Representation of Holden Caulfield as a Problematic Adolescent in J. D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye

Yıl 2014, Cilt: 2 Sayı: 2, - 17, 11.07.2016

Karam Nayebpour Ali İhsan Aygül

Öz

This paper examines Holden Caulfield’s adolescent problems in J. D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye. The paper argues that the psychological or mental states of the central, adolescent narrator-character together with the represented dominant social structure prevent Holden’s psychological development alienating him from the society. The present paper moreover holds that Holden’s adolescent problems and his maladjustment into the represented fictional society are mainly caused by the adult world or the established dominant conventions. The paper therefore firstly explores some terminologies related with the issue of adolescence period and the problems related with that relying on the terminologies offered primarily by the critics David Elkind, Erik Erikson and Kojin Karatani. Secondly, the paper, focusing on the textual and contextual elements, analyses Holden’s adolescent problems within the fictional society focusing respectively on his egocentricism, ego identity and repudiation of the adulthood and finally his state as a real child.

Anahtar Kelimeler

Adolescent Problems, Egocentrism, Ego Identity, Repudiation of Adulthood, Real Child, Holden Caulfield, The Catcher in the Rye

Kaynakça

• Bloom, Harold. Ed. J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye. New York: Bloom’s Guides, 2007.
• Boeree, C George. The History of Psychology. Shippensburg, Penn: C. George Boeree, 2000.
• Chen, Lingdi. “An Analysis of the Adolescent Problems in The Catcher in the Rye.” Asian Social Science 5.5: (2009). 143-146.
• Crockett, Lisa J. “Cultural, Historical, and Subcultural Contexts of Adolescence: Implications for Health and Development.” Faculty Publications, Department of Psychology 6.1: (1997). 24-54.
• Dehne, Karl L. and Gabriele Riedner. “Adolescence—a dynamic concept.” Reproductive Health Matters 9.11: (2001). 11-15.
• Elkind, David. All Grown Up and No Place to Go: Teenagers in Crisis. Reading, Mass:
• Addison-Wesley, 1984.
• --. “Egocentrism in Adolescence.” Child Development 38.4 (1967): 1025-1034.
• --. Elkind, David. “Erik Erikson’s Eight Ages of Man.” The New York Times 5 Apr. 1970. 1-26.
• --. The Hurried Child: Growing Up Too Fast Too Soon. Reading, Mass: Addison- Wesley Pub. Co, 1981.
• --. Ties That Stress: The New Family Imbalance. Cambridge, Mass: Harvard University Press, 1994.
• Erikson, Erik H. Childhood and Society. New York, London: Norton, 1964.
• Erikson, Erik H. Identity, Youth, and Crisis. New York: W. W. Norton, 1968.
• Furstenberg, Frank F. et. al. “Between Adolescence and Adulthood: Expectations about the Timing of Adulthood.” Network on Transitions to Adulthood 1.1 (2003): 1-19. Web 12 Nov. 2013.
• Furstenberg, Frank F. “The Sociology of Adolescence and Youth in the 1990s: A Critical Commentary.” Journal of Marriage and The Family 62.4: (2000). 896-901.
• Karatani, Kōjin. Origins of Modern Japanese Literature. Durham, N.C: Duke University Press, 1993.
• Leming, James S. Psychological Perspectives on Human Development. Swppr.org, 2004. Nayebpour, Karam. “The Journey into Adulthood: Study of Military Service as a Rite of Passage in Ahmad Mahmoud’s The Neighbors.” Persian Literary Studies Journal (PLSJ) 2.1: (2013). 21-34.
• Salinger, J. D. The Catcher in the Rye. Boston, Mass.: Little, Brown, 1951
• Zarrett, Nicole, and Jacquelynne Eccles. The Passage to Adulthood: Challenges of Late Adolescence. Wiley Subscription Services, Inc.: A Wiley Company, 2006.