摘要:J. D. 塞林格是第二次世界大战以后在美国文学中颇具影响力的一名作家。《麦田里的守望者》是塞林格唯一的一部小说,在经历长久的争议之后得到社会的肯定。在《麦田里的守望者》中,作者试图讲述以主人公霍尔顿为代表的未成年人在成人世界的挣扎。本文从简要介绍作者生平和小说入手,进而从三个主要方面—霍尔顿性格中本我与自我冲突,霍尔顿与成人世界的冲突以及霍尔顿与所处时代的社会现实的冲突,揭示霍尔顿悲剧的必然性和社会启示。
all. In consequences of the conflicts between id and superego, Holden is confused about sex. He wonders why “so much crumby stuff is a lot of fun sometimes” (Salinger 277) and acknowledges that “sex is something I really do not understand too hot.”(Salinger 277)
2. 1. 2 A rebel vs. a catcher
Generally speaking, a person’s external behaviors and actions are always the manifestations of his inner feeling. Holden’s thought and behavior is also full of contradictions. Actually, Holden’s distinguished and direct rebellion is reflected in his behavior and language.
In this novel, Holden always wears his red hunting hat. “The red hunting hat is a comforter, a consolation prize failure... Wearing the cap also symbolizes his desire to break through the phony convention of the world” (Bloom 77). Usually, people wear the hunting hat with its long peak in the front. Once again, Holden acts differently. “The way I wore it, I swung the old peak way around to the back-very corny, I’ll admit, but I liked it that way. I looked good in it that way.”(Salinger 291) Thus, his unusual way of wearing the hat is a symbol for his rebellion against the world. The hat actually acts as a flag of rebellion. With that hat, Holden tries to isolate himself from the society to avoid the loss of innocence. In order to survive in the dirty environment, Holden chooses rebellion to show his difference from others.
Another thing which shows Holden’s rebellion is his language. The most favourite words Holden frequently uses are “damn”, “goddam”, and “hell” in the most conversations to show his rebellion. Some critics say that “Holden’s constant resort to obscenity serves as a shield to protect himself from meretricious speech of others…it is for him a moral matter” (Salzman 86)
Holden makes great efforts to find a way to protect him but he fails. Consequently, he comes up with an idea of becoming the catcher in the rye. In this way, he wants to protect other children far away from the ugly world. As he says to Phoebe,
Anyway, I keep picturing all these little kids playing some game in this big field of rye and all. Thousands of little kids, and nobody around—nobody big, I mean—expect me. And I’m standing on the edge of some crazy cliff, what I have to do, I have to catch everybody if they start to go over the cliff— I mean if they are running and they don’t look where they are going I have to come out from somewhere and catch them. That’s all I’d do all day. I’d just be the catcher in the rye and all. I know it’s crazy, but that’s the only I’d really like to be. I know it’s crazy. (Salinger 402)
Holden can not adjust himself to the society. His rebellion doesn’t help him to find a balanced point in the ugly world. So his only choice is to escape from the society and to be a catcher in the rye.
2. 2 Conflicts with the adult world
2. 2. 1 Conflicts with the school education
School education plays an important role in the lives of young people. A school is the most important institution that leads students into the adult world. But in the eyes of Holden, the school education has a negative effect in his process of growing up.
Pencey Prep School from which Holden is kicked out fails to carry out its function as an institution of training immature and sensitive youngsters into mature and rational adults. In Holden’s
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