Blog #33: The Catcher in the Rye

I think that one of the themes addressed by Salinger was the pain in growing up. I think that Holden was simply trying to not grow up. He did not like changes, and he wanted everything in life to stay the exact same. I notice that Holden talked about the Museum of Natural History, and he said that every time he went into the museum everything was in the exact same spot it was the last time he saw it. Each animal was doing the same thing that they were every other time Holden saw them. I think that Holden probably has some sort of mental illness because I think that a lot of times the mentally impaired people have a really hard time adjusting to changes in life. Holden was not very smart because he could not pass all of his classes at Pencey Academy. In chapter nine when Holden says, "Sex is something that I just do not understand. I swear to God, I just do not." (Salinger 82) This one instance shows me that Holden has a hard time admitting that he does not understand something. He has to "swear to God" so that he believes that the reader really understands that he has no clue about the topic at hand which in this case happened to be sex. I that it is really weird how Holden says, "In my mind, I'm probably the biggest sex maniac you ever saw" (Salinger 81). I guess Holden just cannot connect what is going through his mind to what is actually happening in reality. Holden seems like a really confused, depressed and out of shape kind of guy. I think that the theme is illustrated again when he goes to Mr. Antolini's house. Holden's experiences in the novel reveal the shallowness of his conception. I think that the most obvious display of the theme I have mentioned above was his dream of standing on the cliff catching the kids that come too close to falling of the edge. I think that Holden wants to stay young for all of his life, and he wants to help other children be the same way.

Salinger, J. D. The Catcher in the Rye. New York: Back Bay, 2001. Print.