Catcher+Historicism

Opening Activity: Take out a piece of paper--don't write your name on the top. Choose one of the two topics: 1. Describe a time when you've felt that a traumatic event has influenced your decisions and even your personality. 2. Holden feels like he is being alienated or scape goated by the people around him. Have you ever felt this way such that you felt it was on purpose? How did you react? 3. Have you ever purposely persecuted someone before because of their differences or their nationality or any such deviation from normality.

If you feel comfortable sharing your few sentences on the topic, pass your paper to someone else. If not. Keep it to yourself and see what you can learn from other people's experiences/ events.

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Catcher In the Rye// was written to take place in the late 1940's and early 1950's. The Atomic bomb has already been invented. World War II had reached its end of the massive turmoil that it caused across the world. The aftermath of the war and its affects on the psychological and emotional aspects of the human mind can be represented by the trauma that the protagonist Holden Caulfield is attempting to overcome. Many families and individuals were suffering from post-traumatic stress syndrome relating to the chaos and horrors of war, and the loss of lives during the 40's in Europe. It seems the decisions and actions of many of the post WWII individuals parallel the insecure actions that Holden Caulfield endures. The fear of communists in the United States was beggining to roll towards the chaotic Red Scare of the 50's. In the very late years of the 40's, new technologies were rising, such as the first real time computer, hydrogen bombs, and basis behind cable television. This explosion of new ideas, realities, technologies and fears represent much of the conflicting ideas and events in the novel by J.D. Salinger.

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1. How does the average person in today's world deal with traumatic events in their lives?

2. It seems that events like 911 will parallel the horrors of WWII, how do you think the events of our era have shaped people's personalities and coping mechanisms?

3. What events are the most influencial in our lives?

4. Do you feel that our society will resort to the kind of descrimination and persecution that filled the years of the Red Scare (Communist persecution and chaos) towards muslims or people of the middle east? Is that a common feeling towards national enemies? Are there any sort of persecutions like this today if not towards muslims or middle easterners?

John E