THE KINSHIP OF A CHILD, AN ADOLESCENT, AND A MAN

Alienation is a state of being deprived of attention from others. Such is the case with Holden Caulfield, the protagonist of J.D. Salinger's coming-of-age novel The Catcher in the Rye The novel follows the recollection of Holden's younger years, a time in which he was distancing himself from others and withdrawing from school When Holden is kicked out of his school, for failing to apply himself to his studies, he wanders the streets of New York seeking attention from anyone he is able to receive it from, whether it be a taxi driver, a stranger on the train, a woman at the club, or a prostitute in a hotel To say that Holden's desperation for attention is relatable to many young adults would be an understatement After all, that relation is what has led to the many controversies surrounding this piece of literature. Two of the most prominent ones are the presence of the book in the killer of John Lennon, Mark David Chapman, and the attempted assassin of Ronald Reagan, John Hinckley. Clearly, the novel had resonated with these murderers; however, the influence that Holden held over Mark Chapman and John Hinckley was not one based on malicious intent, rather the actions of the two criminals were taken as a statement to announce their manners of projection and similarities to Holden.

The upbringing of both murderers began with a withdrawal from their daily lives, an act that Holden partook in towards the beginning of the book. Not only had he resigned himself from others but Holden had also been pulling out from his studies, as stated in the first chapter: “I wasn't supposed to come back after Christmas vacation, on account of I was failing four subjects and not applying myself at all They gave me frequent warnings to start applying myself but I didn't do it” (Salinger 6) To say that Holden did not want to apply himself would be incorrect; it is far more accurate to state that he had let the time he had spent in Pencey pass by. His actions are similar to watching time pass idly, not wasting time but not necessarily making full use of it Holden's withdrawal meant slowly becoming less involved, not just in his education, but with people as a whole Those actions are akin to John Hinckley's behavior during his years at university, clearly presented in the article "A Shared Grief ” “...he began withdrawing into himself and detaching himself from others… merely stopped trying… He dropped out several times, switched his major frequently and moved from one apartment to another” ("A Shared Grief" 86) Hinckley had tried, in a repetitive cycle, to further his education But much like Holden, he had found himself unable to move any further and at that point, began his slow but steady crawl of withdrawing himself from education entirely.