Your Inner Fish

“Find your inner fish,” whispers Kevin Bacon, your social engineering instructor. Its 9:00 AM and you are attending the Popularity Verity with Bacon seminar in upper Manhattan. All your dubiousness of attending the event rapidly departed after your first enlightening encounter with the actor. After just an hour of his mingling and conversational exercises, you are now more confident than ever. You feel great about yourself. Your self-esteem, you decide, has never been higher. But what will you do with the Bacon doctrine? After some thought, you resolve to apply these newfound social skills to your personal life and to your workplace.

Your mind rewinds to the icebreaker question: How many times have you farted in public? Initially, you think, “Who the hell is this guy? Did I really sacrifice my marriage to be here?” As you motion toward the exit, Bacon swiftly stops you in your tracks and, in front of the class of 30 people, repeats, “How many times have you farted in public?”

In a timid voice you respond, “Once, by accident,” when Bacon proceeds to laugh maniacally.

At once, he proclaims, “You see, this is exactly the problem with society today. Not enough farting, not enough courage. From this moment on, I mandate that you fart at least one time in an elevator daily. This way, you will become unaccustomed to what others think of you and your odors. Eliminate that Shy Guy persona and let the flatulence come forth!”

Your mind struggles to register the sheer extraordinariness of this advice. Your Bacon-induced stupor grounds you, paralyzes your awe-stricken face.

As Bacon prepares to share his closing remarks, you reflect on how Bacon’s counsel will resonate with you for a lifetime. Finally, he bids the audience farewell, reminding you ladies and gentlemen to embrace the spirit of the fish and to always swim with the school. The one that swim in the opposite direction, he asserts, is the first to be eaten by the shark. How delightful, Bacon is talking about fish. Your stomach grumbles and you realize that you are incredibly hungry. 

Maturation Issues

           To the average reader, Holden Caulfield will come across as a stuck-up, judgmental brat. The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger orbits around this boy’s take on his immediate environment, be it Pencey Boarding School or the racy city-life of New York. In most novels, the development of the plot is the driving force of the narrative, however in Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger places a refreshing emphasis on the development of character. Admittedly, it becomes somewhat obnoxious being inside this character’s head the entire novel, yet it is an enriching experience nonetheless. With careful deliberation, we realize that Holden is an exaggeration of how particularly rebellious teens respond to the coming of age.

            As I mentioned earlier, a reader new to The Catcher in the Rye could accidently slip into the mindset that Holden is somewhat of a conceited personality. But really he is just like any teen. Now that’s not to say that every teen is conceited, but Holden does experience a thought process that many of us can relate to whether we like it or not. We simply do not want to accept the fact that occasionally dark, cynical thoughts have flashed through our mind. It is because we experience the crux of his observations that we taste the darker side of human nature. In any case, Holden’s issues with the world seem rather extreme. He is quick to point out people, places, or things he finds “phony” or superficial; he has comparatively little respect for anything or anyone.

            It is because Holden has not yet found a bounded culture to fit into that the entire novel appears to be him against the world. He is not particularly passionate about anything but his younger siblings and smoking. As Phoebe, his younger sister, indicates later in the novel, he “doesn’t like anything that’s happening” (Salinger 169). Yet deep inside, Holden longs to find a place. This desire is depicted by his violent reaction toward what he calls “intellectuals,” or smart people. Holden is critical of their general personalities right down to the schools that they attend, stemming from his deep-seated insecurity of appearing too smart, but knowing inside that he has the academic potential succeed. Even so, Holden does not act upon this realization because he simply does not possess any academic drive. By all accounts, he has not yet “found himself,” and he will not ever unless he opens himself up to the possibilities of exploring the gray areas of life. Within the scope of this novel, Holden does not achieve this milestone.

           Ultimately, adulthood is maturity and maturity means knowing oneself. Really then, Holden is afraid of maturity, which explains why he respects little children so much more than many of the adults in his life. He fears conformity - adjusting to a specific bounded culture - as it would mean that he has found a place among adults and has surrendered a carefree childhood. Lying is therefore his go-to method for shielding himself from adulthood. This method allows him to keep his true self behind a mask, making him less vulnerable to the manipulative hands of society.

Works Cited

Salinger, J D. The Catcher in the Rye. New York: Little, Brown and Company, 1991. Print.