The Catcher in the Rye

what a sad world it would be if our children 'missed' the innocence of life.. needing to become a 'catcher in the rye'..

An unsettling view of the adult world through the eyes of a teenager.. a classic example of the chaotic confusion in the mind of children who are expected to blindly accept and follow the norms of their time.. children who are expected to 'think' for themselves, and yet taught by rote.. children who excel at curricular and co-curricular activities winning a 'slot' of acceptance and commendation, but children who don't - feeling the 'alienation' of being 'different'..

giving vivid incidents Mr.Salinger, author of the book The Catcher in the Rye brilliantly portrays the traumatic impact of pigeonholing beliefs and singular judgmental treatment imprinted on children, who should be treated as individuals as per their own unique needs and perceptions.. the vivid curiosity of a child who flunks in four subjects, feels alienated from the rest of the world.. confused and unwilling to understand anything deeply, scared to find nothing there.. he would rather escape into a limbo..

A child who can be stamped as a 'loser' because he is a failure who has been expelled from school and on the verge of running away from home.. portrays deep underlying respect for his teachers.. who lecture him on his 'future' and all he can see is a sick old man, barely able to take care of himself.. and a 'closet gay'..

feeling his own 'uniqueness' and thus the resultant 'alienation'.. he keeps asking people where the ducks go in winter when the lake freezes over.. an answer that none seems to be able to provide.. reflective of all the 'simple' things around us that remain a mystery even as we are taught the mysteries of the universe..

as Salinger shows in the visit to the Museum where the child loves the unchanging figures there.. as if freeze-framed for eternity.. portraying his essential need to 'trust' in the elders in his life.. in their recognizable 'constancy'.. as against his younger sister, who is refreshingly and utterly 'honest' in her reactions..

maybe now it is easier to understand why we all yearn for the innocence of childhood.. mostly without exception.. most of us unable or unwilling to touch life at a deeper level.. cynical.. confused.. lonely.. needing to find ourselves.. is this about innocence.. or life.. waiting to be unveiled..

in this chiaroscuro of a child.. honest.. respectful.. intelligent.. curious.. friendly.. loving.. or failing his exams.. wish more of us could perceive all the necessary hues.. and not just the darkest shades..