in
Mrs. Briggs
Gothic Literature (A)
8 September 2014
A Spinning Wheel of Adulthood As a micro planner, J.D. Salinger opens his novel Catcher in the Rye, with an unclear direction of how this book is going to end. Through an internal journey of Holden Caulfield exploring the adulthood as he encounters the obstacles in his life, the little boy determined to protect the precious innocence of children and guide them to their right path. The novel features micro writing style to open the paragraph and set the entire novel in a distinctive tone. By close reading the first paragraph of the novel as instructed in Zadie Smith’s Changing my mind, the plot, structure, and character becomes vivid and caries multiple…show more content… The first character that Holden mentioned is his brother D.B. Caulfield. Although there was not much information about what kind of person D.B. is, the most important highlight of D.B. is “Now he's out in Hollywood, D.B., being a prostitute” (Salinger 1). Hollywood glamour is nothing more than selling oneself for money in author’s eyes. Author despises the concept of writing for something that one is not truly enjoying. He favors D.B.’s early stage work because none of the work was interfered by the pressure to conform into the moneymaking industry of…show more content… As his favorite story, he finds connection to the little kid because he is trying to protect something fragile and that seemed overreacted in other people’s eyes. Only he understands the value of personal security and the importance of possession. While the little kid enjoyed having an exclusive goldfish that no one else will ever come and take it away, Holden wipes off the graffiti on the wall to protect young kid’s innocence. Also, the alienation that Holden finds in common with the little kid showcases his lurking insecurity and a compounding source of strength that he has within the confidence of protecting a fragile object. Author’s lead in of the first character that comes to mind is an example of Smith’s suggestion that “character occurs with the lightest of brushstrokes”(Smith 105). Sometimes inserting a little description of a person can leave a solid impression in reader’s mind. The most accurate portray of a character’s background comes within just a few