Literary Criticism and The Catcher in the Rye
“Authentic popular fiction of authentic literary distinction is rare.”- Harold Bloom
The Catcher in the Rye is unquestionably one of the most widely read, most influential, and most controversial novels in contemporary American literature and to this day, sixty-two years after its original publication, it remains one of the most commonly taught novels in North American secondary schools. J.D. Salinger’s bestselling novel is know primarily for the way the main character, Holden Caulfield, deals with the pressures and tensions of prep school life (and the ‘phonies’ that go along with it), and the overwhelming confusions of late adolescence. Throughout its lifetime, Catcher has been both extremely loved and passionately opposed, leading to a long history of contradictory censorship and praise. Some say it carries the potential for timelessness, while other disagree (The New York Times; Parini, Wurtzel, Goodstein, Bauerlein, Welsh), yet regardless of its future, Catcher is certainly a novel that have been ‘picked up’ by popular culture and the educational system as a classic American novel for young adults. This begs the question, why? Why have so many people been compelled to contemplate imitate, analyze, and reconstruct this novel over so many years?
It would be difficult to argue against the notion that a large portion of Catcher’s popularity is derived from mass accounts of reader identification. Readers feel like it is theirs (admittedly, myself included). The novel has become apart of “[America’s] collective unconscious”, thus experiencing the world as Holden sees it has become an important right of passage for many young adults for the last half-century. Kanfer from Whitfield note that “the new audience is never very different from the old Holden. They may not know the words, but they can hum along with the malady.” (64), asserting the popular idea that Salinger has created a masterpiece, a formative book to be shared across generations, one that is perhaps capable of changing the reader.
Why a high school Language Arts teacher would not want to teach a novel so wildly popular and relatable for adolescents is beyond me; however this personal connection with the text, or reader response theory, is not the only point of accessibility in the classroom. Every English teacher acts on the bases of theory, whether aware of it or not. It is a personal philosophy of mine that Catcher, alongside many other secondary school texts, are perfect platforms for the introduction of literary theory in the classroom. Bonnycastle presents a metaphor that that literary theories change our views of a work of literature by proposing new distinction or new categories for looking at the work and that “This is a bit like putting on a new set of glasses: suddenly you see things more clearly.” (8). Literary theory raises issues that are often left out, and guides us in asking important questions regarding literature, and the teaching and learning of literature, as a whole. What makes a “great work” great? Who makes the decisions about what will be taught? Why are authors grouped into certain historical periods?
“Too often our students see literary criticism as the practice of
subordinating their human, ethical, and political reactions to some
ideal of literary value. I think we have a responsibility to help them
unravel and evaluate the themes and ideologies of texts they read
rather than see them as some divine or secular authority.”
-Jack Thomson
Teaching reading should, at least on some level, teach reading for interpretation and reading that evokes criticism; “The practice of teaching people to read difficult and culturally influential texts is carried on, for the most part, as though it were innocent of theory, as though it where a knack that anybody could pick up by practicing it.” (Crowley 26) Not to teach students these habits of mind would be to cheat students out of an entire world of thought. For any student who goes on to take a post-secondary class in English literature, these skills will be directly applicable to their academic success. But the real importance is for all students. Literary theory and criticism can serve as a method of exploration relevant to all subjects, disciplines, and life as a whole. It provokes curiosity authority and initiative while simultaneously encouraging critical encounters with literature, the world, and each other. The point, really, is to engage students with theories so that they can work toward constructing their own readings and to learn and appreciate the power of multiple perspectives, after all, “literary theory has implications for how people read, what is read, and encourages ideas and “discourages reductive thinking”. Ultimately, it seems desirable and obvious for us as teachers to want to offer students a sense of power over their own environments, and exposure to different view points and avenues to unpack text seems like an ideal method.
Throughout the past six decades, The Catcher in the Rye has been understood differently using a wide range of theoretical frameworks. As there is tension within the novel’s social reception, there is a similar debate amongst scholars as to how Holden should be interpreted. Psychoanalytic, Marxist, Reader-Response, Structuralism, Deconstruction, New Historicism, and Queer Studies criticism have all been points of entry into Salinger’s fiction. As noted previously, all English teachers depend on theory in their teaching methods, though it is rarely explicitly announced. Even if one chooses to solely explore Catcher through Salinger’s biography, this should be expressed to the students and presented as one way of looking at the text.
