “Oh sure! I like somebody to stick to the point and all. But I don’t like them to stick too much to the point. I don’t know. I guess I don’t like when somebody sticks to the point all the time.” Throughout the book, it becomes clear that there is a deeper depression behind his negativity. He is definitely depressed but I do not think it is more severe than an average “bad period” of a teenager’s life. Holden is also protective guy with his morals in place. We see this through the way he treats his younger sister, Phoebe, like for instance in this excerpt: “I sort of looked at her for a while. She way laying there asleep, with her face sort of on the side of the pillow. She had her mouth way open. It’s funny. You take adults, they look lousy when they’re asleep and they have their mouths way open, but kid’s don’t. Kids look all right. They can even have spit all over the pillow and they still look all right.”

This book is more a psychological observation of a typical teenager than anything else. It is therefore natural that the hidden message of the book surrounds this topic. In my opinion, the message in “The Catcher in the Rye” does not attempt to teach the readers anything, as it does in most other books. It is mainly an observation and confirmation of a teenager’s way of thinking. The purpose of this book is to show the readers that it is normal to have ups and down and to be filled with both love and hate at the same time. I believe the personality and behaviour of Holden is the message in itself.

I have to be honest and say that I did not particularly enjoy reading “The Catcher in the Rye.” It is a splendid book when it comes to portrayal of the narrator and I definitely see how this book has become one of the classics. However, it was nothing for my taste. Perhaps because I am a girl and I do not recognize the relaxed and “I can’t be bothered” attitude boys sometimes have when they are in their teens. Nevertheless, I would recommend this book for readers the ages above 12. It is worth reading it because if you like it, I believe it will be one of those you will never forget!