Catcher in the Rye Essay

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Pages: 18
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The Catcher in the Rye
“Is The Catcher in the Rye, as a work of literature still relevant for today’s youth?”

Name: Sara Sigurdson
Course: English A1
Supervisor: Mr. Peter Steadman
Word count: 3851
Candidate number: 00136022

Table of Contents
Content Page Number
Abstract 3
Introduction 4
The Actual Catcher in the Rye 4
The Sexual Matter 5
The Caulfield Family 6
Narrator and Protagonist 8
Role Model 9
Mr. Antolini 10
Targeted Audience 10
Guidance 12
It is not Criticism 13
Exposing Culture 13
Conclusion – Fall of Innocence 15
Works Cited List 17

Abstract This essay is a detailed analysis about The Catcher in the Rye investigating whether it is relevant for youth and …show more content…
Holden sees sex in any shape as something filthy and would want to hide it from the still fairly “pure youth” at any possible level. Therefore, instead of taking the step into the adult world, Holden continues with his childlike behavior and feels that he needs to isolate any sexual desires and matters from the world. He also reveals his sexual innocence when describing his meeting with Sunny, the young prostitute. In this section he confesses his virginity, which lifts a stone off his chest.

“The thing is, most of the time when you’re coming pretty close to doing it with a girl – a girl that isn’t a prostitute or anything, I mean – she keeps telling you to stop. The trouble with me is, I stop. Most guys don’t. I can’t help it.” J.D. Salinger, chapter 13, p. 92

He knows that the truth is better than pretending that he has the experience of sexual relations. Salinger once described his cynical protagonist as “not just strongly attracted to beauty but, almost, hopelessly impaled on it.” (Michael S. Rose) and that statement combined with the section about Sunny portrays the world we live in today very well. Salinger gives everyone, now and then, an overview of how and what sexual matters can do to anyone around Caulfield's age. As sexuality grows on today's youth for every day it is relevant to introduce a novel like this at an early age, for young readers of today to understand that the concept of sexual exposure is something that has been going on for a long
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