Growing up is something that we all eventually have to do in life. For some it may be something they’ve been looking forward to, while others it’s something they dread and don’t want to be off on their own. In this novel, Holden demonstrates a boy who is mentally unstable and very immature. He gets sent off to boarding school and he fails out of it because he doesn’t even bother trying. Instead of facing his problems and trying to make them better, he just runs away from them. I think part of the reason he does this is because all his life he’s had experiences he had to deal with and didn’t know how to because he didn’t have anyone there for him so he thought running away from them would make the pain go away, but it doesn’t. Another way Holden shows that he needs to grow up is that he judges people before he even knows them. He claims that everyone is a phony when he really doesn’t have any idea. Towards the end of the novel more, Holden does slowly start to show more signs of maturity but still I believe the main theme in the novel is teaching people that you have to grow up in life and face your problems and handle them maturely if you want to live a successful life.
Very good point audrey. I also believe that everyone should grow up at some point in their life. Holden wasn't very sociable nor was he a very brilliant person. I completely agree with the fact that he didn't have anyone there for him especially his parents in rough situations of his life. The part where Holden shows maturity and responsibility at the end of the novel is arguable to the reader because he can't accept the norms of society. This was a good passage and should be a lesson to others that are trying to break out of their shell.
ReplyDeleteAwesome point auddie! :) I also posted on how everyone has to grow up at some point in their life, some do and some never will. Holden showed in a lot of ways that he wasn't grown up nor ready to be grown up. Salinger showed this in many parts of his books telling how Holden always flunked out. Holden was very socially awkward and didn't get along with others. This separates him from the rest of society because of the way he acts in certain situations. Still to this day I think Holden had some sort of disability. He just wasn't all there. Someday, everyone has to grow up and face reality though, I agree. Nobody is perfect, but we all should try and make the effort and reach out to be better and grow up.
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