The teenage years are a time of transition between the simplicity of childhood and the complexity and responsibilities of adulthood. Most teenagers eagerly jump into a more adult role, striving to be seen as independent and mature. Childlike naiveté is often shunned and pushed aside at an early age. However, in the novel Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger, protagonist Holden Caulfield is reluctant to relinquish the safety and comfort of childhood in exchange for the adult world, which he finds frightening and superficial. Holden is fearful that is he lets go of his youth, he will lose his connection with his brother Allie, who died when he was quite young. As a defense mechanism, Holden views the adult world as taboo, to be avoided at all costs, and begins to see it as his responsibility to protect children from its hypocrisy and corruption. Salinger uses...