The Degeneration of Morality and the Morality in Degeneration: on The Catcher in the Rye

The Catcher in the Rye, as the representative work by the American Jewish writer Salinger, tells the experience of a "degenerate" teenager Holden. The degeneration of Holden is only on the surface, and as a revolt against the commercial society, it constitutes the criticism against the corruption of morality in that society. Holden's degeneration is a critical parody of the society then, his hypocrisy embodies a pursuit of the sincerity in a deeper sense, and his sentimental attachment to the nature manifests an anti-alienation theme. Holden's degeneration has profound moral meanings and houses manifold ethical as well as sociological dimensions, among which an ideal of moral redemption is given expression.