Examples Of Innocence In Catcher In The Rye

There are many people who have a fear of having to grow up. When a child grows up their innocence starts to fade away. It is something that happens no matter how much someone wants to keep it. Some people cannot accept the fact that growing up is a part of life. That as one grows up they learn and understand things that they did not when they were children. In The Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield is the protagonist who is not too keen of having to grow up. Throughout the novel this fear is shown. He is caught between being a child and turning to an adult. He knows that growing up is something that going to happen no matter what. There is no way he could prevent or at least help the children from losing their innocence. But he still wants to be able to try and do something about it. He wants to be the catcher in the rye and preserve the innocence of the children. Holden Caulfield’s protection of innocence can be seen through his talks about the Museum of Natural History, Jane Gallagher and Phoebe, but he
He tells her this little scenario where there would be kids playing in this field that was next to a cliff. But “If they’re running and they don’t look where they’re going [ he has] to come out from somewhere and catch them” (Salinger 191). He would be saving the children from danger. He would not only be saving them from falling but also from losing their innocence. The children falling are the ones who are on the verge of losing their innocence. Which is why “[His] mission in life is to catch little children before they fall off the cliff” (Castronovo). He feels like he should be the one to save the children. If he could catch them he would be able to help them, and protect them from the evil ways of the adult world. He will find satisfaction if he knew he had helped the children escape from ever having to grow up and face adult