A World of Simplicity by Jordan

A World of Simplicity by Jordan - October 2021 Scholarship Essay

Many popular novels develop themes of “innocence.” Perhaps it is my personal preference of literature that causes this topic to resurface multiple times. The simplicity and purity of child-like innocence teaches all of us that we are protected as children from harsh realities that would be too difficult to understand or process.
A novel that most appropriately demonstrates this point is a classic. Written by J.D Salinger, officially published in 1951, and would become a work that is taught in almost all school settings: The Catcher in the Rye. The protagonist, Holden, has a primary virtue to protect the innocence of children. As you read the novel, the reason Holden keeps this virtue becomes clear. After reading this narrative, the realization sets in that many works of literature exhibit a theme of innocence.
Childhood innocence refers to children’s simplicity, their lack of knowledge, and their overall purity that hasn’t been spoiled by the realities of the world. The examination of innocence by The Catcher in the Rye makes the reader look at the world differently. One realizes that innocence is something that everyone wishes they still had. People wish they could wake up with no worries in their life and a worry-free world.
Why is innocence a part of childhood? Why do children have it or need it? They have it and need it because it is a tool for dealing with the uncertainty and insecurity of life in their helpless state. Children should not have a care in the world. The Catcher in the Rye helps one to understand that as we grow up, we crave to be like children, again. Although this may not be a huge revelation, the simplicity of it adds a great deal of character.
Overall, The Catcher in the Rye helped me realize how similar we all are. Regardless of our individual childhood, innocence was our protection. This can be considered our shared human experience. If all people could be protected from the negativities and cruelness of the world, what might be the results in the adult world of such connectivity? Salinger’s novel examines that notion while realizing that we won’t be able to remain innocent. What would the world be if we kept what we had as children?