Background

Holden Caulfield hails from an affluent socio-economic background. He is the son of a corporate lawyer who, in Holden’s words, makes a “lot of dough.” The American economy suffered a great deal in the 1930s due to the Great Depression. Things did improve in the 1940s, though America was involved in the Second World War and the Cold War for much of this decade. However, Caulfield’s world is far removed from these turbulences. During the 1950s, American politics largely bore the mark of conservatism, and there prevailed an atmosphere of repression. College professors were made to declare that they bore no allegiance toward communists or communism. Several people in the field of entertainment were also targeted during this time. When the novel was published, it was banned from schools because of its subversive language and themes. Set in New York, the novel features a persistent undertone of fear and decadence. For an adolescent growing up in the early fifties, the experiences and thoughts of Holden Caulfield would have mirrored their own state of confusion and rebellion. Sanford Pinker says in The Catcher in the Rye: Innocence under Pressure that the novel captured not only the “confusions of adolescence” but also “the spiritual discomforts of an entire age.” The enduring popularity of Salinger’s novel can be attributed to excellent writing, as evident in the protagonist’s deeply original voice. Its concerns and themes are universal, and they still resonate with youth across the globe.