Many teachers choose to have students work through the text using its historical context, as Holden provides “penetrating commentary about his society and its entrenched hypocrisies”. Holden Caulfield is demonstrated as a reflection of the sociocultural conditions of his age, one defined by post WWII affluence, and angst, by large movements toward conformity. Taking a different approach, “One can cite The Catcher in the Rye, which owes its continuing place in the nonce canon to its mimetic function as a portrait for adolescence but which can be selected, according to Richard Ohmann’s reading, as a neo-Marxist test that intends to reveal the omnipresence of capitalist ideology.” Extensive psychoanalytic and religious research on Catcher has also been popular in scholarly articles.
Reading a wide range of “Holden” articles has helped me to contextualize the novel and has given me the opportunity to better explore the novel’s history of literary criticism. Simply being aware of different perspectives will allow me to effectively express to my students that while yes, some points are better supported than others, there really is no right or wrong interpretation. I still wonder which contemporary theories might be best suited to high school students? What determines which theories are more teachable than others? What are some strategies that teachers can use to encourage multiple perspectives as students read literary texts? How does the teaching of theory change classroom practice? Which sorts of texts are best to use when teaching contemporary literary theory? This inquiry project, in this sense, will be an ongoing process as I begin my career as a teacher.
Works Cited
Applebee, A.N. Literature in the secondary school: Studies of curriculum and instruction in the United States. Urbana, IL: National Council of Teachers of English, 1993.
Appleman, Deborah. Critical Encounters in High School English: Teaching Literary Theory to Adolescents. 2nd Ed. New York, NY: Teacher’s College Press, 2009.
Bonnycastle, Stephen. In Search of Authority: An Introductory Guide to Literary Theory. 3rd Ed. Peterborough, ON: Broadview Press, 2007.
FitzGerald, Frances. “The Influence of Anxiety.” Harper’s Magazine 309, 1852. 2004. 62-70.
Pinsker, Sanford, and Ann Pinsker. Understanding the Catcher in the Rye: A Student Casebook to Issues, Sources, and Historical Documents. Westport, Conn: Greenwood Press, 1999.
Salzberg, Joel. Critical Essays on Salinger’s the Catcher in the Rye. Boston, Mass: G.K. Hall, 1990.
Salzman, Jack. New Essays on the Catcher in the Rye. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1991.
The New York Times. Reaching Holden Caulfield’s Grandchildren. Room for Debate. January 29, 2010
Bibliography
Bryan, James. “The Psychological Structure of The Catcher in the Rye.” PMLA 89, 5: 1974. 1065-1074.
Crowley, Sharon. Teacher’s Introduction to Deconstruction. National Council of Teachers: 1989.
Draffan, Robert A. “Novel Approaches: Teaching “the Catcher in the Rye.”” Use of English, 24, 3: 1973. 199-206.
Glasser, William. Reclaiming Literature: A Teacher’s Dilemma. Westport, Conn: Praeger, 1994.
Harris, Wendell V. “Canonicity.” PMLA 106, 1: 1991. 110-121
Langer, J.A. Envisioning Literature: Literary understanding and literature instruction. New York: Teacher College Press, 1995.
Privitera, Lisa. “Holden’s Irony in Salinger’s the Catcher in the RYE.” The Explicator 66.4: 2008. 203-6.
Smith, Michael W. Understanding Reliable Narrators: Reading Between the Lines in the Literature Classroom. Champaign, IL: National Council of Teachers of English, 1991.
Steed, J. P. The Catcher in the Rye: New Essays. New York: Peter Lang, 2002.
Steinle, Pamela Hunt. In Cold Fear: The Catcher in the Rye Censorship Controversies and Postwar American Character. Columbus: Ohio State University Press, 2000.
Tolchin, Karen R. Part Blood, Part Ketchup: Coming of Age in American Literature and Film. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, 2007.
Wilhelm, J. D. “Let’s Give Them Something to Talk (And Think) about: Using Literary Theory to Enliven Our Classrooms.” English Journal: 2002. 128-130.
Vail, Dennis. “Holden and Psychoanalysis” PMLA 91, 1: 1976. 120-121.