Catcher In The Rye Essay Thesis Example For Students

Catcher In The Rye Essay Thesis he book A Farewell to Arms, written by Ernest Hemingway, is a classic about the love story of a nurse and a war ridden soldier. The story starts as Frederick Henry is serving in the Italian Army. He meets his future love in the hospital that he gets put in for various reasons. I thought that A Farewell to Arms was a good book because of the symbolism, the exciting plot, and the constant moving of the main character. The symbolism in A Farewell to Arms is very much apparent. Ernest Hemingway has always been one who is big on the symbolism of night as being bad. To the main character in Hemingways novels, nights have always been a sign of death, or something negative to happen. Another one of the symbolisms in A Farewell to Arms is when Henry tries to escape from the Italian army by jumping off one of the ships the army was traveling on and running away from the army. This symbolism was the water that he jumped into was a symbolism of the new, clean life that he was going to live from now on. At this time, Henry goes off and finds his wife to be. And his job, as he felt, was to protect them in their innocents; of which I will talk about in my second theme. The first example that stands out in my mind is the scene with Stradlater in the can. If you remember Stradlater was getting ready for his other date while Holden watched him. Stradlater was a secret slob in public he always looked good and got all the girls but in fact he was a slob. His razor that made him look so good was rusty as hell and full on lather and hair and crap. This proves that he is a slob to never clean it or anything. If you think about it thats even worst than Old Ackley. At least Ackley knew that he had a problem, that he need to do something about his face; but Stradlater thought that he was a great guy. He actually thought that there was nothing wrong with never washing his razor. I think that what mad, Holden so made Stradlater was perpetrating in other word being phony every time he went out all GQ after using that filthy razor. Another instance is when he calls that girl in New York, Faith Cavendish, that Eddie Birdsell had brought to a dance at Princeton. Anyway he called her and she almost went off until Holden drooped Eddies name. Then all of a sudden she was getting friendly as hell. The same person said if you think I enjoy bein woke up in the middle- was getting an english accent all of a sudden. I think Holden caught her with her facade down. When she first picked up the phone she was mad as anybody else would be in her shoes. But as soon as she processed Eddie Birdsell from Princeton she became so amicable. She most of thought that a friend of Eddie, from Princeton, most have been rich or at lest well off. Faith was all ready to hook up with him for a date until she asked Where ya callin from? Where ya at now, anyways? And in a phone booth was the wrong answer. When he said that she new he had no money and from that point on she had no time to meet up any more. This is a good example of the phoniest that Holden will talk about all through book. Oh and one I almost missed it is a little before the conversation with Faith it is a very important event. When J.D. Salinger had Holden look about of the window I think it was a big simile, of which I think about more in theme number 3, of the theme of the book. Im sure Holden didnt ride all the way to New York to pick a run down hotel. So I take it when he drove up it probably looked good on the outside. He even took it off referring to the red hunting hat before I checked inI didnt want to look like a screwball or something. So we can assume it was nice, or at lest on the outside. Salinger even throw Holden foreshadowed a little in the line I didnt know then that the goddam hotel was full of perverts and morons. The first guy he saw out his room window took out all these womens clothes, and put them on. Then he started walking around like a women, smoking a cigarette, and looking in the mirror. And now I guest I have to take back my sentence about transvestites in the opening paragraph. Second he saw a couple squiring water and they were in hysterics the whole time, a little strange. You see the outside of the hotel represents what society is or tries to be, all nice and neat. And the people acting silly in the rooms are what we a really like. Im not saying we are all perverts but we all have two different personalities; one outside and one inside closed doors. Since Im will into the second page and its past my bed time or at lest it feels like it is this is the last one for this theme. The one I had in mind is the one the date he had with Sally. From the jump she was phony. Holden had already talked to her dad and told him how it was, but she still asked how it was. Holden when call her quite a little phony, she even sounded phony through the book with lines like Id love to grand. And when they got through with the play on the Lunts it didnt get any better. They ran into this guy that Sally knew and both of their phoniest began to shine. How does Shakespeare's Richard II put politics on Essay This is symbolic of the love he had and still has for his little brother; he even quotes latter that you dont stop loving someone because they die proving that he still cares for him. He may even think he had something to do with his death or he caused it. Sometimes little kids think stuff like that. Holden also says that I cant make a real fist any more-not a tight one. If his fist represents his love for his brother or his heart than maybe he cant love again. When he meet up with Sally he said he felt like marring her than he discards it by saying I dont even like her much. Holden is afraid to love again because of the way his heart and fist was broken by Allie. Another symbol is his own sister Phoebe. First you must understand that Phoebe came from the Greek word meaning Sun. Holden is lost in the world and feels that everything is phony. Phoebe is his symbol of hope in the world. All Holden needs is hope. Just as the sun comes out and shines its beautiful color and truth to the world to nurrshish and feed the plant; so did Phoebe come with her innocent hands saving Holden from the world. The first thing I did when I got off at Penn station, I went into this phone booth. Holden first started to call his brother but then he thought of his sitter Phoebe, then he whet on about her and how she wouldnt mind being woke up. All through the book he will think about call and eventually sneak home just to see her. This shows he sees her as his only light in this world of phonies hint the name Phoebe Greek for sun. I read a very interesting point in a book review about The Catcher in the Rye that explains the Holden behavior all through the book. In short it said his activities describes a developing nervous breakdown. And if you think of the symptoms you would a agree. Unexplained depression, show countless time in the story as I felt depressed as hell. And the why that Salinger keep using the world depressed, not bad or mellow but depressed he may have been hinting at it. Impulsive spending, that is obvious through the fact he only had 3 dollars and some change after just 2 days in New York. Erratic behavior, example is Holden just jumping up and put Stradlater in a half Nelson. All of this is prior to his eventual nervous collapse. This book has been a joy to read. Holden was very funny at times especially when he called Sally to ask her about trim a tree for Christmas. Salinger is ether a great writer or he just lucked up this good of a story. Sometimes I wonder if the author of books always think as deep as the reader. I mean do authors read a commentary over a book they wrote and say, hmm I didnt think of that. Writers like Edgar Allen are obvious that they have a deeper meaning. But with Salinger its hard to tell if this is a simple story of a boy rebelling or is it a great big metaphor for the world and how we are. Now if you ask him I,m sure he would say oh thats what meant exactly, and he might as well have meant that; but who is to say.Catcher In The Rye: Holdens Breif Happiness Abbreviated Happiness After Holden Caulfield returns to his native New York and rents a room in a sleezy hotel, he makes a date with Sally Hayes. Before this date, Holden finds himself wanderin the streets of the naked city. He is feeling depressed and finds himself on Broadway trying to purchase a record for his sister. After making this purchase, Holden notices a poor family walking in front of him. This unit is composed of a father, mother, and little kid. Holden notices the child who is walking in a straight line in the street and humming a tune to himself. Holden approaches him to determine the tune he is singing. This tune is If a Body Catch a Body Coming Through the Rye. Holden finds it amusing that the child is strutting quite literally on Broadway and is so care-free. He notices cars screeching and honking all over the place, and yet the child proceeds. The childs happy disposition seems encourage Holdens on vitality. It gripped Holden that the child was singing with a pretty little voicejust for the hell of it and brightened him up. A deeper interpertation of this scene would dictate that the child represents Holdens own personality and life. Holden is defenatley singing his own tune just for the hell of it and like the child, seems to have no regard for his own well-being. At this point, Holden may see a side in himself that is care-free and this lightens his depression.