Research Catalog

Title

J.D. Salinger's The catcher in the rye : a cultural history / Josef Benson.

Author

Benson, Josef, 1974-

Publication

• Lanham, Maryland : Rowman & Littlefield, [2018]
• ©2018

Items in the Library & Off-site

Details

Description

xx, 153 pages; 24 cm

Summary

Since its publication in 1951, The Catcher in the Rye has been a cultural phenomenon, not only as an assigned text for English courses but also as a touchstone for generations of alienated youth. As the focus of recent major films and a successful off-Broadway play attest, J.D. Salinger and his novel continue to fascinate the American reading public. But who was J.D. Salinger, and how did he come to write a novel whose impact continues to resonate with millions of readers? In J.D. Salinger's The Catcher in the Rye: A Cultural History, Josef Benson examines the legacy of an elusive author and his work. After exploring how the novel reflected Salinger's tortured psyche, the study discusses how the book made an impact on multiple generations of readers--from 1960s counterculture youth and followers of the Black Power movement of the 1970s to the disenfranchises teens of the Reagan era and the celebrity-fixated masses of the present day. Benson also unravels the mystery behind Salinger's reclusiveness, the effects of the novel on the reading public, and why three American assassins cited the novel as an inspiration. The author also considers why this work of fiction has been among the most widely taught--and most frequently banned--books ever published. By looking at the novel as both an artifact of the 1950s and a living testament to the turmoil of teenage angst, J.D. Salinger's The Catcher in the Rye provides a riveting discussion of one of the most enigmatic novels and authors of all time--back cover.

Subject

• Salinger, J. D. 1919-2010
• Caulfield, Holden (Fictitious character)
• Catcher in the rye (Salinger, J.D.)

Bibliography (note)

• Includes bibliographical references (pages 147-149) and index.

Contents

The birth of a novel: Holden and Salinger: two men in the closet (a close reading) -- Catcher in the fifties: sweet sixteen and the king -- Catcher in the sixties: false profits -- Catcher in the seventies: uprisings and infiltrations -- Catcher in the eighties: law suits and murder -- Catcher in the nineties and to the present: legacies.

Call Number

JFE 18-4034

ISBN

• 9781442277946
• 1442277947

LCCN

2017035350

OCLC

998751687

Author

Benson, Josef, 1974- author.

Title

J.D. Salinger's The catcher in the rye : a cultural history / Josef Benson.

Publisher

Lanham, Maryland : Rowman & Littlefield, [2018]

Copyright Date

©2018

Type of Content

text

Type of Medium

unmediated

Type of Carrier

volume

Bibliography

Includes bibliographical references (pages 147-149) and index.

Other Form:

Online version: Benson, Josef, 1974- J.D. Salinger's The catcher in the rye. Lanham, Maryland : Rowman & Littlefield, 2018 9781442277953 (DLC) 2017036600

Research Call Number

JFE 18-4034