Welcome to Francis Academic Press

Academic Journal of Humanities & Social Sciences, 2023, 6(8); doi: 10.25236/AJHSS.2023.060817.

A Narrative Study of the First-person Narrator in the Catcher in the Rye

Author(s)

Zhengwu Chen, Yu Liu

Corresponding Author:
Zhengwu Chen
Affiliation(s)

Zhengzhou University of Aeronautics, Zhengzhou, China

Abstract

J. D. Salinger’s first novel The Catcher in the Rye was written in 1951 and was considered as a classical book in global literature. Holden’s life of three days and two nights was presented to us by a first-person narrator. I think the first-person narrator Holden was unreliable and I backed my opinion in analyzing the context, logical reasoning and the author Salinger’s reflection on Holden. The author Salinger lived in America in 1950s when there was great success in material but vacancy of spiritual values. The relationship between people and nature was alienating and people began to search for their egos solitarily. The author’s topic was clearly been exposed through Holden’s hardships and Salinger’s reflection on Holden: the theme of alienation.

Keywords

The Catcher in the Rye; First-person narrator; Reliability; Reflection

Cite This Paper

Zhengwu Chen, Yu Liu. A Narrative Study of the First-person Narrator in the Catcher in the Rye. Academic Journal of Humanities & Social Sciences (2023) Vol. 6, Issue 8: 89-94. https://doi.org/10.25236/AJHSS.2023.060817.

References

[1] J.D. Salinger. The Catcher in the Rye [M]. Boston: Lit—Tie, 1951.

[2] Salzberg Joe1. Critical Essays on the Catcher in the Rye. Boston, Mass: G. K. Hall, 1990.

[3] Salzrnan Jack. New Essay on the Catcher in the Rye. New York: Cambridge UP, 1991.

[4] Hamilton Ian. In Search of J. D. Salinger [M]. London: Heinemann, 1988.

[5] Cowan Michael. Holden’s Museum Pieces: Narrator and Nominal Audience in The Catcher in the Rye [C]. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1990: 52—64.

[6] Zhang Guixia, "The Catcher in the Rye Study in China" [J]. Journal of Zhengzhou University (Philosophy and Social Sciences Edition), 2004(5): 6 

[7] Alexander, Charlotte A. J. D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye [M].Simon&Schuster, 1997: 8—9.