JOURNAL POST 3
Is there a message or a main them emerging in the book? How is it shown?
Throughout the novel, the main message that the author establishes is that you must learn based on experience. Simply put, you should let your instincts guide you. Throughout the whole book, Holden Caulfield persistently searches for guidance from strangers but it proves to be unsuccessful and somewhat of a burden. “Don’t ever tell anybody anything. If you do, you start missing everybody.” (214) I feel that life is surrounded by mysteries in which you must uncover yourself. Only you can live your life, and because you live only once, one must undertake experiences to learn. Take Holden for instance, even though he had a rough experience, he can benefit from learning through mistakes.
To me, the quote is significant because I support keeping things to myself. There is no necessity to letting others know about your personal life, because at the end of the day only you can solve your problems. The quote reminds me of the time when I told my friend about an irritating classmate that I had. As a result of that, it created serious tension between me and my classmate; he wanted to “take things outside.” From this, I learned that it’s hard to trust others with your thoughts and feelings. It cannot be stressed enough how important this quote is to the novel, because it indicates that Holden has learned to not tell anyone anything. In the teenage world, word of mouth spreads quickly and somehow manages to create problems; therefore some things are better left unsaid.
