Table of ContentsOverviewPoint of ViewPlot StructureThe Major ConflictThe ClimaxFalling ActionMotifsToneLiterary DevicesSymbolismIronyAllusionForeshadowingConclusionOverviewThe Catcher in the Rye is a novel written by J.D. Salinger. It was published in 1951. Historically speaking, there was a lot going on in the United States in the 1950s. The country's economy was relatively stable and life had improved for some sections of the population. Company. The culturally conservative United States also began to lean more and more to the liberal side. The setting of the novel and the characters reflect this state of Salinger's America. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay The novel centers on a 17-year-old, Holden Caulfield, who recounts two days of his life after being expelled from Pencey Preparatory School. He leaves school two days early to explore New York before returning home. Along the way, he interacts with his teachers, prostitutes, nuns, an old girlfriend, and his little sister. He is confused and disillusioned by the adult world and criticizes everyone's "falsity." He searches for the truth but ends up exhausted and emotionally unstable. Salinger once admitted in an interview that this novel was partly autobiographical. Like Holden, he grew up in upper-class New York and failed out of prep schools. His experiences growing up and while serving in the United States Army around the time of World War II largely shaped Holden's opinions, distrust, and cynical view of adult society in the novel. Through the character of Holden, he expressed his views on growing up as a slow surrender to the "false" responsibilities of adult life, such as finding a job and maintaining intimate relationships. It's no surprise, then, that he presented The Catcher in the Rye as a coming-of-age story with the loss of innocence as one of its main concerns. The novel's narrative style allowed it to develop a rich study of Holden's character and offer revealing insight into his grief, social isolation, and conflict against society - which form other themes of the novel.Point View The Catcher in the Rye is narrated in first person by an unreliable narrator named Holden Caulfield. He shamelessly warns readers that he is crazy: “I wanted to marry her as soon as I saw her. I'm crazy. I didn't like her very much, and yet suddenly I felt like I was in love with her and wanted to marry her. I swear to God I'm crazy. I admit it. » (p. 124). Throughout the story, his opinions and judgments end up being challenged by the reader as to their accuracy, because Holden is not capable of understanding himself. Plot Structure The Major Conflict The major conflict is in Holden's brain. One side of him would like to connect with adults in an adult environment or on a more special level when trying to have sex with a woman. On the other hand; the other side wants to decline, doesn't want to grow up, he would like to be a teenager forever. Rising Action Rising action unfolds throughout the novel as Holden's attempts to connect with other people bring his conflicting impulses – to interact with adults or to be withdrawn by them – into direct conflict . The climax The novel reaches its climax at the end of When Holden met his sister, Phoebe Caulfield, he told her that hewas leaving and she said she would like to go with him but he denied it and took her to the zoo when he said "no I can't take you with me" so she got angry. After trying to get her attention because he didn't like that she was angry with him, when it started raining she asked him if he was taking her home and if he was coming home too ; he said “yes. "Falling ActionBy the end of the novel, Holden realized that he was starting to miss everyone, his classmates, his roommates, his teachers.pencey, even the hotel elevator man, Maurice .You may also be interestedFix my essayMotifsRelationships sexuality, intimacy, loneliness, lying and deceptionProtagonistHolden CaulfieldForeshadowingHolden hospitalized for a nervous breakdownIn this way, he begins to tell the story at the beginning of the novel.ToneThe tone of the novel varies between disgust,. nostalgic longing, bitterness and cynicism in all paragraphs, a particularity is that they are all expressed in a colloquial style The general tone of the novel reflects Holden's cynicism more than it refutes it. encountering adults who treat him with compassion, such as the nuns he speaks with at the coffeeshop or the woman who takes care of the cloakroom at the Wicker Bar, most of the adult characters are presented in a fairly unsympathetic manner. For example, the dialogue of the women he meets at the Lavender Bar encourages the reader to think that Holden is correct in describing them as "real morons." Carl Luce seems as pretentious as Holden believes him to be, using affected expressions such as "must we continue this horrible trend of thinking" and "I just happen to find Eastern philosophy more satisfying than Western philosophy." Other adults take advantage of Holden, including Maurice and Sunny, who rob and beat him. Even characters who are nice to Holden, like Mr. Spencer and Mr. Antolini, seem more pathetic than admirable. Mrs. Morrow is described as kind but deluded about her son's true nature. By portraying many adults as pretentious, delusional, and disreputable, Salinger presents a pessimistic and cynical tone that suggests that Holden has little to hope for in the adult world and is right to resist growing up. has a bunch of meanings. An example of this is its security and individuality. Holden is a lonely man and is not able to connect with others around him, so he uses his hat as a shield. Holden feels unique using the hat as long as it helps him build a barrier for others not to have a relationship with society so he can quickly shift all blame from the hat if someone rejects it. There is a special place that Holden uses to visit in the story which is the Natural History Museum. This place embodies the Holdens' wish to stop time and never grow up. In the museum everything is shown as before all the time and that's what he likes from there. Irony The most common display of irony in the novel is Holden's attitude. He seems like the most normal person everywhere he goes, but he made a comment about his way of thinking and how crazy he is. “I wanted to marry her as soon as I saw her. I'm crazy. I didn't like her very much, and yet suddenly I felt like I was in love with her and wanted to marry her. I swear to God I'm crazy. I admit it. (p. 124).AllusionOccasionally, Holden would make a reference and allusion to the Bible when Sunny, the prostitute that Maurice had sent to Holden's room, left. He began to break down the actions of Jesus' disciples. He can't stand them because he felt they were unqualified during his life..