The Catcher in the Rye

The Catcher in the Rye – by J.D. Salinger

The Catcher in the Rye was the very first “real” book I read without HAVING to read it (i.e. for school). I picked it up by accident when I was 15 and was immediately hooked from the beginning.  I recently picked it up for the second time to read (I’m now 53). To be honest, I don’t think I would have liked it as much if I read it for the first time at 53 years of age.  This book has a very strong appeal to young teenagers; as it always has.  The reason is that the main theme of this book is about a disillusioned 16-year old and it doesn’t pull any punches.  My guess is that most young people feel the way the main character in this book does at times, and something about reading about others that are struggling with teenage angst takes away a little bit of the sting.  We all go through lousy times in our lives, but it’s a slight comfort when you realize you’re not alone.

This book tells a story of Holden Caulfield. As soon as the book starts, Holden starts rambling.  We don’t really know who Holden is rambling to until the very end of the book, but it really doesn’t matter.  Holden is not happy and has had a pretty rough life.  At least a rough life for a fairly well-off adolescent.  Holden’s 224-page rant is very cynical and destitute.  What makes the book so appealing is that the author doesn’t really paint Holden as a “bad” kid. Holden doesn’t engage in any form of juvenile delinquency, yet he’s incredibly fed up with his life and the majority of people that he’s forced to come in contact with every day.

As the narrative starts, Holden has failed out of prep school.  Again. This is about his third different school, and he can’t seem to find the motivation to make any effort at all with his studies. He leaves the school a few days earlier than his official expulsion date and ends up wandering through the streets of New York City.  He lives in New York City, but he can’t actually go home yet. He doesn’t want his parents to know that he’s, once again, let them down. Not that he really cares, he just doesn’t want to deal with the drama.  So 16-year old Holden takes the train from school to the big city and just drifts from place to place. The places he goes really aren’t that relevant to the story.  What is relevant is his thoughts, feelings, and emotions as he aimlessly wafts from place to place.  Most everyone he sees and/or comes in contact with, he despises.  According to Holden, life is filled with “phonies”. We read about him striking up conversations with cabbies and trying to hit on women in bars, yet he mostly can’t stand these people.  He’s a troubled restless spirit who’s trying to make some sense out of his life.

This book was written in 1951, and this is an important thing to take note of when reading.  The city of New York (like everyplace else) was definitely a lot different than the city 30, 50 or 70 years later.  This is essential to put a lot of the narrative in focus.  Back then, a 16-year old kid could walk into bars, order drinks, smoke a lot of cigarettes, and stay in cheap hotels for $8 per night.  The time period of this novel, again, I think is reassuring.  Contrary to what your grandmother may have told you, these were not simpler times. When one reminisces about history, we tend to only remember the good.  Holden Caulfield’s story is a sordid reminder that teen age depression isn’t a recent invention and can’t be blamed on violent video games or heavy metal music.

There’s a lot of things about Holden that we DON’T know, and this is really one of the reasons why this book is such a classic.  The author gives us enough information to know WHAT Holden is feeling, but only a little bit as to WHY he’s feeling the way he is.  Why does he have so much confusion and anger? We know he lost a brother to leukemia several years before the story starts, but you get the feeling that there is more to it than that. We also get hints that even though Holden comes from a family that’s pretty well-off, you have to wonder if he grew up with enough TLC as a child.  He doesn’t seem to have fond stories of his parents as the narrative progresses. They seem to be just as “phony” as everybody else.

A key element that makes this story so rewarding, is that we see the good side of Holden as well.  He has a younger sister named Phoebe, who he adores.  He talks about her throughout the book and even attempts a clandestine visit or two under his parents’ noses.  He seems to treasure the innocents of younger children as he encounters them through his big-city trek.  Perhaps this is how he remembers his life before he lost his brother?  Again, we really don’t know for sure.  We then read another sweet encounter that Holden has in a coffee shop with two nuns that have just arrived in the big city.  In fact, the title of the book is in reference to one of Holden’s anecdotal memories that he shares with us, so we know all is not lost for this kid. There is definitely some feeling behind the fracture.

The entire book only takes place in about 2 ½ days, and we sadly see Holden going more and more off the deep end as the book progresses.  One almost wishes that this book had an epilogue of Holden ten-years in the future so we can find out whether or not everything turned out o.k.  Although he manages to stay away from serious trouble in this narrative, one can’t help but wonder if and when this kind of person just might ‘snap’ during their later years and really cause some serious problems to society.

I should also point out that this book was (maybe still is?) very controversial when it was released.  The language that Holden uses is quite R-rated, and popular books that came out in 1951 simply weren’t quite so littered with profanity; especially from the mouth of a 16-year old.  This is probably why many high schools either outright banned this work, or at least discouraged its students from reading it.  I’m proud to chime in and state that I think that’s a big mistake. As I mentioned earlier, this book probably does more good than harm for kids who realize they’re not alone with their somewhat morose thoughts as they journey through the rocky-road of adolescence. 

So as a mature adult, you might find this book a bit trite and want to step into the story and slap this kid around a bit.  For the teenage audiences, though, this book can serve as comfort to know that you’re not alone in a big scary world.  Plus, as sad as the book can be at times,  it’s still much more entertaining than some annoying country-western song about having your heart broken or something.