The leading role Holden Caulfield is a sixteen-year-old school student who was born in a rich family. Although he is rich and kind, no one in the school likes to get along with him. So he always feels constantly lonesome. Such as like the book says “His loneliness arises from the fact that no one seems to share his view of the world, no one understands whats going on in his head.” In his view, school is a hypocritical place. The purpose that you go to school is only to get a good job or beat others.
The surroundings talk about wine, women and sex all days. Holden hates this society. He never puts his heart in study so he is always be punished by teachers. And when he is flunked out of school the forth time, he doesnt go home but stays in New York—the place where he was born and lived. That is just the time several days before Christmas. He lives in hotel, stays in the bars all the day, makes many girlfriends and drinks heavily.
At the same time, he feels sad about the teenager and the life. He feels what he never thinks before in the true life. He wants to escape from this society but he cant. This is just the background of Holdens story. During this time, Holden thinks of many things and many important people to him. Except introduces Holdens life in New York, the book also tells us Holdens life in school and some important people and things to him.
The catcher in the Rye is a typical novel which reflects the confusion and rebel of the 1950s in America history. From year 1945-1955, the American society seemed to be blissful on the surface while the fear of uncertainty caused by the growing communist challenge was affecting the culture of society. People became paranoiac and youngsters of the time became rebel or even violent resulting from the lost of aim and belief. Holton, the main character of this novel, is portrayed by the author as a typical teenager of the time.
Born in a wealthy middle class family, Holton was supposed to live a good life. However, he expelled from school four times, not dare to go home, wandering alone in York city one day and two nights, living in small inn, going to nightclubs, being alcoholism. He wanted to escape from the real world because he feel depressed, confused, filled with all sorts of unrealistic fantasies. This novel can be defined as both the tragedy of Holtons and the author Salinger, who is a young people of that generation.
In 1950, the Korean War started, which was an extension of the Cold War which strengthened the hostilities and conflicts between America and the Soviet Union. It definitely leaded to the panic of normal people because they were uncertain about the result of the competition between the superpowers. Teenagers were emotionally confused of the changing society, doubting their life and their future. Salinger has also written other novels such as Nine Stories, a collection of short stories even more depressed than The catcher in the Rye, which at least have expressed some hope at the end of the novel. Actually, characters like Holton become popular at that time, not in literature only. In the film Rebel Without a Cause describe a very similar situation, the tendency of rebel and violence among youngsters in American culture at that time. In the early 1950s, the accumulation of emotions and conflicts were bedding the transform a few years later, which had significant influence on American culture of that period.
Impression of a book of “persons who keep watch in the wheat field.”
Went to the bookstore that day, I chose a very thin book from a lot of world masterpieces, name let “ wheat persons who keep watch of field ”， when I pick up this book, I have not expected that such a thin book will have a so great impact on me, making my thoughts and feelings very deep, I think that the form and content of this book are all very outstanding.
The fifties in U.S.A. were a quite confused period, the dark cloud of World War II has not left yet, the smoke of gunpowder of cold war arises again. On one hand the development in science and technology is fast, and on the other hand, people lack the ideal, demoralized, under the great social background unable to change in oneself, live and mix shocking and shocking life. Then, “ a generation of collapsing ” appears , Halton is a member among them , he smokes and gets drunk, not to strive to make progress, but, he is still unlikely to reduce to taking drug, gregarious stage, because in his bottom of heart , still have a beautiful and remote ideal all the time ---Do a “ person who keeps watch in the wheat field ”.
A country here of our life, this era is during the enormous change, everything is in the development with rapid change. In a sense, this is and really a bit alike in U.S.A. of the fifties. The society is progressing constantly, peoples concept is changing too, a lot of people begin to be vast and hazy, downhearted, they get to forget ones own ideal, do not have the first enthusiasm, begin to yearn for being mediocre.
We are a group of children living in new era, it is puzzled and worried to be already been used to naturally , but we should concentrate spirit and are certain about the front of we , our way , we should whether one have lofty ideals ambitious people. If Halton does not have his pure ideal, then he will degenerate through to the end , it is his ideal that lets him live. The ideal is the people s beacon light, it is leading people to move towards future, move towards the light. Our life has just begun, even if life makes us some of this generation perplexed with knowing which way to go, but everything is just temporary, does not know the past , we needed most now, it is our ideal.
Yes, it is hopeful to have lofty ideals , will just tomorrow hope, will be more beautiful tomorrow!