Catcher In The Rye Literary Conflict - 1087 Words

English essay (literary conflicts) Essay question: What is the main literary conflict found in ‘The Catcher in the Rye’? Introduction: J.D Salinger’s bestselling novel ‘The Catcher in the Rye’ depicts a troubled teenage boy who conflicts with the society of the 1950s. Holden Caufield’s cynical way of narrating the story with his constant criticism about other people and the ugliness of the world, introduces the readers to a judgemental and critical protagonist. ‘The Catcher in the Rye’ was based on Salinger’s life experience after WWII. While Holden disliked the society in the story, Salinger personally disliked the society of how the life after the war was like. The novel illustrates Holden as the opposite of what society expects†¦show more content†¦Holden defies society by not applying himself at school and getting kicked out of different schools numerous times. Apart from getting expelled from Pencey, while he is there Holden does not establish any close relationships with his classmates, or any of the other boys at Pencey. He always finds something bad to say about the people he has connections with, even his roommate Stradlater: â€Å"He was at least a pretty friendly guy, Stradlater. It was partly a phony kind of friendly.† (ch.3 pg.25) Holden does not have any close friendships with any of his peers, even though he occasionally has fun with Stradlater and is nice to Ackley because he feels obliged to, in the end he always has bad things to say about the phony people there. Holden struggles to find a place in society, and struggles to make friends with the critical attitude he has against society in general, and the current world. Holden struggles to fit into society through his relationships with people, similar to his relationships at Pencey, Holden does not get along easily with people because of his opinions conflicting with society’s. Holden’s unreasonable suggestion to Sally, of going to live in the woods together, shows his struggle with society’s plan for people: â€Å"...get a job somewhere and we could live somewhere with a brook and all and, later on, we could get married or something...† (ch.17 pg. 142) Holden has an illogical vision of his future life with Sally. HeShow MoreRelated Comparing A Separate Peace and The Catcher in the Rye Essay example1500 Words   |  6 PagesA Separate Peace and The Catcher in the Rye The coming of age novels, The Catcher in the Rye, written by J.D. Salinger, and A Separate Peace, written by John Knowles, both interpret the lives of adolescent boys journeying through their conflicts and inner confusion to reach the level of maturity. 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